In ancient Greece, the physician Hippocrates first noted gastrointestinal upset in some people who consumed milk. While we don’t know what the good doctor’s diagnosis was or how he treated the problem, modern medical science tells us those people may have been suffering from lactose intolerance, a condition in which the body isn’t able to fully digest lactose, a type of natural sugar found in milk and dairy products. Common symptoms include nausea, cramps, bloating, gas, and diarrhea, which begin within thirty minutes to two hours after eating or drinking foods containing lactose. It is estimated that close to 50 million American adults have some degree of lactose intolerance, but a government panel says not enough research has been done to know exactly how many people have the condition or how it ultimately affects their health.
The 14-member panel, composed of experts from across the medical spectrum and convened by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), spent nearly three days in Bethesda, Maryland assessing the available information on lactose intolerance and made their findings known on Wednesday in a draft report. They concluded that, of the nearly 60 relevant studies, none of them “evaluated a representative U.S. sample” and thus “cannot be used to estimate the prevalence” of the condition. “I think that there are huge gaps in knowledge,” said panel chairman Dr. Frederick J. Suchy, professor and chief of pediatric hepatology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. “There is a huge amount of research that needs to be done.”
Some studies show that a sizable number of people who believe they are lactose intolerant do not actually have impaired lactose digestion, which means that many people who think they must avoid all dairy products may not need to. “A lot of people who think they have lactose intolerance don’t,” Suchy said. “They may have other conditions, or they may just need to consume smaller amounts of dairy products.” According to the report, some people with lactose deficiency can tolerate moderate amounts of ingested lactose. “The available evidence suggests that adults and adolescents who have been diagnosed with lactose malabsorption could ingest at least 12 grams of lactose (equivalent to the lactose content found in one cup of milk or one cup of yogurt) with no or minor symptoms,” the report reads. Some also increase their tolerance to lactose with repeated intake.
Suchy said eliminating dairy products could be detrimental to your bones and, possibly, your heart, blood pressure and colon, so it’s important that regardless of whether a person is truly lactose intolerant or not, they get the recommended amounts of calcium and other essential nutrients.“It is startling and disappointing to learn how little we know about the consequences of avoiding lactose-containing products,” he said. “Health care providers are concerned, but we don’t have good data on bone health outcomes in people who have lactose intolerance or who avoid dairy products for other reasons.”
