Lactose Intolerance

In continuation of my series of identifying different digestive problems, I’m going to briefly explain what it’s like to have Lactose Intolerance and what the best diet is if you have this condition.

Lactose Intolerance is a common condition where your body doesn’t have enough enzymes to break down a sugar called Lactose and it is found in milk and milk products. 25 to 50 million Americans have some form of Lactose Intolerance and experience will vary.

However, it could still be painful and uncomfortable, which could affect our everyday life.

Some products that have Lactose are: milk, ice cream, soft and processed cheese, Pudding and Custards and cream based soups or sauces. Lactose is also in baked goods, milk chocolate and lunch meats.

Now, you don’t have to a milk intake every day, but dairy is good for you. Dairy is a good source of calcium and vitamins A and D. With a regular exercise, what you get from dairy can make your bones and teeth stronger and make you have less of chance of getting Osteoporosis, a bone disease that happens when you lose too many bones or make too few or both.

Anyone could have it. It will depend on your personal and family medical history. Children can have this condition, but it more of the case that adults will have a greater chance to develop it.

Symptoms of Lactose Intolerance are different to everyone who has it. It will matter by the amount of lactose that was consumed.

The most common signs are:

• Abdominal pain
• Diarrhea
• Gas
• Bloating

You could experience this symptom from about 30 minutes to two hours. It could be not that painful and it could be critical, but it depends on how much of diary is in your system. It’s like an allergy or, in this case, a “milk allergy.” Some people can have a little milk or you might have to eliminate milk from your diet all together. I would go to the doctors to find out if you have a mild or severe condition.

Some test you will have to take if you think you have it is lactose tolerance test, hydrogen breathe test and stool acidity test. The thing that will help the most is a physical examination, as well as blood test.

Let’s get to what types of foods to avoid and what you can eat.

Foods to avoid are milk and milk based products. I explain a little in this blog post about that.

Foods that are good to eat if you have this condition is non-dairy foods that are rich in calcium like Spinach, Raw broccoli, canned white tuna, soy milk, leafy vegetables and Almonds. 

You can also include small samples of diary in the system once in a while. You can get your body use to the intakes and you may not be Lactose Intolerant all your life.