<<I agree that it appears to  be dose related.  And I also believe that fluid
milk seems to be more of a problem.  My opinions from clinical observations.>>

My dh is a gastroenterologist and we've discussed this infant lactose
intolerance issue a lot.  He says that lactose intolerance is one of the most
OVER diagnosed conditions in infants, and UNDER diagnosed conditions in
adults.

Virtually all babies are born with lactase, the enzyme that digests lactose,
milk sugar.  When babies are about 5 years old (the natural age of weaning,
as Kathy D says) we begin to lose our lactase.  We lose it gradually over the
years so children can eat more dairy than teenagers who can eat more than
adults.

Virtually all adults are lactose intolerant to some degree.  Some races -
Native American, African, Asian - have little or no lactase in their systems
as adults.  I understand some Native Americans consider cow's milk to be a
laxative because they invariable get diarrhea when they drink it.

Some people who are from dairy herding cultures have evolved to continue to
make lactase later in life.  These people are northern Europeans.  I wonder
who tends to have dairy farms and run the Dairy Council?  I would bet they're
white northern Europeans!  Naturally they feel we should drink milk.  They
don't react to it!

I'm English/Irish/Scottish.  My husband is African American.  Drinking milk
rarely bothers me unless I drink a lot of it.  I do have osteoporosis, so I
try to get a lot of dairy in my diet for the calcium.  My husband is
sensitive to lactose even as an ingredient (in tomato sauce, for example) and
will get bloating, gas and diarrhea unless he takes a Lactaid tablet (which
contains the lactase enzyme).

If you have some lactase you can digest some milk products without trouble.
The less enzyme you have the more trouble you have even with smaller amounts
of milk.

Babies are not lactose intolerant, but they can react to too much lactose,
just like we can.  They just need more hindmilk - not Lactaid drops.

Cynthia D. Payne, IBCLC
In the Berkshires of western Massachusetts

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