By Sharon Natoli, Accredited Practising Dietitian and Director of Food & Nutrition Australia
Do you experience tummy pains, bloating, diarrhoea or gas after drinking milk?
If you answered yes, take heart in knowing you’re not alone. One of the most common reasons1 people have trouble digesting milk is related to lactose, a naturally occurring sugar found in milk and many other dairy products.
Lactose that comes from foods and drinks normally gets broken down into simpler sugars by an enzyme in the small intestine called lactase. These sugars are then absorbed into the body and used for energy.
However some people don’t have enough of the lactase enzyme to breakdown all the lactose they consume. This means the lactose goes into the colon where it is used as a food source by the bacteria that live there. When these bacteria break down the lactose, they produce a type of gas which can lead to a change in bowel habits, bloating and stomach pains1.
People who have trouble digesting lactose can often tolerate small amounts of lactose in their diet, however need to avoid larger intakes2. This is where Pauls Zymil can be particularly useful. If you have a problem digesting lactose, you can continue to enjoy the nutritional benefits of milk, while minimizing your intake of lactose by including a milk such as Zymil as part of a healthy eating pattern.
These three tips will help you lower your intake of lactose while helping you meet your daily nutritional needs, in particular, your calcium needs:
- Swap your normal milk with a lactose free milk for example, Pauls Zymil. You can also try including small amounts of regular milk with meals to test your tolerance level.
- Include a small tub of lactose free yoghurt daily, for example, Vaalia Lactose Free Yoghurt. Standard yoghurt can also often be well digested due to the natural bacterial cultures is contains.
- Add reduced fat cheese to your sandwich. Most cheeses have minimal amounts of lactose.
Overall, aim for 2-3 serves of dairy foods daily, where a serve is equal to 250ml milk, 200g yoghurt or 40g cheese. This way you’ll meet your daily calcium needs while also managing your digestive system!
References:
1 Vesa TH, Marteau P, Korpela R. Lactose intolerance. J Am Coll Nutr 2000;19:165S-175S.
2 Suarez FL, Adshead J, Furne JK, Levitt MD. Lactose maldigestion is not an impediment to the intake of 1500 mg calcium daily as dairy products. Am J Clin Nutr 1998;68:1118-22.
