The digestive tract can become irritated and inflamed rather easily, because it interacts with a wide variety of different substances due to its role in digestion and nutrient absorption. Unlike more severe digestive disorders like inflammatory bowel disease and ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS, does not damage the intestinal tissue. IBS can be triggered by ingesting certain foods, including milk and other substances containing lactose.
Identification
Irritable bowel syndrome is a condition which can cause abdominal pain, flatulence, gas and diarrhea, as well as mucus in the stool. It is not known what causes IBS; some believe that it is caused by unusually strong contractions from the muscles in the intestines. The severity of the symptoms can range from mild to disabling, and the Mayo Clinic reports that approximately one in five Americans have this condition.
Triggers
For many people, the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome can come and go. Often, eating certain foods can trigger IBS, including milk and other dairy products, that contain lactose. Although lactose can trigger the symptoms, other substances present in milk can also exacerbate irritable bowel syndrome. For example, dairy products also contain whey protein and casein, which means that even lactose-free products can trigger IBS.
Lactose Intolerance
One difficulty with diagnosing irritable bowel syndrome is that it shares many of the same symptoms as another digestive disorder, lactose intolerance. If you have lactose intolerance, you cannot break down lactose. This causes it to pass through your digestive tract, which results in abdominal pain, diarrhea and gas. Because lactose intolerance and IBS have similar symptoms and can both be triggered by the ingestion of dairy products, it can be difficult to distinguish between the two conditions.
Treatment
Regardless of whether you have lactose intolerance or irritable bowel syndrome, if lactose cause problems with your gastrointestinal tract you should eliminate all dairy products from your diet. In the case of IBS, you may also need to determine what other foods trigger your symptoms, such as caffeine, chocolate, coffee, alcohol, beans, cabbage or cauliflower, and remove them from your diet. Both conditions can be managed by working out an eating plan that minimizes your symptoms.
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