Lactose Intolerant: Are You Or Is Anyone in Your Family?

[Vulpix]

Are you lactose intolerant or is anyone in your family? If so, who in your family and at what age did you/they become lactose intolerant?

[Loki]

Lactose intolerance? What's that? :coffee:

[WinterMoon]

In my family we have cases of both lactose intolerance and also dairy allergies. The lactose intolerant people normally display it beginning in early adulthood, and those with dairy allergies do so from birth (although it may disappear and re-emerge as well).

[Skandi]

I believe that the intolerance of lactose is geneticaly determined so it would follow that most people who are intolerent should have a family history of it. It will develop in anyone who stops drinking milk for a long period of time as you lose the enzymes nessesary for breaking down milk sugars. Personaly I developed it in my mid teens although it took several years to figure out what was wrong.

[Arrow Cross]

I suffer from political intolerance, as well as the majority of my family. However, I don't wanna get a cure. :p

[Beorn]

Are you lactose intolerant or is anyone in your family? If so, who in your family and at what age did you/they become lactose intolerant?

I'm going to be very lazy (Sue me. It's a Sunday! :p), but what are the symptoms for being lactose intolerant?

[WinterMoon]

I'm going to be very lazy (Sue me. It's a Sunday! :p), but what are the symptoms for being lactose intolerant?

Could be mild ranging from gas and bloating within a few hours after consuming dairy.... to more severe with having stomach cramps and diarrhea. From my observation, the "whites" who have lactose intolerance usually have the mild form, and often may not even realize that is where their bloating and gas comes from. It is not severe enough to really affect them in a way which is disruptive of their life or intestinal tract, so they do pay it any mind. Of course, this is just my observation and not based upon any research.

If you want to know if you are lactose intolerant try the following: for several days consume all the dairy you want. Make sure to consume plenty of dairy. See if you get gas and bloating. Then take a couple of days for cleansing and go on a "diet" that will rid your body of everything. Then try going several days without any dairy at all-- no cheese, no milk, no butter, etc. See if you have no gas or bloating. (And during this test, don't eat anything naturally gassy such as beans or broccoli.)

A lactose intolerance comes from the body's inability to break down lactose in the intestines.... that is why symptoms are generally gut related (gas, diarrhea, maybe even constipation). A dairy allergy, on the other hand, occurs in the stomach and is a reaction to the protein(s) in milk (whey or casein). The body is unable to digest them, and an immune system response is triggered. These can also be mild to severe. Symptoms may be anything from a runny nose and typical allergy symptoms. Also there may be severe pains and vomiting. It also can cause skin reactions such as hives or eczema.

I hope I answered your question adequately.

[Grumpy Cat]

I'm slightly lactose intolerant, but I seem to only feel really bad after eating ice cream (which has a higher lactose content than other dairy products).

With yogurt and cheese, I'm fine (probably because the bacterial culture does away with most of the lactose), and with milk I have slight symptoms, but ice cream is killer. I can drink chocolate milk, though, but chocolate actually helps people digest lactose.

I'm the only person in my family with this problem. I started to notice when I was about 19 or 20. I'm not sure where it came from, I don't think it's genetic because then other people in my family would have the problem. I didn't eat much dairy in my teen years (something my mother was always on my case about, giving me the whole osteoporosis speech), so maybe that's why.

[Jägerstaffel]

I had heard that lactose intolerance comes from being the descendent of a hunter-gather society and that lactose tolerance comes from being the descendent of an agricultural society. (In the majority of cases)

A theory was proposed on why the relations spoiled between the vikings in Vinland and the Skraelingr Native Americans that brought this idea into play. Possibly the vikingrs gave the natives milk and dairy products as a sign of goodwill upon their first interaction and the negative side effects caused the natives to think they had been poisoned; creating the bad blood between the folks.

My family comes from a line of farmers on one side, so yeah - definately not lactose intolerant.

