Happy Monday beauties, we hope you enjoy our new site as much as we do. As a dermatology clinic that works with functional medicine, we believe that we need to work together with our diets to get that beautiful glow from within. So many people spend a lot of time and money on what they put on their skin, but maybe we should all start thinking more about what we put into our body as well.

For example, is acne troubling you? Milk products might not be doing your skin any favours. Some experts (including the American Academy of Dermatology) believe there is a connection between milk products and clear, glowing skin. In short, the correlation seems to be related with the hormone levels in dairy that leads to inflammation, aging and acne.

As someone who loves herself a good latte, this is a tough one for me. But after some research and taste trials, there are still lots of yummy dairy free alternatives. So my fellow latte lovers, don’t fret you can still enjoy your daily cup of heaven with the alternatives suggested below. Just make sure you are getting enough calcium and vitamin D elsewhere in your diet.

Here are a few dairy alternatives our nutritionist loves:

Milk Alternatives-

• Nut or seed milks
  • Almond, cashew, hemp, or sunflower milks are common. If you are making them at home you can make them from any nut variety you choose!
  • If you buy this from the store make sure to buy the unsweetened variety.
• Coconut milk
• Full-fat (canned) coconut milk is a great alternative for coffee creamer. Buy the canned coconut milk, and blend it up to mix the separated parts. Then store in the fridge!
• Avoid soymilk. It is extremely contaminated with chemicals and pesticides from the way it is manufactured. It has the ability to disrupt your endocrine system as well with mega doses of chemical estrogens.

Yogurt Alternatives-

• Coconut milk (from a can)
  • Throw it in a blender for a few seconds to make it frothy.
  • Put can in the fridge and the cream will thicken.
• Homemade nut milk can be made thicker by adding less water to be added to granolas for extra texture.
• Coconut yogurt can be bought from health food stores.
  • Purchase the unsweetened kind.
  • If you need, sweeten it yourself with a small amount of honey, or fruit topped on it.
• Making a Chia / Oat pudding can act as a great yogurt replacement.

Cheese Alternatives-

• If it is not an allergy:
  • Goat cheese is a better option
  • Unpasteurized raw cheese
• If it is an allergy or elimination
  • Try Cashew cheese – Great brands are: Kite hill, Spread-em, Myokos
• Nutritional yeast can be used in sauces to get a “cheesy” flavour.
• Check out “This Cheese is Nuts” Recipe Book
• Parmesan Cheese – blend sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds + nutritional yeast.
• Blended cashews or avocados into “pasta” sauce to give it a creamy texture.
• Mac and Cheese: Butternut squash and rosemary and coconut milk as a sauce.

Examples of what to switch to in snacks

• Cheese and crackers: avocado or nut butter smashed onto whole grain crackers.
• Vegetables sticks with turmeric or babaganoosh (eggplant) dip .
• Cheese in salads: try adding nuts, seeds, and tahini garlic olive oil dressings for increased flavour! These flavours and fats will satisfy what you’re looking for. Or add some cashew cheese!
• Cream cheese spreads: use tahini or hummus instead. Or check out the recipe book above, or brands suggested.
• Add flavour in new ways with hummus spreads, sprouts or pesto.