If an inability to properly digest lactose is affecting your life, you may be on the verge of bidding a tearful, final farewell to dairy products. Take heart, cheese lover, because probiotics, friendly bacteria that confer health benefits when consumed live, may be able to help assuage your dietary ills. When you're lactose intolerant, your body doesn't produce enough of the enzyme that digests lactose. This causes undigested food to move into your intestines. As a result, diarrhea, cramps and nausea are an unpleasant part of life for the lactose-intolerant.
Streptococcus Thermophilus
Streptococcus thermophilus, or ST, is a bacteria used as a starter culture in the production of mozzarella cheese and yogurt. According to the European Bioinformatics Institute, it helps to relieve the symptoms of gastrointestinal disorders such as lactose intolerance. Mary Ellen Sanders, Ph.D. is the author of a paper entitled "Strategies for Managing Individuals With Diagnosed Lactose Intolerance: Probiotics," which was presented before the National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Conference in February 2010. Sanders explains that Streptococcus thermophilus is thought to aid in lactose digestion by producing beta-galactosidase, an enzyme that enables the breakdown of lactose.
Lactobacillus Bulgaricus
Along with Bifidobacteria, the Lactobacillus genus of bacteria produces the majority of microorganisms that are classified as probiotics. Sanders explains that like Streptococcus thermophilus, the bacteria known as Lactobacillus bulgaricus produces beta-galactosidase. Both of these probiotics have difficulty surviving passage through the gastrointestinal tract due to the fact that their cell walls are permeable to bile. This permeability is to your advantage if you suffer from lactose intolerance, as it allows the cells to release bacterial cells to release beta-galactosidase into the small intestine, thus enabling the breakdown of lactose.
Conclusions
Lactose intolerance is not actually a disease, says Arthur C. Ouwehand of the Department of Biochemistry and Food Chemistry at the University of Turku. The reduced production of beta-galactosidase is normal in everyone, except for those of northwest European descent. The relationship between probiotics and relief from lactose intolerance, or maldigestion, was first noted due to the tendency of fermented milk products to be better tolerated by those who typically develop digestive symptoms such as cramps, nausea and diarrhea from the consumption of milk products. Not all probiotics are helpful in this regard, only those that are able to digest lactose.
