Lactose intolerance is where your body produces insufficient amounts of the enzyme lactase, which leads to problems when your body attempts to digest the sugars found in dairy; lactose. It is considered very common, and diagnosis can help you avoid some pretty awful symptoms.
Diarrhea
When your body encounters problems digesting a food, it concludes that it needs to remove it from your system as soon as possible. To do this, your body sends a signal to the brain that there is something wrong in the digestive tract, in response, your brain sends a signal to draw water into the bowel to mix with the food being digested to help speed up the process. As a result, food is evacuated almost immediately. As well as being a horrible experience, the water drawn from cells can lead to dehydration and electrolyte imbalance.
Bloating
Have you ever had that self-conscious experience where you feel the need to wear baggy clothes whenever you eat as your stomach expands like a balloon not long after? It can be soul-destroying, especially if you work hard to achieve the body of your dreams only to be undermined by a swollen stomach. Caused by the release of gases from digestion, bloating is an uncomfortable experience that could be one of your symptoms of lactose intolerance.
Flatulence
“What’s that smell?”
If these words instill fear in you regularly, you might be experiencing symptoms of lactose intolerance. The same digestive distress that is causing bloating is also probably causing you to pass wind more frequently. Eventually, that gas has to go somewhere, and, more often than not, it comes out as flatulence. By identifying a lactose intolerance, you can avoid being the bad smell in the room.
Stomach Rumbling
An incredibly subtle symptom that can easily be mistaken for hunger, stomach rumbling, or gurgling (borborygmus) is one of the symptoms of lactose intolerance. It is caused by the movement of the aforementioned excess gas and fluids through the digestive system. This can often mislead people into thinking they’re hungry, which can lead to overeating.
Nausea
Similarly to diarrhea, your body may utilize the mechanism that induces vomit to get the lactose out of your system as soon as possible. You may be fortunate enough that you don’t actually throw up, but the experience of nausea is still not ideal.
What To Do When Experiencing Symptoms of Lactose Intolerance
If you’re experiencing any of the above-listed symptoms, you may be lactose intolerant. Before eliminating lactose, you should take an intolerance test to assess whether that is the problem or whether you’re living one of many other food intolerances. Our tests are tailored to suit all budgets. You can find yours here.
