Dairy products have opiate properties?

from JoeUser Forums
I remember hearing somewhere that dairy products have opiate properties. Is this true? I know some people have milk before they go to bed, and some people will have hot chocolate as a comfort food, but is it chemically a comforter or is the effect merely psychological?

I used to be a behavioural therapist for a little boy with autism and milk certainly worked as an opiate on him -- if he had any dairy product he would be spaced out and unresponsive (even more so than usual) for at least a day. I don't know if that had to do with his disorder or if it was a compounded effect of something that in "normal" people would go largely unnoticed.

Anyone who knows anything about this, your comments are welcomed.

Teegs :)
5,885 views 2 replies
Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top

Yes.. I heard that cheese has morphine-like properties. This would explain my want to have cheese with anything I can, so long as it is socially acceptable that is. It also may have something to do with the urge my brother and I have to steal cheese from the chopping board as Mum is slicing/grating it up. We like to cut off overly thick slices as midnight snacks too, but I know of many single males that do that. Seinfeld's George most notably. ;-)

I asked Jeeves what he thought about the subject and he refered me to Link . Read the intro but pay particular attention to Section 2 and the links they have there. I hope this helps you out.

It does seem that dairy products do affect people with autism moreso than the rest of us from what I can gather. I'm pretty sure that chocolate is in the same boat, but its effects aren't as noticable. I think I heard that moose cheese is the most potent. Watch the FDA (or their Aussie equivalent) try and ban THAT one :-)

There IS a medical reason for my cheese obsession. Now I just have to find one to explain my monkey and penguin fetish.

Reply #2 from JoeUser Forums Top
The amino acid tryptophan that is found in turkey is found in dairy products. It is the stuff that makes you sleepy. Tryptophan helps the brains regulation of seratonin. I first learned about it's calming effects when my pediatricain told me that is why dairy is a good evening snack for kids.
Elemental: Reforged