Teach me about lactose intolerance

[Happy]

My adult son is living in our home at the moment. He says eating cheese in or on foods upsets his stomach. Cheese on pizza does not bother him. Since he is a contrary and difficult person to live with, I need more than his word to determine how I cook. (does that sound cold hearted? I'm sorry for it, but like I said, he is difficult.) I have no experience with lactose intolerance. DS is adopted so we have no others in the family with this conditon.

 

If he is lactose intolerant, would sour cream and ranch dressing bother him? I'm thinking the processing would change things so he could eat them.

 

Other than avoiding cheeses and milk, what things can we do to minimize his discomfort?

 

How do you cook for a family? My other son lives on cheese, so the whiplash from fixing food for them is driving me slightly over the edge...and I live really close to the cliff anyway.

 

Thanks for your expertise!

[Parrothead]

I have a lactose intolerance, but I can eat milk products in small quantities. I can have milk on my cereal, I can eat a few ounces of cheese. But two slices of pizza will send me to the bathroom for cramps, diarrhea, and the like.

 

For me it is about how much I consume.

[DesertDweller]

I'm not sure what the difference would be between cheese on pizza and cheese in food, other than maybe the amount.

 

We are all lactose intolerant in our family although I think to varying degrees.

 

Dd and I probably have the most problems, but it really hasn't effected my cooking too much. We are both able to each cheese in or on our food. However, too much can be a problem. We can eat pizza with cheese, but can only handle a piece or two of the stuffed crust because it has alot more cheese than a regular pizza.

 

If he can manage pizza with cheese, than I would think he could eat food with small amounts of cheese. He may have a problem if a dish has alot of cheese. Mac and cheese comes to mind or chicken spaghetti that has cheese as a primary ingredient. I make a cheese tortellini salad that, while I love it, it does tend to give me some problems if I eat too much.

 

Other than cheese, we never drink milk. Even the lactose free milk upsets my stomach. Dd usually eats cereal dry or with a tiny bit of milk on it.

 

We can eat ice cream in limited amounts. Sour cream doesn't bother us, but typically, we don't eat large amounts of it anyway. Ranch isn't a problem either. We use it all the time, but again, we don't eat large amounts of it. A few tablespoons on a salad or to dip something in is usually enough.

 

Milk based soups could be an issue such as potato or clam chowder. We don't eat either of those, but I would be wary of eating too much of either.

 

What dishes are you cooking that have cheese? Are you talking a cup of cheese in a recipe? If he can eat cheese on pizza than cheese sprinkled across the top of a casserole shouldn't be an issue, but in large amounts, cheese could very well be a problem.

[eternalknot]

I'm lactose intolerant, and so are my kids. Different foods affect me differently than they do my kids, for instance - neither my son nor I can eat ranch without getting upset stomach, but my daughter can. None of us does (do?) well with pizza, but we still eat it .. knowing it'll be an "aromatic" night.

 

We all do fine with yogurts, so I sometimes sub with yogurt in cooking that requires creams. I sometime sub coconut or rice milk for dairy milk. I grew up not consuming dairy at all, and it's not difficult to find like-for-like subs - especially nowadays.

 

I know people who take LactAid pills before meals, but we never have.

 

I'm Asian, and lactose intolerance is common in my culture; I've heard that it becomes more common in adulthood for other cultures, as well.

[hornblower]

I & both my kids have severe lactose intolerance.

 

You can build your lactose tolerance by going on a lactose fast for several weeks and gradually, gradually reintroducing lactose. If you do this, you'll usually have a higher tolerance than you thought but if you OD a bit & trigger symptoms, you'll be set back to your low level again & have to start again.

 

Lactase pills are a lifesaver for lactose intolerant dairy fans. They can end up being expensive (esp when 3 people need to take 2 each before a meal) but they're worth every penny

 

As to what sets you off - I find it really depends.

 

Hard cheeses in moderation tend to be ok for me.

 

I can't drink a glass of milk or have cereal with milk unless I take lactase pills.

 

I can't eat ice cream without the pills.

 

Cottage cheese & sour cream - nope.

 

Cream cheese is usually ok in moderation.

 

Pizza is usually ok.

 

Feta is ok.

 

Buttermilk I cannot have even with the pills.

 

 

We do like dairy a fair bit & go through lactase pills fast.

 

It really varies between us - that list above is mine. My dd & ds have slightly different lists.

 

And again, tolerance will vary based on what we've been eating & the state of our GI system as a whole. Sometimes you know you'll be ok with that cappuccino even without the pills (because you left the house with just your wallet & not the big purse :glare:) and other times, there's just no way.

 

BTW, the symptoms of lactose intolerance can be awful and painful and quite embarassing. It is, really a PITA :D

 

If you don't want to/can't change your cooking, get him to take the lactase pills. Start with the HIGHER doses and work down, not the other way around. There's no danger - they're just the lactase enzyme which breaks lactose down.

