After years of experimentation, he has found that dairy revs up his inflammation levels during spring, fall, and winter—but in the summer he feels totally fine. “I do love cheese and I love certain dairy-related desserts and things,” he notes, but especially during the springtime, that gut inflammation doesn’t make him feel his best. 

Now, the research on dairy and inflammation is quite mixed. Some report that dairy foods do not 1increase biomarkers of chronic inflammation1, while others have linked milk consumption to an increase in IGF-1 levels2 and acne (all acne stems from inflammation, for what it’s worth).

The point is that everyone’s guts are different—and according to Pedre, your own gut is a dynamic system that can change and evolve throughout the year. So just because you can generally tolerate dairy doesn’t mean you’re completely off the hook; make sure you keep listening to your body’s cues.  

“I think it’s important not just to know what your gut type is and what you can tolerate, but to also become really aware that not all symptoms that are being triggered by your gut are going to be in your gut,” explains Pedre. A sensitivity to dairy can totally manifest as bloat, but it could also show up as congestion3. “It’s so important to start to see those patterns because they can be super subtle,” he adds.