The Hidden Dangers of Lactose-Free Milk

Lactose is present in all kinds of animal milks. Goat milk, for example, has about 5 to 10% more lactose than cow’s milk. In the past it was thought that only a minority of people suffered from lactose intolerance, but the latest research is dispelling this myth. The reality is that virtually all people are lactose intolerant – it’s just a matter of degree.

With lactose intolerance the body is unable to digest lactose properly, causing varying degrees of nausea, cramps, bloating, gas, and diarrhea, which begin about 30 minutes to 2 hours after milk consumption.

The symptoms vary depending on the amount of lactose consumed and the tolerance of the consumer. Lactose intolerance usually gets worse as you get older (you don’t outgrow it), with men and women suffering equally.

Lactose is the main sugar in milk. When it is consumed it gets broken down by lactase bacteria into glucose and galactose. But if, like most people, you don’t have enough lactase you will not be able to break the lactose down and this then causes the symptoms of lactose intolerance.

Human babies have enough lactase to digest the lactose in human milk. But in the first few months or years of life the baby gradually loses the capacity to breakdown and digest lactose.

For example, in the USA the medical profession regards over 50 million people as being clinically lactose-intolerant. Some racial and ethnic populations are more widely affected than others. As many as 75 percent of African-Americans and American-Indians (and 90 percent of Asian-Americans) are said to be lactose-intolerant. The condition is known to be least common among people of northern European descent.

But even people who do not think they are lactose intolerant do in fact suffer from the condition whenever animal milk is consumed. However, the effects for some people may be so mild as to be hardly noticeable. Slight feelings of indigestion or bloating will usually be associated with a poor or rushed meal rather than with lactose intolerance.

There is plenty of research showing how lactose in milk causes human illness (too many studies to quote here). But a quick search on Internet will reveal the research on this subject.

The dietary guidelines given by the US authorities (for people wanting to avoid lactose intolerance) is to recommend they eat other calcium-containing foods like broccoli, fish and calcium fortified juices. This is poor advice because what people really want is information on milk alternatives.

You can, of course, buy ‘lactose reduced’ or ‘lactose free’ milk. For example in the USA you can buy ‘Lactaid’ which is lactose free. The drawback is that lactose-free milks are generally not so widely available, and tend to be more expensive.

However, by far the biggest drawback is that virtually all lactose-free milk is ultra-pasteurized (also known as ‘Long Life’ or UHT milk). Just about all the research is showing that UHT milk is significantly worse for health compared to regular pasteurized milk. For example, there is overwhelming evidence showing that UHT milk may be the biggest dietary cause of a variety of brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntingdon’s and others.

What then is the best way to avoid lactose in milk? There is a simple solution: switch to milk made from nuts, seeds, or soybeans. These non-dairy milks offer a wonderful variety of delicious flavours and they are full of healthy nutrients.

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