If you are lactose intolerant, never think you are doomed to consume only products that have no milk in them. Not really. Lactose intolerance can be tolerated if proper, natural and home-made foods are taken at calculated proportions and intervals. It just requires proper planning to make yourself tolerant of the lactose you consume. There is no need to forsake every other milk product if you are keep your body supplied with essential nutrients and allow time for your intestinal cells to produce lactase.
Off the kitchen shelf foods: There are several foods for the lactose intolerant. Most of these foods can be found off the kitchen shelf, without any effort on your part. Such foods can also offer you relief from the symptoms, thanks to their low lactose content or slow movement on the digestive tract. Some of the home remedies for lactose intolerance are:
1. Cocoa powder: Chocolate powder or cocoa powder is useful in digesting the lactose in the body. You may wonder how. Cocoa powder slows down the rate of digestion in the stomach. This allows time for the intestines to produce sufficient lactase for digestion. When the stomach is not emptied at a faster pace, the food passes to the intestine slowly. The absorption of water and osmosis effect is also not there. Neither does fermentation happen with the bacteria in the colon. All these mean fewer and less intense symptoms and greater relief. You can add cocoa powder with your milk to make it digestible.
2. Chocolate Milk: This works just like the cocoa powder. It takes the pace off the digestion process, giving more time for lactose to get digested. Also, lactose in flavored milk or chocolate milk is absorbed easily than the ones in ordinary, plain milk.
3. Sardines: Lactose Intolerance is not all about avoiding lactose foods. You need to supply your body with nutrients that you may lack on account of taking non-dairy products. Sardines are one rich source of calcium. They can be crucial in building up your body’s bone health and meeting the daily dose of calcium required. You can build up your calcium reserves with other foods like canned salmon, canned oily fish with bones, tofu, nuts, cooked dried beans, green vegetables, dried apricots, sesame seed products etc.
4. Yogurt: Yogurt with active cultures are rich in calcium and high on lactose. But they come with a specialty. Some kinds of bacterial cultures in yogurt are helpful in inducing the production of lactase in the intestine. This will not just improve your lactase production but also supply your body with sufficient nutrients like calcium.
5. Soy Milk: It maybe difficult for you to switch from cow’s milk to soy milk at first. This is because, apart from making you lactose intolerant, cow’s milk is also supposed to bring you other ailments like Crohn’s disease. Research is underway about the dangers of cow’s milk and hence, soy milk would be a better alternative.
6. Hard Cheese: No, you don’t need to sacrifice your cheese habit for the sake of lactose intolerance. You can consume cheese in good quantities, but ensure that the cheese you consume is low in lactose. This includes hard cheeses like Swiss, Cheddar and Colby. Never take soft cheeses that are high in lactose content – like cream cheese, cottage cheese etc.
