As we get older, many of us begin experiencing sensitivity to some dairy products. Lactose can have a major impact on your gut health. Unfortunately, many people aren’t familiar with why this occurs and how you can mitigate the unpleasant side effects of dairy without having to give up some of your favorite foods.
What is lactose?
Lactose is a milk sugar that is broken down into simpler components by lactase, an enzyme that is found in your small intestine. Babies from most types of mammals can tolerate lactase but will stop producing lactase once they are weaned.
What is lactose intolerance?
Lactose intolerance is considered the inability to digest milk sugars. This is generally caused by an insufficient amount of lactase in the gut. If the lactose is not digested and absorbed into the small intestine, it will continue down the digestive tract to the large intestine where different types of bacteria will break it down into acids and gasses which can lead to some unpleasant symptoms.
While many people from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and some Mediterranean countries stop producing after about five years of age, many people of Western European descent continue to produce it throughout their lives.
What are the symptoms of lactose intolerance?
Some of the most common symptoms associated with lactose intolerance include abdominal pain, gas, bloating, flatulence, and diarrhea.
What causes lactose intolerance?
Lactose intolerance is thought to be genetically determined. This means that your genes may cause you to crease less lactase than usual. If you have been experiencing the symptoms of lactose intolerance after consuming dairy products for a long period of time, your body may simply not produce as much lactase as other people.
If you have only recently begun to experience the symptoms of lactose intolerance, it could also be due to gastroenteritis, a parasitic infection, or celiac disease. If this is the case, your GI tract is likely to return to normal within a few weeks.
Regardless of whether you are experiencing short-term lactose intolerance or are genetically susceptible to it, try not to cut out dairy products completely as they contain important vitamins and minerals that are important in maintaining overall wellness.
How can you manage lactose intolerance?
If you suspect that you may be experiencing lactose intolerance but abhor the idea of giving up dairy products, don’t panic! Not all dairy products are created equal when it comes to lactose intolerance. Mature cheeses like cheddar, mozzarella, and feta don’t have lactose while butter, cream, yogurt, cottage cheese, and ricotta contain very low levels of it and are usually well tolerated. You can also consume full-fat milk in moderate quantities (less than 10 ounces per day) and avoid low-fat or non-fat milk which travel quickly through the gut.
It is important to check the ingredients of anything that you consume as there are many different foods that may contain hidden lactose. This includes things like cake, cheese sauce, custard, milk chocolate, scrambled eggs, quiche, and cream soups. Some of the ingredients to keep an eye out for are milk solids, non-fat milk solids, milk sugar, and whey.
Need help?
If you feel like you have been experiencing severe symptoms of lactose intolerance, give us a call today to set up a consultation. One of our GI experts will be happy to help you discover what the culprit is and get your GI tract back on track!