Lactose intolerance in children and babies

Lactose intolerance in children and babies is the inability to digest lactose, a type of sugar found in milk and other dairy products. The dietitian and nutritionist María Luján Soler, Bachelor of Nutrition with a Master's degree in Technology, Control and Food Health and an expert in Allergy and Food Intolerance, explains how lactose intolerance affects premature babies and children.How lactose intolerance affects children and babies

What is lactose intolerance?

Lactose intolerance is the inability to digest lactose, a type of sugar found in milk and other dairy products. It occurs when the small intestine does not produce enough lactase enzyme. Enzymes help the body absorb food. Not having enough lactase is called lactase deficiency. The bodies of the babies produce this enzyme, in such a way that they can digest milk, including breast milk.
How does lactose intolerance affect premature infants, babies and children?

Premature babies usually have an immature digestive system and sometimes have lactose intolerance. The best food for the premature baby is breast milk. Children born at term usually show no signs of this intolerance until they are at least 3 years old. It can manifest itself in different moments of life.Does it affect all children equally?

In whites, it usually begins to affect children over 5 years old; while in black people, the condition is often present by two years of age. It is known that there is a higher prevalence of lactose intolerance in people of Asian and African origin, and in Native Americans.
What characteristic symptoms do children and babies with lactose intolerance have?

Symptoms often occur 30 minutes to two hours after eating or drinking dairy products and are often relieved by not taking these products. Large doses of dairy products can cause worse symptoms such as bloating, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, gas or flatulence, nausea and even slow growth or weight loss.What should be done when lactose intolerance is detected in children and babies?

When a child has symptoms of lactose intolerance, all dairy products should be removed from the diet for about two weeks. This measure can help solve the problem. After that time, milk can be reintroduced into the diet in small amounts. Each day, parents can give the child greater amounts of milk, paying close attention to the return of symptoms. It is very important to keep the rest of the elements of the diet constant and simple during this period, since there are other foods that could cause similar symptoms. If the child's symptoms improve during the dairy-free diet and they return within 4 hours of drinking milk, the diagnosis of lactose intolerance is considered.
What forms of diagnosis exist for lactose intolerance?

Lactose intolerance can be diagnosed by a lactose test on breathing (examination of hydrogen in breathing). The test is done in the doctor's office or in the hospital and lasts between 2 and 3 hours ...
What's new in the treatment of lactose intolerance today?

More and more people are thinking about using functional foods in the treatment of food intolerances. Functional foods are those foods, which are consumed as part of a normal diet and contain biologically active components, which offer health benefits and reduce the risk of disease.
Some examples of functional foods include foods that contain certain minerals, vitamins, fatty acids or dietary fiber, foods to which biologically active substances have been added, such as phytochemicals or other antioxidants, and probiotics, which have live cultures of beneficial microorganisms.

Streptococcus thermophilus

andLactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus improve the digestion of lactose and reduce the symptoms of lactose intolerance. This was confirmed in a series of controlled studies in individuals who consumed yogurt with live cultures. Marisol Nuevo.

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