[Æmeric]

I was 18 before I heard the phrase "lactose intolerant". It was during my navy service when I lived in close quarters with Negroes. Most of them didn't drink milk, it was some sort of black thing. Several of them told me that Blacks couldn't digest dairy products because their digestive systems were different. I thought to myself "Yeah right! It's just some wisetale their mammies told them to justify blowing the food stamps on beer & cigarettes."

The whole idea of being lactose intolerant seems unnatural to me.

[Jägerstaffel]

I wouldn't call it unnatural; just think that their ancestors weren't raising cattle and goats as long as ours. They relied moreso on hunting, gathering, fishing, etc.

[quotablepatella]

I'm not, and noone in my family is either.

[Tabiti]

Whole my family are milk and dairy consumers, not to mention the fact I have great grandfathers who owned lots of sheep, so consuming lots of dairies is like a tradition.
My father can consume milk, but just don't like it, since he was a child. But still eats lot of cheese. Personal taste I can tell that.
My mother and I drink at least 250-500 ml milk a day (full fat), my grandmother used to drink a liter of milk daily until her death. I can also drink liters of milk, but the fact I'm calorie counter stops me most of the time:P

P.S. I've recently heard about "lactose intolerance".

P.S. I think there are lactose tolerant tribes in Africa, such as Massai, whose diet consist mainly of milk. Mongolian one as well.

[Phlegethon]

Whole my family are milk and diary consumers.

Hey, milk is fine, but I consider diaries to be indigestable. Although only that way you can effectively get rid of evidence against you. ;)

[Útrám]

According to a test I took in 4 years ago, It was discovered that I was mildly intolerant and so is my father. I occasionally use dairy products and without reaction, hence it could have been temporary and caused by adolescent development. I never really cared anyway since I was never a big milk drinker, that stuff is for calves.

[Brännvin]

No I am not, and no one in my family is... In ze nordics we drink lots of milk. It makes us strong and beautiful. ;) :P

[Vulpix]

No I am not, and no one in my family is... In ze nordics we drink lots of milk. It makes us strong and beautiful. ;) :P

I totally second that :D!

[Tabiti]

Hey, milk is fine, but I consider diaries to be indigestable. Although only that way you can effectively get rid of evidence against you. ;)
Yes, dairy products and yoghourt don't contain so much lactose, so many people can consume them without problem.
Evidences of what? :D
I don't consider lactose tolerance as only "ueberaryan" trait, just adaptation based on food diet:rolleyes:

[Phlegethon]

Dairy, not diary. I was pulling your leg, girl! Pull, pull!

Although I am totally intolerant lactose has nothing to do with it, by the way. ;)

[Tabiti]

LOL, my dear English teacher :D

[Tabiti]

No I am not, and no one in my family is... In ze nordics we drink lots of milk. It makes us strong and beautiful. ;) :P
In fact that is true. Milk is a perfect, unique natural food, but only if you could tolerate it. Otherwise it could even kill.

[Útrám]

I have diary intolerance as well. That moive sucked!

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/1/17/BridgetJonesDiaryMoviePoster.jpg/200px-BridgetJonesDiaryMoviePoster.jpg

[Sally]

I have diary intolerance as well. That moive sucked!

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/1/17/BridgetJonesDiaryMoviePoster.jpg/200px-BridgetJonesDiaryMoviePoster.jpg

:D

Maybe you'll enjoy this film (also based on a diary) more...

http://i39.tinypic.com/27xkx93.jpg

[Angantyr]

Lactose tolerance is a very European trait.

However, there are two types of lactose tolerance, genetic and environmental. If you are genetically tolerant, you are probably tolerant throughout life as your body produces the enzyme necessary to break down lactose. In some cases, however, the body produces less and less of the enzyme as one ages, but this is gradual and intolerance will only happen much later in life, if at all. If you are environmentally tolerant, you have bacteria in your gut which break down the lactose for you. Should you stop drinking milk, the environment in your gut will change and you will develop lactose intolerance.

