Health

About 40% of the population are lactose intolerant

05/31/2013

 


Aline Leal and Heloisa Cristaldo
Reporters Agency Brazil

Brasilia - Milk, cheese, yogurt and butter are foods easily found on the tables of Brazilians, but for about 40% of the population can bring nausea, diarrhea, excessive gas, stomach pain and other nuisances. This happens due to a disability that these people have to digest lactose, the sugar in milk. Is lactose intolerance.

To digest this sugar, the body needs to produce an enzyme called lactase, which breaks down milk sugar into glucose and galactose. The inability to produce lactase can be genetic or caused by some intestinal problem that temporarily stops.

According to Ricardo Barbuti, gastroenterologist member of the Brazilian Federation of Gastroenterology, the ability to produce lactase is genetically determined. "Who has the predisposition to produce fewer enzymes, as time passes, will lose the ability to digest lactose. Everyone who has an intolerance genetically, has a lactose malabsorption, but this does not always cause symptoms, "said Barbuti. There are countries, such as Japan, where almost the entire population has this feature.

The expert explains that the symptoms usually appear between half an hour and one hour after ingestion of milk or dairy products, such as chocolate, ice cream, condensed milk, cream, yogurt, butter, cheese and puddings. Barbuti emphasizes however, that this depends on the degree of lactose intolerance and how lactose is ingested food. "Cheese as harder, less lactose. A parmesan, for example, has little lactose as a cheese has more lactose softer "explained.

Yoghurt, for example, has less lactose as the milk and is fermented in the fermentation process, the bacteria consume lactose.

As for Simone Rocha, Nutritionist Dietitians Association President of the Federal District, another factor that can cause food intolerance of any kind, including lactose, is overexposure to certain food. "Overexposure may cause intolerance, because you eat so much that your body can not produce enzymes to break everything," explains Simone.

According Barbuti, people are having more access to the diagnosis of lactose intolerance. "The physician is more aware of this problem. The most common test, which is the blood test is easy to perform and is more available to the population, including the NHS [National Health System] ", said the expert. He says that there is a genetic test, in which the patient's genes are studied to see if there is intolerance to load, but this exam is available in very few places in Brazil.

The expert points out that there is a difference between food intolerance and allergy, which is an uncontrolled immune reaction of the body to any substance.

For those who are lactose intolerant and is keen to continue consuming dairy, Barbuti explains that exist in the market lactase tablets. In Brazil, the lactase is found only in pharmacies, because, according to the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA), the enzyme lactase is a medicine of biological origin. In other countries, however, the enzyme is considered food and is released for sale in pharmacies and supermarkets. According to the regulator, there is not yet in the country, corporate interest in developing the product for sales in pharmacies.

Another alternative not to be sick when ingesting dairy probiotics are "good bacteria" which when taken continuously can improve lactose digestion. These features are especially important for women who have gone through menopause and have to eat dairy to absorb calcium.

Edition: Denise Griesinger

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Source: Agencia Brazil

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