I became lactose intolerant coming up on 4 years ago and it really sucks. Some of my favorite things are chocolate milk, ice cream, and various cheeses and now they induce terrible IBS episodes. I still cave and eat them, only to face inevitable pain and regret later.
The same thing happened to me. I also can't eat naturally lactose-free hard cheeses, as they are too hard on my digestive system.
However, I've been working on a few things and I'm hoping to take the IBS-world by storm with happiness the happiness of delicious cheese.
Also, a trick I've learned with Chocolate Milk and other liquid dairy products (even cream cheese and yogurt) is to crush up a lactose digestive aid with a mortar and pestle or use a liquid one and mix it into the product I wish to consume after its been sitting for 24 hours. I've found without the lactose these things tend to stay good longer as well. Note: you can't make cheese out of this type of milk or cream though, as it's the lactic acid being produced that gives dairy cheese its flavor.
