I'm not lactose intolerant, but one of my cats apparently is, as he inevitably barfs ten minutes after consuming any quantity of milk (but not if it's that lactose-free "cat milk" put out by one of the pet food companies, though which one I can't remember right now).
A surprisingly high percentage of adult cats (and adult humans, for that matter) are lactose intolerant. IIRC, the figure is over 50%. Hang on a sec, let me do a quick web search...
http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactose_intolerance
According to Wikipedia, lactose intolerance in adults is the norm, not the exception.
The normal mammalian condition is for the young to lose the ability
to effectively digest milk sugar (lactose) at the end of the weaning
period (a species-specific length of time usually equal to roughly 3%
of lifespan). It has been established that certain human populations
have undergone a mutation on chromosome 2 which results in a bypass
of the normal shutdown in lactase production, allowing members of
these groups to continue consumption of fresh milk and fresh milk
products throughout their lives.Then again, Wikipedia also says:
Another recent solution has been a pill which artificially provides the
missing enzyme, allowing a person to tolerate milk products for a period
of a few hours after taking the pill.
A more accurate figure would be 30 to 40 minutes, according to the company that makes the most popular brand, Lactaid.
Aha. From:
http://ibscrohns.about.com/library/weekly/aa082300a.htm
Experts estimate that as many as 50 million American adults are lactose
intolerant (LI). LI is the world's most common disorder, primarily affecting
people of Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Jewish, and African descent.
People of northern European and some Middle Eastern (Bedouins, Saudis,
Yemenis) descents have little incidence of LI. Geographical regions seem
to play a role in the incidence of LI. Descendents of people from northern
Europe, for example, have been dependent on milk products as a food
source in their geographic region for a few thousand years. Those with
higher percentages of LI adults have not been dependent on milk products
in the geographic regions of their ancestors.
The second page of that site also has a good list of food that may contain lactose,
including french fries ("lactose is a browning agent"), chewing gum, lunch meets,
and "Up to 20% of medications use lactose as a base, a pharmacist will know
which ones."
Reggie Bautista
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