Lifestyle

Milk intolerance can occur at any age: symptoms

pouring milk into a drink
With age, the human intestine may stop digesting milk and products based on it normally.

As we age, the small intestine can become deficient in lactase, an enzyme needed to break down the milk sugar known as lactose. Thus, milk intolerance is actually lactose intolerance. It can occur in a person of any age, experts from the NHS (National Health Service of Great Britain) said. Most people first notice signs of milk intolerance between the ages of 20 and 40.

According to doctors, with lactose intolerance, within a few hours after drinking milk or dairy products, unfavorable symptoms of impaired digestion occur. Their severity and speed of appearance depend on the amount of lactose consumed, as well as on the degree of sensitivity of the body to it. Some people may react painfully to a few drops of milk added to tea or coffee.

Symptoms of milk intolerance.When there is not enough supply of the enzyme lactase in the intestines, it cannot break down milk sugar normally, and it remains in the digestive system, where it is fermented by bacteria. This leads to the production of gases, which cause the characteristic symptoms of milk intolerance – stomach rumbling, bloating and flatulence after drinking it.

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Other symptoms include the following ailments:

  • Diarrhea.
  • Abdominal cramps and pain.< /li>
  • Feeling sick.

Experts note that in some cases, milk intolerance develops as a symptom of a disease that causes the intestines to stop absorbing milk sugar. In particular, it can be gastroenteritis, celiac disease, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis. dangerous inflammation.

Important! Information provided for reference purposes. Ask a specialist about contraindications and side effects and under no circumstances self-medicate. At the first sign of illness, consult a doctor.