What you need to know about lactose intolerance

By Rajan | Monday, June 27th, 2011
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The incapability to digest cow’s milk, known as Lactose intolerance is astonishingly common. As milk is found in several foods therefore its symptoms imitate a numeral of other ailments. The problem is frequently hard to diagnose appropriately that affects about fifteen percent people in Briton. One must aware about certain things as explained by Dr Ellie Cannon.

Lactose is sugar that naturally occurs in milk and dairy products and human body uses an enzyme called lactase to break it down. When you have inadequate levels of lactase in the gut then occurs lactose intolerance, therefore milk sugar cannot be digested adequately. The sugar is fermented in the gut, causing an accumulation of fluid and gas in the bowel.

The symptoms of lactose intolerance may include, developing bloating, abdominal pain and wind diarrhea, two hours after eating a dairy products. This likely to occur in respond to any dairy products but people find pure milk and hard cheese the nastiest wrongdoers. With age the lactose intolerance of the body declines because body’s natural amount of lactase diminishes.

If you are allergic to dairy then your immune system discards dairy products with a severe allergic reaction like vomiting, stomach pain, skin rashes, wheezing and potentially-fatal anaphylactic reaction. People allergic to dairy should avoid all milk products. People with lactose intolerance can bear milk product without lactose and their immune system is not occupied in causing the reaction.

Due to lack of awareness among doctors and patients, many people have been misdiagnosed. This had escorted to people suffering lactose intolerance being erroneously marked as having irritable bowel syndrome. The easiest way to diagnose lactose intolerance is to do an elimination diet by removing lactose from the diet for two weeks.

The lactose intolerance does not mean giving up dairy products. After an exclusion diet one can steadily introduce dairy to find out one’s tolerance level. Some people may not be able to tolerate a latte, but be fine with splash or milk in tea. Several people wrongly switch to goat milk but that still contains lactose. While almond, oat and soya milk are lactose free alternatives.


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