“You don’t have to suffer,” says Tia Mowry about dealing with lactose intolerance, which affects about 65 percent of people.
Her whole family is lactose intolerant, and the star realized she was when she was in high school. At that time, she was worried that she would have to give up her favorite dairy-filled things to avoid discomfort. Thankfully, that hasn’t been the case. She’s a fan of LACTAID and has partnered with the popular milk brand and Sesame Street to help people ‘Cook with Comfort.’ She’s offering dairy-filled recipes, like her Elmo overnight oats, to help people enjoy what they like without the lactose.
“I’m so grateful for LACTAID because you can enjoy the benefits that real milk has to offer you like the creaminess, the texture,” she says. “I can’t just have cookies without milk. I have to have milk. It’s just a tradition of mine.”
It’s also a tradition for her family now to enjoy the brand’s offerings. LACTAID has milk, ice cream and even caplets to help you have what you want. And for Mowry, she’s not one to deny herself the things she truly desires, from simple milk and cookies to pursuing her love of cooking. The star has her latest cookbook on the way, The Quick Fix Kitchen, her second offering. The star, who revealed to us that she was incredibly close to enrolling in culinary school before she booked The Game and had to change her plans, doesn’t believe that because she’s an actress, she can’t have another career sharing recipes, lifestyle advice and more with fans. She’s now living the other dreams she had and is able to do so on her own terms.
“Women, we are multifaceted. There are so many different levels to who we are as people. Why should we just stop at one thing?” she asks. “I feel like just because you’re a mom it doesn’t necessarily mean you have to give up on all your dreams and your aspirations that you have in life. That’s definitely where it comes from. I’m inspired by my own personal life.”
It’s a message that encourages other women and that she hopes she will inspire daughter Cairo with by living it every day. And speaking of Cairo, we had to know about the playdates she set up for her daughter, 2, and Gabrielle Union’s daughter, Kaavia, 2. As it turns, they’re already besties.
“They are two peas in a pod,” she says. “It all started on Instagram. People would say, they would call Cairo and Gabrielle’s, Kaavia, her daughter, ‘shady baby.’ They just like to keep it real you know? And then Gabrielle was like, ‘We’ve got to get these kids together.'”
The two little ladies found that they’re kindred spirits and have been having a good time with one another since, which the star moms have documented and shared on Instagram. It’s the same place where the idea for getting them together came from.
“We finally got them together and they hit it off more than we thought they ever would. It’s crazy,” she says. “They go to soccer practice together. They love each other. There’s always hugs. I’ve never seen Cairo smile and laugh so hard. That’s her girl-friend!”
And while the relationship is cute, it also has been great for both girls. Mowry says that for Cairo, she is able to face her fears thanks to her new BFF.
“We call it Black girl magic, we really do, Gabrielle and I. It’s like, just seeing them together, it’s so magical,” she says. “I always see how we can inspire each other. Kaavia, she’s a great swimmer and Cairo was so scared about going underwater. And so Gabrielle was like, she invited us, ‘Let her come to one of Kaavia’s swim lessons.’ We all were together with the kids and she saw Kaavia go underwater and Cairo was like boop! She went under the water! She’s not afraid and it’s because of seeing that positive image with Kaavia and it starts at a young age, it really does.”
So many gems were shared in our conversation with Mowry. Check out the full chat below, where we also cover how she deals with her lactose intolerance when on set, shares more about her cookbook, and explains the importance of knowing you can see all your dreams to fruition, even as a busy mom.