Lactose intolerance

I thought I had an ulcer in my junior year of college. I would occasionally get bloating or burping along with sharp stomach pains. Since there was no internet back then, I checked up the symptoms in a textbook, and they all pointed to acid reflux. Given the pressure I was under for my pre-med coursework and work-study, it made logical. My stomach's acid was nearly literally burning a hole through it.

I had read that eating lots of dairy was the cure. Acid was supposed to be "neutralized" by it. To me, that made perfect sense. Ice cream was my favorite food to eat. I used to eat an enormous chocolate peanut butter cone in place of dinner on very awful evenings in an effort to make myself feel better. I wasn't expecting my symptoms to go worse. I even developed diarrhea. And the gas was so poisonous that Arnold Schwarzenegger would have been unconscious. (Terminator 2 was quite well-liked at the time.)

I once queried the medical student working in my research lab about her opinion.

She confidently made the diagnosis, "Lactose intolerance."

What is the remedy?

"I enquired.

Her response was morbid back when Lactaid wasn't around. Stop consuming dairy.

She could have as easily instructed me to quit eating everything. My entire diet as a young woman from the Midwest was made up of cream. How could I endure?

You must be familiar with lactose intolerance. Lack of the lactase enzyme, which breaks down lactose, the sugar present in dairy products such milk, yogurt, cream, and cheese, causes this illness. In the absence of this enzyme, undigested lactose enters your colon where it is consumed by bacteria that produce gas. This release of gas results in the related symptoms of bloating, flatulence, nausea, stomach discomfort, and diarrhea. Even though not everyone who is lactose intolerant experiences severe symptoms, some people—like myself—really struggle.

It's interesting to note that almost all newborn newborns produce a lot of lactase during birth. In the event that breastfeeding is unsuccessful, they require it to digest animal milk. But lactase synthesis drastically decreases once they stop using the udder. Quelle abomination, you may say. How should we consume frozen yogurt? We're not, is the response.

The only mammal that still consumes milk after weaning is a human. Not even our own species' milk is being consumed by us.

Take this into account before you recoil at the thought of cheeseless pizza. According to estimates, lactose intolerance affects 68% of the world's population. That equates to two-thirds of the world's population. Of course, there are geographical differences.

On the surface, it could appear that people in nations where dairy consumption is low have lost the ability to digest it. However, the opposite is actually true. Humans can digest lactose into adulthood thanks to a relatively recent mutation in the LCT gene. Recently, a New York Times investigation demonstrated that even early European farmers lacked lactase. Until they experienced times of famine and drought, they just put up with the discomfort and odor of undigested dairy. The only persons who could consume animal milk during those times were those who had a persistent lactase. The survivors produced more individuals who shared their uber-human talent. A third of the world's population can now peacefully eat a grilled cheese sandwich since those folks moved to other countries and intermarried with other people who had also traveled around. Even still, barely one-third of all people are covered. Persistence of lactase is the exception rather than the rule.

I can't digest lactose, which makes sense. My parents are of Middle Eastern descent. Perhaps my bowel issues are unrelated after all.

Why then are we so fond of dairy?

We are taught from a young age that dairy is one of the four fundamental food groups in the United States, where 36% of the population is lactose intolerant. We are also informed that dairy is a wonderful source of calcium and Vitamin D, but most of those vitamins are added, just as they are to orange juice and nut milks. (To be clear, dairy is anything that comes out of an udder and not including eggs, which come from hens, who don't even have udders). In actuality, a cup of figs or spinach contains almost as much calcium as a cup of milk. Turkey offers 8 grams of protein per ounce, which is equivalent to 1 cup of milk. Additionally, the majority of dairy products are high in saturated fats, which raise our cholesterol levels and contain a lot of calories.

Have we been indoctrinated into thinking dairy is healthy when it's not?

Certainly have.

Along with industrialisation and the temperance movement, it all began in the early 1900s. Before it, only young children and babies drank milk. Men drank whiskey and beer. A adult man drinking a glass of ice-cold milk would have been strange, especially if he had lived in a metropolis. Since pasteurization and refrigeration weren't yet commonplace, drinking milk far from its source was unsafe. However, milk rose to the top of the heap as doctors and health movements campaigned for the idea that food may act as medicine. This thrilled dairy producers who had no idea what to do with all the milk they were producing. (At one time, it was utilized to produce plastic for use in WWI aircraft.)

The government, scientists, and farmers all agreed that milk was the ideal food around 1920 as a result of a perfect storm. Even though there is evidence to the contrary, that message has persisted. In order for female cows to continue producing milk for our enjoyment, hormones and antibiotics are still provided to them.

Remember this the next time you slice into a burrata bubble, scoop the creamy gelatin over toasted bread, and slip it impatiently into your mouth: That milk is stolen. You should not do it. It is for calves.