Lactose intolerance: how do you deal with it?

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Both my real father and the girlfriend are lactose intolerant. Dad just drinks his coffee black, and doesn’t eat mashed potatoes much unless he uses oat milk or almond milk in them.

my girlfriend doesn’t drink coffee, and said she doesn’t feel like she’s missing out. She’s pretty healthy and likes spicy foods.

how do you folks that are lactose intolerant deal with it?
 
I hear sensitivity training helps clear up intolerance......

But seriously, avoid dairy. It's fairly easy in today's world to do so without "missing out" with all the dairy substitutes available. If you prefer not to ingest heavily processed "food-like substances", a good diet without dairy or the substitutes is easy to maintain.
 
No lactose intolerance here but I have read that some folks can handle heavy cream and fermented milk products better than low-fat & non-fermented dairy. FWIW there is quite a bit of evidence to show that heavy cream is a much healthier option if you can tolerate it. It wasn't that many years ago skim milk was considered essentially a waste product. Coffee without heavy cream? Not worth it!
 
My teenage son is lactose intolerant. He loves milk and I have to buy the lactose free stuff. It's not cheap up here (over $9 for 4 liters). He's normally ok with cheese and pizza etc (doesn't need lactose pills).

I'm just happy i don't have that issue.
 
Once you are beyond an infant you don't need milk. A hoax by American Dairy Assoc. to push milk. Humans are the only mammal who drinks milk after weaning. There are plenty of ways to get calcium. You don't need milk to get calcium. Drink water or lemon flavored water as you do need water.

The only real need for milk is to make cheese and ice cream.
 
Once you are beyond an infant you don't need milk. A hoax by American Dairy Assoc. to push milk. Humans are the only mammal who drinks milk after weaning. There are plenty of ways to get calcium. You don't need milk to get calcium. Drink water or lemon flavored water as you do need water.

The only real need for milk is to make cheese and ice cream.

That's right and basically what a gastroenterology office will tell you.

Lactose intolerance is a wide spectrum though. Some people are hyper sensitive to anything containing lactose. Others have sensitivity to some, but not all products containing it.

You can work around it by taking lactaid tablets before a meal, or just avoid the foods.
 
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That's right and basically what a gastroenterology office will tell you.

Lactose intolerance is a wide spectrum though. Some people are hyper sensitive to anything containing lactose. Others have sensitivity to some, but not all products containing it.

You can work around it by taking lactaid tablets before a meal, or just avoid the foods.

I take the lactose tablets. Costco has their Kirkland brand and they are pretty cheap-big box of them - lasts a while. I keep some in both cars, and a couple in my wife's purse.

A little planning and it's not a big deal really.
Milk, ice cream and Yogurt are the big ones for me. Cheese really doesn't seem to affect the condition for me. Kroger has lactose free-low sugar ice cream - and it's great stuff.
 
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I take the lactose tablets. Costco has their Kirkland brand and they are pretty cheap-big box of them - lasts a while. I keep some in both cars, and a couple in my wife's purse.

A little planning and it's not a big deal really.
Milk, ice cream and Yogurt are the big ones for me. Cheese really doesn't seem to affect the condition for me. Kroger has lactose free-low sugar ice cream - and it's great stuff.

For sure on that. I've found you have to watch the dose of lactaid you're taking and make sure it matches the quantity you're eating.

Mine is weird. I can do some milk, ice cream and different cheeses, but yogurt and some soft cheeses like ricotta kill me.
 
I have a ton of food allergies and sensitivities. Lactose intolerance is just one of many for me. My peanut allergy is not that bad. I can eat a few before my tongue swells up and lets me know no more. Walnuts are pretty bad for me. One baby nibble and my mouth will itch and a hive or two might pop out. Sometimes I get a few hives on my throat and have no idea why. Only gone into anaphylactic shock three times in my life. I eat pizza. It's worth the side effects. I've noticed that my body makes a little of stuff needed to digest lactose. I can eat dairy about once every week or two without many symptoms. But two days in a row is bad for me. Cream cheese bothers me a lot. Pizza cheese a lot less. Lots of others have it a lot worse with food allergies. I consider myself lucky to not have it worse. Foods I miss the most are cashews, melon, grapes, peanut butter...
 
two sons, both 1/2 chinese, both in armed forces. elder is lactose intolerant, younger isn’t. both enjoy ice cream and yogurt, plus all manner of spicy foods. elder is a small cockpit aircraft pilot so must be careful about his internal plumbing needs. he drinks fairlife milk when he can get it stateside. expensive but tastes great.
 
My peanut allergy is not that bad. I can eat a few before my tongue swells up and lets me know no more.
Not that bad? A swollen tongue sounds pretty bad. Sorry to hear you have so many food allergies. I know an older lady who has so many allergies she nearly suffers from malnutrition as darn near everything disagrees with some part of her.
 
I'm middle of the road. I have to use Lactaid milk or I get uncomfortable. Anything else - cheese, coffee cream, and even cottage cheese - is okay.

I remember 35 years ago lactose-free milk cost double than regular milk.
 
Not that bad? A swollen tongue sounds pretty bad. Sorry to hear you have so many food allergies. I know an older lady who has so many allergies she nearly suffers from malnutrition as darn near everything disagrees with some part of her.
It's only a little swollen. I'm lucky that most foods I'm allergic to give me immediate symptoms. My old allergist scolded me. Told me I have childhood acclimation to my symptoms. That they are worse than what I think. My new allergist convinced me to carry an epi pen and Benadryl with me.

Different foods give me different symptoms ranging from swollen tongue, itchy mouth, hives, digestive issues, or heart palpitations. It is what it is. Still lots of things I can eat and enjoy.
 
todays DEAD dairy is NOT good for you anyhow as the pasteurization + homogenization KILLS any benefits, but you might be able to tolerate LIVE healthy milk AKA RAW MILK, gotta start slow until the body acclimates, check out Weston Price Foundation to learn about REAL Milk!! many times people lack enzymes for digestion of various foods. an example is using acid blockers for heartburn when you need MORE hydrochloric acid for digestion + a tablespoon of RAW apple cider vinegar before meals has many benefits. lots of bull on line as well as good info + Sten Ekburg is my favorite!!!
 
Pretty easy for me, as I find dairy products disgusting. Let alone, there’s no reason to even be touching the stuff.

If I’m randomly craving a bowl of cereal, I go with plain oat milk.
 
The easiest way is to avoid Dairy but Lactose is a sugar and Lactase is an enzyme that helps with the digestion of the lactose . Tongue swelling seems like an allergy.
 
todays DEAD dairy is NOT good for you anyhow
Exactly.
Let alone, there’s no reason to even be touching the stuff.
This is not categorically true for all humans. According to some research as little as 30% of the world's population continues to produce lactase once weaned from their mother's milk, but that would mean 30% of the world's population is able to consume dairy with no ill effects assuming the source is of high quality. The ability to continue producing lactase is likely a genetic mutation that was advantageous to certain populations that have consumed dairy for thousands of years. From a survival standpoint it would appear to be an obvious advantage to be able to thrive on a wide variety of foods, which of course makes me wonder why food allergies are more common today than observed/reported in the past.
 
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