Cheesy lasagna and chocolate chip cookies are supposed to be mouthwatering and delicious. Yet, it comes at a price for someone who is lactose intolerant. With the ingredient of dairy — specifically the sugar called lactose — making an appearance in a majority of foods, those who are lactose intolerant should take precautions when consuming lactose filled delights. From my own personal experience and observations, the majority of people with lactose intolerance decide to ignore it. Even so, 65 percent of the human population is lactose intolerant, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, including myself and six out of 14 of the Outlook editors.
“The majority of people with lactose intolerance decide to ignore it”
Lactose intolerance is simply the reduced ability to digest lactose due to a deficiency of lactase enzymes. Consumption of dairy products is harmless in most cases, but the symptoms, such as abdominal cramps and bloating, to name a few, can be uncomfortable for those with lactose intolerance.
Up until the summer of 2018, I was guilty of ignoring my lactose intolerance. It was not until I received multiple requests from family members and friends to cut out dairy to eliminate unpleasant experiences did I begin to limit my dairy intake.
Since I can remember I drank lactose free milk, so the only struggle in regards to milk was asking for milk substitutes from cafes, which is usually 50 cents more — sometimes 75 cents if they offer almond milk. On the other hand, cheese was everywhere. I made paninis almost everyday, pizza was a weekly dinner staple and ice cream was a regular treat. I started to substitute or cut out all of these food items. I began purchasing sorbets or popsicles instead of milk based ice cream. I purchased dairy-free cheese (ironically it smelled like old cheese). I gave the dairy-free cheese multiple tries and experimented with all the different flavors, but each one left me unsatisfied.
My symptoms almost vanished completely, but I realized that whenever I accidentally consumed dairy when it was hidden in a sauce or a drink, the symptoms were much more dreadful than before.
It turns out that the human body does not produce much lactase to break down lactose to begin with. Up until the age of three to five, human beings have high levels of intestinal lactase, and afterwards there is a steep drop-off in production. Twenty-five percent of the world’s population is the exception as they continue to keep producing lactase in high doses for the rest of their life. In turn, the rest of the population is lactose intolerant. Many can actually overcome their lactose intolerance by consuming more dairy. The way the production of lactase works is that the more dairy we consume, the more lactase is produced.
Symptoms vary from person to person. Even when I consumed dairy on a regular basis, eating it in almost every single meal of the day, I still experienced symptoms of lactose intolerance. For someone like myself, taking a lactase enzyme supplement works to prevent symptoms. While the lactose enzyme supplement is an convenient solution, those who experience lactose intolerance should take care when consuming dairy products.
