Скачать или смотреть When Milk Shakes Up Your Stomach

It’s a painful reality for some 30 million Americans. Milk shakes up their stomach. Bloated bellyaches are a sign of lactose intolerance.

“Lactose intolerance is malabsorption and mal-digestion of dairy products, mainly because of the sugar in dairy products and the enzyme that your body needs to break that down,” says Dr. Michael Weiss, gastroenterologist on medical staff of Lee Memorial Health System.

The sugar is called lactose - the enzyme that digests it is lactate. Some of us make less lactate as we age, turning former dairy lovers into lactose loathers.

“It sneaks up on people,” says Dr. Weiss. “The common symptoms would be bloating, flatulence, abdominal pain, and or diarrhea when you eat dairy products such as milk, ice cream, cheese, or yogurt.”

Lactose intolerance is not an all-or-nothing condition. People vary in the amount of enzyme they produce and how much milk sugar they can absorb. Some dairy products are easier to swallow - including Parmesan, Swiss, cream, cottage, ricotta and cheddar cheeses. Along with yogurt that uses a bacteria in the culturing process.

“It basically is trial and error. Someone might say, ‘I can have one slice of cheese on a cheeseburger and it doesn’t bother me at, all but if I go to have milk or ice cream that gives me a lot of upset.’ “ says Dr. Weiss.

It’s all about finding your comfort zone. Lactaid pills can help and milk-substitutes are easy to find. At its heart, lactose intolerance is simply a pain in the gut.

“It doesn’t lead to any long-term damage or increased risk of cancer or shorten your lifespan. So it’s really just about being uncomfortable,” says Dr. Weiss.

View More Health Matters video segments at leememorial.org/healthmatters/

Lee Memorial Health System in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of medical care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For nearly a century, we’ve been providing our community with everything from primary care treatment to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries.

Visit leememorial.org