Lactose Intolerance & Villi.. Please Help!

[romeo77]

hey there, just a quick question... (and please do not exaggerate or mis interpret, thankyou )

i have celiac disease, was wondering if one was to have a lactose/dairy intolerance, do dairy/lactose foods flatten the villi as well gluten does ??

thankyou crew

dann

[silly-yak-mum]

Hi Romeo, I'm no doctor (ha ha - a little celiac humour) but my understanding is that lactose does not damage the villi. What can happen is that non-diagnosed celiacs are often mis-diagnosed lactose intollerant. For example, the damaged villi makes it hard to digest the lactose. My son had been diagnosed LI for many years and after a couple months of gluten-free could eat dairy to his heart's content.

[tarnalberry]

  romeo77 said:

hey there, just a quick question... (and please do not exaggerate or mis interpret, thankyou )

i have celiac disease, was wondering if one was to have a lactose/dairy intolerance, do dairy/lactose foods flatten the villi as well gluten does ??

thankyou crew

dann

a lactose intolerance means you don't produce the enzyme to break the complex sugar of lactose into its components. thus it makes it through the intestines where bacteria in your system can digest it and release gas as a byproduct, giving you bloating and gas as symptoms. it does not internally harm you. casein intolerance has been reported to cause intestinal damage (flattened villi), but it is very rare. it is, however, an immune response, and isn't something to tempt, as the continued heightened immune response isn't good for the body over all.