New information suggests that many people who have self-diagnosed their lactose intolerance may not actually be lactose intolerant at all. Experts believe that most adults experience at least a bit of difficulty with dairy digestion. Some unpleasant symptoms set in after drinking or eating milk or milk products. Dairy products are great source of vitamin D and calcium, which help promote healthy bones and prevent against osteoporosis and other health issues, so significantly limiting dairy consumption is not necessarily the best option. So before making any rash decisions, you really must ask yourself, ‘am I lactose intolerant?’
Milk and products of milk contain a sugar called lactose. Most nutrient absorption occurs in the small intestine, and lactose is no different. Before entering the blood stream, an enzyme called lactase breaks down the lactose into simple sugars known as galactose and glucose.
The condition known as lactose intolerance is characterized by unpleasant digestive symptoms as a result of consuming milk or milk products. These symptoms include bloating, gas, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Lactose intolerance can be caused by a lactase deficiency and lactose malabsorption.
Not all sufferers of lactose malabsorption and lactase deficiencies will experience digestive symptoms.
There are somewhere around 30 million to 50 million Americans who are lactose intolerant. Lactose intolerance is so common that physicians are hesitant to even consider it a disorder. It’s not unusual to naturally progress into experiencing difficulty with digesting lactose as you get older.
Caucasians are the least affected group of people, as only about 20% are lactose intolerant. Native Americans and African Americans are much more affected (75%); and 90% of Asian Americans are lactose intolerant.
Well, let’s see how you can find out.
If you have been noticing that you are experiencing some of the symptoms of lactose intolerance after consuming dairy products like gas and abdominal pain, you can cut dairy from your diet for a few days. If you are lactose intolerant, your symptoms should go away. Reincorporate dairy back into your diet and see if your symptoms return. If yes, then you can heed the advice listed below. Always be careful when trying to self-diagnose, as you can easily mistake your symptoms for those of another condition like irritable bowel syndrome.
Your doctor will want to discuss your medical history and that of your family while trying to rule out or diagnose lactose intolerance. Your diet is also of concern during this discussion, so always be honest. Talk to your doctor about the symptoms you are experiencing, when and how often, keeping in mind that it is difficult to diagnose lactose intolerance based on symptoms alone. Serious digestive symptoms can also be caused by small bowel bacterial overgrowth, celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and irritable bowel syndrome.
A physical exam will help to rule out other conditions and diagnose lactose intolerance. The health care professional will typically first check for bloating of the abdomen, then listen to the abdomen with a stethoscope. He or she will try a series of tapping on the abdomen to elicit signs of pain or tenderness. Their advice may be to cut out milk and dairy products for a small period of time to see if the symptoms go away. If those symptoms do in fact subside in the absence of milk and milk products, then the health care provider should be able to confirm the diagnosis.
There are two medical tests that can determine if lactose digestion is happening properly. Your doctor may order one or both to get more information.
So now you know how to find the answer to the question of ‘am I lactose intolerant?’, if unfortunately, you are, you may be wondering whether you should stay away from milk products totally.
Yes, if you are lactose intolerant, you can still have milk and milk products.
It is common for people who are lactose intolerant to be able to handle small amounts of lactose, and should not need to completely go off the cow. Everybody is different and the ability to digest lactose can certainly vary.