It has been hypothesized that genetic lactose tolerance rode the same crest northwards after the last ice age as blue eyes and fair hair.

I am genetically lactose tolerant as is everyone in my family.

[Kempenzoon]

My Finnish ex-girlfriend is the only lactose intolerant person I ever met. Yet, she was still addicted to drinking milk and milk products, so every 2-3 days she went through an entire box of those pills they take that temporarily allow them to drink milk.

[Inese]

I know no person who is lactose intolerant. I and my family drink milk often and use milk products like cheese yoghurt and many more!

[Lars]

Thank God (hoho) I'm not lactose intolerant.
I eat and drink milk products everyday. Especially cottage cheese, milk and buttermilk/youghurt. When I want to hygge I eat some fat (40 %) blue veined cheese! Yummy!

[Grumpy Cat]

Lactose tolerance is a very European trait.

However, there are two types of lactose tolerance, genetic and environmental. If you are genetically tolerant, you are probably tolerant throughout life as your body produces the enzyme necessary to break down lactose. In some cases, however, the body produces less and less of the enzyme as one ages, but this is gradual and intolerance will only happen much later in life, if at all. If you are environmentally tolerant, you have bacteria in your gut which break down the lactose for you. Should you stop drinking milk, the environment in your gut will change and you will develop lactose intolerance.

It has been hypothesized that genetic lactose tolerance rode the same crest northwards after the last ice age as blue eyes and fair hair.

I am genetically lactose tolerant as is everyone in my family.

Yeah, I think I am environmentally lactose intolerant because I didn't become so until I was an adult, and there's no one in my family who is lactose intolerant so there appears to be no genetic predisposition.

My family are huge milk consumers, except for me.

[Allenson]

I seem to be tolerant, though I've never been tested. I don't drink much milk anymore, except in coffee but I do eat a fair bit of cheese and I don't seem any worse for the wear.

Also, I don't know of any lactose intolerance in my family....

[anonymaus]

I'm a lean mean milk guzzling machine. I used to drink about 45oz per day, every day, unrelated to various other dairy products which I still consume in large amounts.

No one in the family is lactose intolerant... didn't even know such a thing existed until some foreigners started attending school with us.

[Germanicus]

Mrs Germanicus is half Scottish her father was born in Alloa, She informed me that he did'nt eat butter,milk, or cheese.
She has adopted the same traits as her father which i find rather strange.
Surely this is just a trait nothing more?

[Gauthier]

I'm tolerant. I love milk. My genetic test on 23andme confirms it too.

http://img542.imageshack.us/img542/6335/ve77.jpg (http://img542.imageshack.us/i/ve77.jpg/)

[SilverKnight]

No I'm not (I love milk :) ) just a few in my family can have issues with milk.

[StarDS9]

According to 23andme I should be Lactose Intolerant but I am not. I have no problem with Dairy products.

[Mikula]

My father was, his father too, and more male members of my paternal family. It seems that my son (1.5 year) will be too

[Blackout]

No.

[Kalimtari]

totally tolerant; I can drink up to 1 liter a day (fresh, unboiled milk).

[Black Sun Dimension]

According to 23andme, I'm lactose intolerant. I, however, eat and drink dairy products on a daily basis and nothing ever happens.

[safinator]

23andMe says i'm tolerant though i dislike it a lot.

[Stefan_Dusan]

I never heard of lactose intolerance until I came to USA and it blew my mind. I thought people were making it up because they didn't like taste.

[Dombra]

No one in my family who is lactose intolerant, we are t00 stronk

[ALSh]

whats that?

[Ice]

No I am not, and no one in my family is.

[Mazik]

No, we're true northerners :)

[MelinusMargos]

I'm not used to drink milk but it doesn't have a great impact on my health, the only case in which I don't tend to tolerate it is when I mix it with coffee and I drink in big quantities, result: DAT SHIT.