[Amber in SJ]

I have two that are lactose intolerant at different levels in my house. One is my dh who can tolerate very little and the other is dd who can tolerate more.

 

Neither of them can take regular milk on cereal. They get lactose-free milk. Both of them do much better if they have yogurt with live cultures daily. Plain yogurt can be substituted for other dairy items like sour cream. Most low fat cheeses (made from 2% milk) are very low in lactose because of the processing that takes place. Precious makes a lactose free string cheese that I use on their pizza when I make it, otherwise we just get them a pizza without cheese. Smoked or aged cheese is tolerated better than regular. Ice cream is out for them, but there is a brand of frozen yogurt that they can tolerate.

 

My dd, who has a higher tolerance, can have the occasional packaged cheese or creamy food like cheese crackers or ranch dressing. If her youth group is having a pizza party she knows to plan ahead and not have any other dairy product that day and limit herself to one piece.

 

Another important thing is to find the hidden lactose in food. If you are "saving" up your tolerance for pizza you don't want to blow it by having hidden lactose in vitamins or other weird things.

 

Stress also plays a big part in dh's tolerance. If he is having a stressful time everything will bother him and he has to go dairy free. Both of them get terrible stomach cramps and digestive issues that we call "tummy troubles"

 

According to our doctor, the ability to digest lactose decreases with age which is why older people often find themselves suddenly having problems with foods that never bothered them before.

 

We have just made a few little adjustments and it is not a big deal, really.

 

HTH,

Amber in SJ

 

The lactase pills help dd if she remembers them, but they do nothing for dh.

Edited December 16, 2009 by Amber in SJ
more info

[Cedarmom]

Another thing about lactose is that lactose builds up in the system. People with l.i. can have some dairy, but they have to spread it out. SO if I have ranch dressing, I cant have any cheese later. And the amount varies betweern people.

 

When I go to stay at other people's houses I will bring peanut butter and toast to have if I can't eat what they are having. Maybe just have pb. and j or luchmeat available for your son. Then if he can't eat what you're having, he can have that.

 

You said you son could be contrary . I don't know if you meant just food or not. I am sure my mom thinks the same about me. True, I was WAY too picky about food when I was younger. But part of the problem was my stomache really did hurt a lot, which I now think was lactose intolerance. So, if your thoughts are that he is too picky about food, then maybe that was the problem. But, as an adult I don't demand others cater to me. I pass on the foods I can't eat, and if I need to make my own food.

[MomOfOneFunOne]

My 10 year old is lactose intolerant. I guess it varies by person b/c cheese on pizza really hurts her tummy. I find that if we limit dairy to once in a while, it's not too bad: she'll have some tummy discomfort and mild diarrhea. If she has a lot at once, or a bit several days in a row, or if it's very oily (though it seems that according to research oiliness isn't supposed to make it worse -- our experience differs) she has a very painful tummy, bad diarrhea, and overall ickyness.

 

I think b/c of both the amount of cheese and the oiliness, a homemade pizza gives her much, much less tummy trouble than just one slice of boughten pizza. However, nowadays we just use soy cheese.

 

She's a big enough girl to make choices. If she wants ice cream now and then, especially if it's a special occasion or a party or something, she'll have it knowing the consequences. She usually orders sherbet with better results.

 

I asked her about some of the specific things you asked about but mostly we dont' eat it b/c either we don't like it or b/c we avoid most dairy. We do eat plain greek yogurt in our smoothies and she can have about one per week w/o feeling like the enjoyment of the smoothy is outweighed by the effects of the dairy.

 

I can tell you that goats milk ice cream is disgusting. Goats milk cheese is okay. Sheeps milk cheese is better but more expensive. I think soy ice cream is gross but my girl likes it. You can make it homemade in the ice cream maker but it's not very creamy . . . in our experience. Soy cheese is well liked by all of us.

 

When my daughter has a bad tummy ache I do this: I warm olive oil in the microwave or over the stove (but it never stays warm so why do I still do it?) and add a few drops of lavender oil. My daughter will lie down and I put some of the oil on my hands. I rub them together vigorously to warm hands/oil. I then rub her tummy in an upsidedown U pattern. I have to begin **************very, Very, VERY******lightly or it just hurts too much. After a while I can increase the pressure ever so slightly. increase ever so slightly again and keep increasing the pressure in the slightest increments until it's firm pressure. I keep refreshing the oil and warming it in my hands as needed. Is it psychological? Is it physical? I dont' know but it helps.

