Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

Hi - You can be lactose intolerant AND have IBS, but you can also not be lactose intolerant and have IBS, and dairy will still trigger attacks. There are lots of things in dairy that cause problems for IBS - lactose is just one of them. The high fat content is a huge trigger, and the dairy proteins casein and whey bother a lot of people as well. I'm not lactose intolerant, but small amounts of any high fat dairy product make me very sick (as do large amounts of skim dairy products).

The test for lactose intolerance used to be brutal -they'd draw blood every 15 minutes or so for several hours, after you drank this huge glass of sludge. I had this as a kid and wow, what an unpleasant memory. Good news is, the test is now fast and easy and not unpleasant at all, so no worries there.

If you find out you're NOT lactose intolerant, but you do have IBS, I'd still assume dairy is a trigger no matter what and avoid it altogether.

Best,
Heather

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Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!

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