Does Diarrhea Always Result From Lactose Intolerance?

Lactose intolerance is a condition characterized by symptoms such as stomach pain, bloating, gas, and diarrhea caused by lactose malabsorption. This condition affects the ability to digest milk sugar (lactose) and causes symptoms such as gas, diarrhea, bloating, belly pains, and nausea. The symptoms vary from person to person but may include gas, diarrhea, bloating, belly pains, and nausea.

There is no treatment for lactose intolerance, but symptoms can be managed through diet changes. People with lactose intolerance are unable to fully digest the sugar (lactose) in milk, leading to diarrhea, gas, and bloating after eating or drinking dairy products. This occurs when undigested lactose ferments in the colon, producing short-lived, watery stools.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and lactose intolerance can seem similar, but they cause distinct differences. Common symptoms of lactose intolerance include bloating, gas, and diarrhea. Lactose intolerance usually causes gastrointestinal symptoms, such as gas, bloating, and diarrhea, about 30 minutes to two hours after ingesting milk or other dairy products.

Lactose malabsorption causes symptoms by several mechanisms, including unabsorbed lactose leading to osmotic diarrhea, and products of its breakdown causing gas production.

How do I tell if I’m lactose intolerant?

SymptomsDiarrhea. Nausea, and sometimes, vomiting. Stomach cramps. Bloating. Gas.

People with lactose intolerance are unable to fully digest the sugar (lactose) in milk. As a result, they have diarrhea, gas and bloating after eating or drinking dairy products. The condition, which is also called lactose malabsorption, is usually harmless, but its symptoms can be uncomfortable.

Too little of an enzyme produced in your small intestine (lactase) is usually responsible for lactose intolerance. You can have low levels of lactase and still be able to digest milk products. But if your levels are too low you become lactose intolerant, leading to symptoms after you eat or drink dairy.

The small intestine and colon are parts of your digestive tract, which processes the foods you eat. The intestines take nutrients from the foods. What isn’t absorbed by the intestines continues along the digestive tract and is passed as stool during a bowel movement.

What are the 4 stages of lactose intolerance?

• Primary (caused by diminishing lactase production in your small intestine).
• Secondary (caused by injury or disease that damages your small intestine).
• Congenital (caused by lactase deficiency present at birth).
• Developmental (caused by premature birth, when the small intestine is underdeveloped).

Is lactose intolerance genetic?. Genes determine how likely you are to continue to produce lactase, the enzyme that helps you digest lactose. Genes may also partly affect your gut sensitivity and the types of bacteria you have in your gut. Some bacteria convert lactose into gas, but others convert it into lactic acid, which may not cause symptoms.

You’re more likely to have lactose malabsorption and lactose intolerance if your genetic profile is:

Can you be lactose intolerant without diarrhea?

9. Conclusions. Lactose intolerance can present with constipation. Although it predominantly manifests with diarrhoea, approximately one-third present with constipation, especially in hydrogen non-producers. In lactose intolerance, constipation is connected with methane produced by gut bacteria. Diagnosis in this matter is challenging. Hydrogen breath tests are required to detect carbohydrate malabsorption. Additionally, a methane breath test should be performed to support the diagnosis and establish the ratio of H 2 and CH 4 in exhaled air. Restricting carbohydrates intake may alleviate the symptoms of constipation, depending on its aetiology. Restricting lactose in the diet can be helpful in some cases, although its presence in the everyday diet is crucial for the proper absorption of nutrients from food and should not be eliminated completely. The composition of gut microbiota plays a crucial role in the clinical manifestation of both lactose intolerance and constipation. Yet, it requires further research. Lactose intolerance coexists with other conditions that have similar symptoms and should be taken into consideration while attempting a differential diagnosis, especially if the patient presents with chronic intractable constipation.

Author Contributions. K. P.-N. developed the concept of the study, reviewed and edited the manuscript and obtained funding. J. L. wrote the original manuscript. A. S.-S. reviewed and edited the manuscript as well as supervised the project. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding. This research received no external funding.

What happens if you ignore lactose intolerance?

If someone with a lactose intolerance continues to consume too much lactose, they may experience worsened symptoms, lower mood, and a reduced quality of life. Chronic diarrhea may lead to complications such as malnutrition, unexplained weight loss, and anemia.

Ignoring lactose intolerance can exacerbate the symptoms or cause additional health problems. It may also affect someone’s quality of life and mood.

Lactose intolerance, which results from the inability to break down lactose properly, may develop in childhood or early adulthood. It causes digestive symptoms such as diarrhea and gas. People may manage these symptoms with dietary modifications and supplements, and a doctor can give advice about any underlying health conditions.

This article explores lactose intolerance in more detail, including its causes, symptoms, and treatment. It also discusses what may happen if someone keeps consuming dairy.

Can you be only slightly lactose intolerant?

The exact changes you need to make to your diet depend on how sensitive you are to lactose. Some people are able to tolerate some lactose in their diet without any problems, whereas others experience symptoms after consuming food containing only a tiny amount of lactose.

