The most important information about the symptoms of lactose intolerance include the following:

Symptoms of lactose intolerance

Lactose intolerance is a common health condition among adults, and its severity varies from person to person. Below is a summary of lactose intolerance symptoms:

1. Diarrhea

Diarrhea is one of the most important symptoms of not properly digesting lactose, and a person is diagnosed with diarrhea if they pass more than 200 grams of loose, watery stool in 24 hours.

Lactose indigestion causes diarrhea by increasing the water level in the large intestine, which increases stool volume and fluidity, and this condition is especially common in children than in adults.

The lactose in the large intestine turns into fatty acids and short-chain gases, these acids are absorbed in the large intestine, and the rest of them raise the water level in the large intestine together with the lactose and cause diarrhea.

2. Gas and abdominal pain

In addition to diarrhea, a person with lactose sensitivity may suffer from swelling and pain in the stomach, when the body is unable to analyze lactose, it passes through the intestine until it reaches the large intestine, as we mentioned, and thus part of it is analyzed into fatty acids and gases.

These gases can cause swelling, pain and discomfort, sometimes accompanied by abdominal cramps.

It should be noted that this pain is often concentrated in the lower abdomen.

3. Constipation

Constipation is described as a condition accompanied by difficulty in the process of excretion and hardening of the stool, inability to pass a total, a feeling of discomfort and gas in the stomach, but what does it have to do with lactose indigestion?

Constipation is one of the symptoms of lactose intolerance, but it is less common than diarrhea. When lactose breaks down in the large intestine, methane is released, which in turn affects the process of food movement in the intestines, slowing it down, causing constipation.

4. Increased gases

As we explained in the previous points, the analysis of the lactose sugar causes the production of several gases in the large intestine, including methane and carbon dioxide, and the amount of gases resulting from lactose indigestion varies from person to person, depending on the severity of the infection.

The resulting gas is not associated with an unpleasant odor.

5. Additional symptoms of lactose intolerance

Symptoms of lactose intolerance are many and may also include headaches, fatigue and problems urinating. Symptoms related to this condition usually appear 30 minutes to two hours after consuming milk or dairy products.

If you suffer from the problem of the body’s inability to digest lactose, the solution lies in avoiding milk and dairy products, or using those lactose-free products.

Information on lactose intolerance

The term lactose intolerance describes a condition in which the body is unable to easily digest lactose, a type of natural sugar found in milk and dairy products.

There is a specific enzyme known as lactase that is responsible for breaking down and digesting the sugar lactose, but as a person ages, the production of this enzyme decreases, so a person may suffer from lactose indigestion.

If lactose is passed into the large intestine, especially the large intestine, without being properly digested, it can cause unpleasant symptoms.