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Suffering from lactose intolerance plays a more significant role in a person’s daily lifestyle than most people are aware of. The condition is characterized by the inability of the human body to digest a substance called lactose – that is naturally present in milk as well as milk products. It is primarily triggered by the deficiency of an enzyme known as lactase which helps in the breakdown of lactose into glucose and galactose. The condition is not something that has necessarily been around since the birth of the individual and, in most cases, will usually develop after the age of about 2 – as a result of the body producing lower amounts of lactase. Most sufferers of the intolerance will only notice symptoms of its presence well into the adolescent age.
Some of the factors that influence the development of the condition include hereditary, where it has been passed down from one generation to another within the same bloodline. The more prominent symptoms experienced by sufferers of lactose intolerance include a rather uncomfortable 30 minutes to 2 hours after ingestion of some kind of milk product as a result of rather intense abdominal pain, gas, diarrhea and even vomiting. The two most common methods of diagnosing the condition are the hydrogen breath test and the stool aciditiy test. In the hydrogen breath test, the individual is asked to consume a beverage that has rather high lactose content and his or her breath is then analyzed at regular intervals to gauge the amount of hydrogen present. This is primarily because of the fact that undigested lactose causes the production of hydrogen in large amounts than when compared to people that do not suffer from the condition. Factors such as certain types of foods or even smoking are known to interfere with the test results. The stool acidity test is the diagnosis of choice when it comes to detecting the condition in children or infants as it calls for a clinical analysis of the acidity of the child’s stool sample. Because of the fact that the condition is rather common, a number of lactose free milk and milk products are easily available in the consumer market while purchasing over the counter lactase enzyme lactase enzyme drops or tablets also help manage the effects that the condition can have on an individuals life. As with any other individual, lactose intolerance sufferers also have their cravings for certain things such as chocolate, but the addition of milk usually bars them from indulging in their craving. However, the absence of lactose in dark chocolate mans that sufferers of the intolerance can also regularly feed the craving without any fear of discomfort.
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