If you decide to experiment with what you can and can’t eat, make sure to introduce new foods gradually, rather than all at once. This will help you to get used to any foods you might be sensitive to and identify any that cause problems.

Eating fewer products containing lactose, or avoiding them completely, can mean you miss out on certain vitamins and minerals in your diet and increase your risk of complications. You’ll also need to make sure you’re getting enough nutrition from either lacto-free foods or dietary supplements.

If you or your child are extremely sensitive to lactose, talk to your GP about your diet.

What can be mistaken for lactose intolerance?

Symptoms of lactose intolerance are similar to those in some other digestive disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Some people have both lactose intolerance and another disorder like IBS. Still others mistakenly think they have lactose intolerance,­ but do not.

A diagnosis by a healthcare provider is important to accurately determine what is wrong and how to best treat it.

Important Nutrients. Talk to your healthcare provider or dietitian about managing lactose intolerance symptoms and obtaining proper nutrients through dietary changes.

Does dairy intolerance always cause diarrhea?

• Lactose intolerance is an inability to digest lactose, a sugar found in milk and milk products.
• This condition often runs in families and can affect both children and adults.
• Lactose intolerance is most common in Asian Americans, African Americans, Mexican Americans and Native Americans.
• Symptoms vary from person to person, but may include: gas, diarrhea, bloating, belly pains and nausea.
• There is no treatment for lactose intolerance, but symptoms can be managed through diet changes.

What is lactose intolerance?. Lactose intolerance is when your body can’t break down or digest lactose. Lactose is a sugar found in milk and milk products.

Lactose intolerance happens when your small intestine does not make enough of a digestive enzyme called lactase. Lactase breaks down the lactose in food so your body can absorb it. People who are lactose intolerant have unpleasant symptoms after eating or drinking milk or milk products. These symptoms include bloating, diarrhea and gas.

How can I test myself for lactose intolerance?

The hydrogen breath test measures how much hydrogen gas is in your breath. Normally, very little hydrogen gas is found in the air we exhale, but if your body has difficulty breaking down lactose, those levels will rise. Test results showing an abnormally high level of hydrogen gas in your breath samples may suggest that you may have lactose intolerance.

The stool acidity test can be used to look for lactose intolerance in infants and small children. This test is typically performed by a pediatrician or a specialist. The test analyzes the stool to see if it contains higher than expected levels of glucose, lactic acid and other fatty acids. Elevated amounts of these substances may indicate lactose intolerance.

Another way to test for lactose intolerance is through a series of blood tests that measure changes in your blood sugar after you consume a liquid that contains lactose. When lactose is broken down and absorbed by the intestines, blood sugar levels normally rise over the next two hours. If this doesn’t happen, it may indicate lactose intolerance.

Why are Europeans not lactose intolerant?

Professor George Davey Smith, Director of the MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol and a co-author of the study, said: “To digest lactose we need to produce the enzyme lactase in our gut. Almost all babies produce lactase, but in the majority of people globally that production declines rapidly between weaning and adolescence. However, a genetic trait called lactase persistence has evolved multiple times over the last 10, 000 years and spread in various milk-drinking populations in Europe, central and southern Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Today, around one third of adults in the world are lactase persistent.”

By mapping patterns of milk use over the last 9, 000 years, probing the UK Biobank, and combining ancient DNA, radiocarbon, and archaeological data using new computer modelling techniques, the team were able to show that the lactase persistence genetic trait was not common until around 1, 000 BC, nearly 4, 000 years after it was first detected around 4, 700–4, 600 BC.

Professor Thomas added: “The lactase persistence genetic variant was pushed to high frequency by some sort of turbocharged natural selection. The problem is, such strong natural selection is hard to explain.”

Do I have IBS or am I just lactose intolerant?

IBS is considered a functional gastrointestinal (GI) disorder. Symptoms of IBS aren’t as clear-cut. Some people with IBS have constipation. Some have diarrhea. Others go back and forth between the two.

Unlike lactose intolerance, which is triggered by eating dairy products, IBS symptoms can have many triggers, including certain types of foods or stress and anxiety.

Dairy can also be a trigger food for someone with IBS, but this doesn’t necessarily mean the person is intolerant to lactose.

Lactose intolerance is very common. Roughly 68 percent of people worldwide have or will develop lactose intolerance in their lifetime. While most people are born with enough lactase to digest milk, the amount of lactase a person makes may decrease gradually over time.

What happens if you’re lactose intolerant and keep eating dairy?

People who ignore their lactose intolerance and continue to eat too many dairy products risk exacerbating their symptoms and developing further health complications.

Lactose intolerance symptoms may affect a person’s quality of life and mood. For example, chronic diarrhea may lead to malnutrition, dehydration, or anemia.

A doctor may advise people with lactose intolerance to manage their condition with dietary modifications, lactase supplements, and dairy alternatives. However, they should be mindful of eating enough nutrients to support healthy bones and prevent osteoporosis.