People who are lactose intolerant know there's nothing easy about their condition. They are unable to digest foods with lactose, the kind of sugar that's found in milk and other dairy products. Consuming dairy products makes the person with lactose intolerance experience painful gas, diarrhea and stomach bloating. However, people with lactose intolerance can still enjoy a healthy diet rich in calcium. If you have the condition, just follow a few simple rules.
Cut Portion Size
You don't have to eliminate dairy products completely if you're lactose intolerant. An easy rule to remember is eating smaller dairy portions. Instead of 8 oz. of milk, try 4 oz. Experiment to find out how much lactose your system can tolerate. Cut down portions of milk, ice cream and all foods made with dairy products, such as cream sauces. Since dairy products have varying amounts of lactose, you may find that you can eat larger portions of certain foods, such as hard cheeses and yogurt, which have lower lactose amounts.
Pretreat Your Food
People who are lactose intolerant are missing lactase. That's the enzyme needed to digest lactose. You can buy lactase drops at a pharmacy and add them to your food. You can also buy milk with added lactase. You can also swallow lactase tablets before meals. However, these products aren't effective for everyone struggling with lactose intolerance. You'll have to experiment to see which products work for you.
Lactose-Free Products and Dairy Substitutes
An easy lactose diet rule focuses on buying lactose-free products. The American Dietetic Association notes that lactose-reduced milk has far less lactose than regular milk, as much as 70 percent, and that lactose-free milk has almost no lactose at all. If you can't find enough lactose-free products, consider dairy substitutes: Try soy or almond milk instead of cow's milk. You can find milk, cheese, butter, cream and yogurt that are made of soy, rice, almonds, coconuts, potatoes and oats.
Seek Other Calcium Sources
When you reduce or eliminate calcium-rich dairy products, it's still important to eat other foods rich in calcium. Look for leafy greens, salmon with bones, almonds, dried fruits and legumes, such as soy beans. You can also take a calcium supplement, though you should speak to your doctor to determine how much calcium you'll need to add to your diet based on the foods you're eating.
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