A Little Dairy Is OK for Kids With Lactose Intolerance
Sept. 5, 2006 — -- While it may sound like a bad idea, lactose-intolerant kids should eat some dairy every day, according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
That's because even small amounts of milk, yogurt and cheese can help kids maintain daily recommended levels of bone-building calcium and vitamin D.
When children with lactose intolerance eat dairy products, they can experience nausea, bloating, gas, diarrhea and other problems in the digestive system. Those problems can be painful or embarrassing, keeping some kids home from school or left out of other activities.
But the AAP says kids should not shun dairy altogether, as dairy is an easy source of calcium and vitamin D, which are essential for a child's bone growth and development. Kids also can get small amounts of calcium from some canned fish, broccoli or dark leafy vegetables. But doctors agree that dairy is the simplest and the easiest source of calcium and vitamin D for children.
When compared with other sources of calcium, "milk and dairy products certainly are generally more accepted and available," said Dr. Mark Groshek, a pediatrician at Kaiser Permanente Colorado. "It is pretty difficult to get adequate calcium without them."
"Let's face it," said Dr. Ari Brown, a pediatrician and author of "Baby 411." "How many kids, especially toddlers, eat broccoli, green leafy vegetables, rhubarb or tofu?"
So the AAP now recommends that even children who do not digest dairy easily still eat some dairy foods to help strengthen their bones.
More than 70 percent of the world's population is lactose intolerant. Those in that group cannot easily digest the sugar, known as lactose, that is found in dairy products such as milk or ice cream. Lactose intolerance is different from an allergic reaction to the protein in dairy products.
Most of the people who are lactose intolerant come from cultures whose diets do not usually include dairy. Nearly 100 percent of Asians and American Indians are lactose intolerant, as are 80 percent of Hispanics and 60 to 80 percent of blacks and Ashkenazi Jews. Only 2 percent of European populations are lactose intolerant.
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