 

The inverted U: when my girl was a baby and well b/f she ever had any cow's milk, I went to a baby massage class. One of the sessions focused on massaging for an uncomfortale tummy. For a baby you sit with the baby's feet toward you and head away. For my girl I just sit by her side. You begin on the child's right side, low -- kind of b/t the hip bone and the belly button but low. Rub in a spiral-y motion up and then across at about the area of the lg intestine then go down the other side in the same area b/t the hip bone and belly button. I realize that you may not want to do this on your adult son or he may not want you to do it but you may be able to show him how to do it himself. However, my daughter does say that it doesn't work the same if Mommy doesn' do it.

 

There are tablets to take when ingesting dairy that I've heard really do help. We haven't used them so I can't say. I think they're even sold in the dairy dept. Lactaid maybe?

[hornblower]

The lactase pills help dd if she remembers them, but they do nothing for dh.

 

:confused:

I wonder if he is not taking enough. I take 4 extra strength for a small serving of ice cream. I was told that if I was pushing into th 6-8 tabs of extra strenght/serving category, then it was probably time to do a fast & build up some tolerance. Also they need to be taken before the first mouthful - even a small mouthful of dairy before the pills hit the stomach can trigger an attack if you've no lactase production at all.

[JFSinIL]

Three of my kids have this, as does hubby and most of his family. I just stocked up on Lactaid (generic works fine, too). As long as a person remembers to take it before the first bit of dairy, as is well. If one is having a LOT of dairy, maybe take another pill halfway through that mega bowl of ice cream or tons of pizza.

 

You should not have to change the way you cook. Let ds be responsible to know to take a Lactaid.

[DarlaS]

I'm not sure what the difference would be between cheese on pizza and cheese in food, other than maybe the amount.

 

 

I can think of one difference for sure. Cheese on pizza is JUST cheese while cheese in mac and cheese or similar casseroles would also contain a good bit of milk. Milk contains WAY more lactose than cheese due to the fact that much of the lactose is removed (It is mostly in the whey.).

 

Yogurt also contains very little lactose (FAR less if you make your own and use a long fermentation method). The bacteria digest the sugars in the milk.

[DesertDweller]

I can think of one difference for sure. Cheese on pizza is JUST cheese while cheese in mac and cheese or similar casseroles would also contain a good bit of milk. Milk contains WAY more lactose than cheese due to the fact that much of the lactose is removed (It is mostly in the whey.).

 

Yogurt also contains very little lactose (FAR less if you make your own and use a long fermentation method). The bacteria digest the sugars in the milk.

 

That's true. I'm thinking of the casseroles that I make using the same type of shredded cheese that I use for pizza. Not all cheese is the same though, so it does depend on what your using.

[DarlaS]

That's true. I'm thinking of the casseroles that I make using the same type of shredded cheese that I use for pizza. Not all cheese is the same though, so it does depend on what your using.

 

Yep! :iagree:

 

Cheeses like cottage cheese and Ricotta are not nearly as reduced in lactose as well aged cheddar, parmesan, or mozzarella.

 

I can't think of a casserole (that I make anyway) that doesn't use either milk or a soft cheese in addition to the aged cheese.

 

My sister is lactose intolerant, and I'm heading there myself, so this is a topic near and dear so to speak. I'm finding that for me, the less dairy the better. I do plan to reintroduce a good (homemade) yogurt soon. After cookie season is over. Ooops - I mean Christmas break. :D

[earthyfamily]

I've been lactose intolerant most of my life. I've grown accustomed to taking two lactaid pills prior to most every meal. There are still things that I can't eat even with the lactaid...ice cream, buttermilk and for some strange reason yogurt. Which is odd because yogurt is supposed to be easily digested...???

[Lolly]

And another. For my dd, hard cheeses were okay. Soft cheeses were not. (Now that she is older, she is allergic to the hard cheeses though.) Yogurts were okay in moderation. Dairy products overall could be consumed in very small quantities. Lactaid did help her, but she just naturally did NOT like dairy products and didn't want to eat them.

[Happy]

This helps so much!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I was making out my menu and grocery list for the next few days this morning and got kind frustrated. This grown child o' mine is the type who argues over whether the sky is clear or cloudy. Whatever I say, he says the opposite. So, when it comes to food, I don't know what is obstinate (sp? that doesn't look right) behavior or a geniune problem.

 

The info you've given me will help. I see how lactose could build up and or some types are more pain inducing than others. I'll stock up on lactase pills and start asking him to research L.I. and notice which things trigger upsets.

 

He is under a lot of stress, much of it self induced, so that isn't helping.

 

Thank you for your insight!

[Chris in VA]

You don't want to be around me if I have too much dairy.

I don't want to be around me if I have too much. :tongue_smilie:

Milk actually makes me bleed internally.

 

But I can have some cheeses, yogurt, cottage cheese, in small quantities, and, if I haven't had ANY dairy for a few weeks, I can have one or two tablespoons of ice cream. No milk, tho--ever.

 

Lactose intolerance also can get worse over time--I used to be able to have milk when I was a child and only had problems when I was in late high school.