Perimenopause And Lactose Intolerance

Perimenopause brings both obvious and subtle changes to your body. Some changes you expect, or have already experienced -- menstrual irregularity, hot flashes, mood swings, sleep problems, and lower sex drive.

Others may surprise you, especially food sensitivities and problems like lactose intolerance. If foods you once enjoyed -- cheese pizza, ice cream, or cereal with milk -- now give you stomach problems, lactose intolerance may be to blame.

In fact, the development of lactose intolerance seems to be a growing trend among perimenopausal women. Shifting hormones certainly play a role. And recent dietary changes -- more vegetables and complex carbs, for example -- may also cause problems.

But specifically, lactose intolerance stems from a lactase deficiency. This means your body is unable to fully digest the lactose, or milk sugar, in dairy products. Lactose intolerance occurs when your body has stopped producing lactase, the enzyme necessary to break down the sugar.

If you suffer from lactose intolerance, you already know the symptoms -- abdominal cramping, nausea, bloating, gas, and diarrhea. While the symptoms are usually mild, they can grow severe, at times. A diet that limits dairy products can control the symptoms.

I know, I know -- I like cheese pizza and ice cream, too. But eating fewer dairy products can help you control the uncomfortable, sometimes painful, symptoms of lactose intolerance.

While dairy products are excellent sources for certain vitamins and minerals, such as calcium, other (non-dairy) foods have many of the same nutrients. Here are some examples:

• Almonds
• Broccoli
• Kale
• Oranges
• Pinto beans
• Spinach
• Tofu

Some breads and fruit juices are fortified with calcium. And cow milk substitutes, such as soy and rice milk, can ensure adequate calcium intake. Your doctor, or a dietitian, can recommend other ways to get more non-dairy calcium into your diet.

Some perimenopausal women find it necessary to avoid eating dairy foods altogether. Most women, however, can enjoy a few milk products without consequence. In fact, gradually re-introducing dairy foods into your diet may increase your tolerance to them.

To minimize the symptoms of lactose intolerance, consider making a few simple changes to your diet. Here are some ideas:

Consume smaller dairy servings. Instead of drinking an 8-ounce glass of milk with breakfast, sip on 4 ounces. And drink it without other foods, rather than alone. This slows digestion and reduces the symptoms of lactose intolerance. Lactose-free and lactose-reduced milk and dairy products are also available.

Experiment with dairy foods. Not all dairy foods contain the same amount of lactose, and some foods may cause no symptoms, at all. Hard cheeses have less lactose than other dairy products, so your body may be able to tolerate them. Yogurt and cultured milk products contain bacteria, which produce the enzyme necessary for lactose digestion.

Beware the hidden lactose. Many non-dairy foods contain lactose, if milk is used in their preparation. Instant soups, salad dressings, baking mixes, processed meats, and non-dairy creamers are some examples. Check the labels and look for milk, lactose, whey, and milk byproducts. Some medications also contain lactose, so tell your doctor and pharmacist if you have lactose intolerance.

Take lactase enzyme supplements. The lactase enzyme is available in over-the-counter supplements, as tablets or drops. These products will not help everyone with lactose intolerance, but they are worth a try. They are best taken with a meal or snack.

No medical treatments can cure lactose intolerance, and there is no way to increase production of the lactase enzyme. Most women find symptom relief by reducing the amount of dairy products in their diet.

As alternative treatments go, probiotics may help women with lactose intolerance. Probiotics are living organisms necessary for a healthy digestive system. Present in your intestines, these organisms are also available as active cultures in yogurts and supplement capsules.

Probiotics are helpful for diarrhea and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and they are thought to digest lactose, too. They are safe and certainly worth considering for your lactose intolerance problems.

All perimenopausal women experience bone loss, due to declining levels of estrogen. When your body starts losing bone faster than it replaces it, you risk developing osteoporosis.

This is significant when discussing lactose intolerance, since osteporosis is associated with calcium and Vitamin D deficiency. Dairy foods are the best natural sources of these nutrients -- the same dairy foods that cause lactose intolerance.

So, how can you get calcium to prevent osteoporosis, while avoiding those uncomfortable symptoms of lactose intolerance? Here are a few suggestions:

• Calcium supplements
• Calcium-fortified soy milk or orange juice
• Spinach, kale, and other dark, leafy greens

Since Vitamin D is as important as calcium, be sure to get a little sunshine, too -- with SPF protection, of course. Sunlight helps the body absorb Vitamin D and break down calcium.

© Annette Smith. All rights reserved.

• Mayo Clinic Staff. (February 16, 2010.) "Lactose Intolerance." Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. Retrieved October 5, 2011.
• Mayo Clinic Staff. (September 16, 2010.) "Perimenopause." Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. Retrieved October 5, 2011.
• "Menopause and Lactose Intolerance." (2011) 34 Menopause Symptoms. Retrieved October 5, 2011.
• WebMD Contributors. (August 3, 2009.) "Lactose Intolerance: Topic Overview." WebMD Medical Reference. Retrieved October 5, 2011.

• The Amberen Solution -- Natural Treatment For Perimenopause Symptoms
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