Can you lose lactose tolerance?

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Question: Can you lose lactose tolerance?

Answer: In some cases and to some extent, yes. Lactose is a sugar that occurs in milk and other dairy products. An enzyme called lactase, in the small intestines, breaks lactose down. When a baby drinks milk from its mother, the lactase in the baby’s intestines helps digest the milk. As the baby grows older, the amount of lactase in the digestive tract will often shrink, or even disappear altogether.

Then, when the child (or adult) consumes lactose-containing dairy products, those foods don’t get digested, leading to discomfort and various unpleasant symptoms – bloating, stomachache, diarrhea, nausea, bloating, etc.

Worldwide, about two-thirds of adults suffer from this, but it varies widely. Lactose intolerance is very common among people of Asian, African or Arab descent. Among people of European percent, though, it afflicts only about 5% of the population. For some people with lactose intolerance who’ve been dairy-free for a period of time, a very gradual re-introduction of certain dairy foods can begin to build up favorable microbiomic bacteria in the small intestine and colon, which in some cases can allow them to begin to incorporate slightly increased amounts of dairy into their diets without undue discomfort or other negative symptoms.

Progressive exposure, meaning consuming dairy in small amounts frequently, distributed throughout the day, is the key to inducing tolerance. You can also start to ingest live yogurt cultures containing lactobacilli, which are able to help in the digestion process, as well.