How to improve lactose digestion with lactase enzymes

Lactose is a sugar naturally present in milk, made up of glucose and galactose. The digestion of lactose requires the enzyme lactase. As its production decreases with age, some people develop lactose intolerance, which limits their consumption of dairy products.

This condition is not serious and can be managed by avoiding dairy products or using lactase supplements according to individual tolerance. Keep reading to learn everything you need to know!

How can I know if I am lactose intolerant?

Most symptoms of lactose intolerance are limited to the digestive system, the most notable being:

Even so, there are also systemic symptoms associated with lactose consumption in intolerant individuals, of unknown pathogenesis:

No, symptoms after consuming milk are not a reliable method for determining lactose intolerance, as there are multiple factors that can lead to these symptoms which are not due to lactose per se.

What happens if I drink milk and I am lactose intolerant?

Lactose intolerance is caused by a deficiency of the enzyme lactase, which makes it difficult to digest lactose, the sugar in milk. However, most intolerant people can consume small amounts (approximately 100 ml of milk) without adverse effects.

• Lactose-free milk is obtained by adding lactase to standard milk, although genuinely lactose-free products are uncommon and expensive.

The term “lactose intolerance” refers to the gastrointestinal symptoms caused by lactose malabsorption, which is not digested and is fermented in the colon. This is due to reduced lactase activity, a genetic condition that affects most adults.

What is the treatment for lactose intolerance?

There is no cure for lactose intolerance; the only 100% effective treatment is to avoid dairy products.

Other possible strategies that have been proposed as useful are:

What is the function of lactase?

Lactase is an enzyme that catalyses the breakdown of lactose into glucose and galactose, facilitating its absorption in the small intestine. When there is a deficiency or absence of lactase, lactose is not digested properly and reaches the colon, causing the typical symptoms of lactose intolerance.

Lactase is found in the microvilli of the small intestine, especially in the jejunal region, where it acts to prevent undigested lactose from causing problems. This activity is determined by genetics, and people with certain genotypes cannot produce enough lactase after weaning.

To manage intolerance, exogenous lactase can be taken through medicines or supplements, which is an effective strategy. There is also research on probiotics that can colonise the intestine and express lactase, although their effect is temporary while the microorganisms remain alive.

How long does it take for the symptoms to disappear?

At the very moment you stop consuming dairy products, the symptoms disappear, since the manifestations of discomfort are acute; if lactose is not consumed, there is no discomfort.

In the case of using lactase, it acts approximately 15 minutes after intake, remaining effective for up to 1 hour – 1 hour 30 minutes afterwards, preventing symptoms.

Through the consumption of bacterial ferments, the time required to see a significant effect has not yet been clearly established in humans, but it will presumably require around 3–4 weeks of using effective doses of the specific strain that shows lactase activity for it to colonise the intestine.

Lactase supplementation

There are functional differences between the endogenous lactase synthesised by mammals and that obtained from yeasts, fungi and bacteria such as Saccharomyces lactis, Kluyveromyces fragilis, Aspergillus Niger or Aspergillus Oryzae.

The commercial preparations of enzyme complexes intended to hydrolyse lactose that we use in HSN brand products feature the patented Digezyme or Tolerase.

How should lactase be taken?

Currently, practically all marketed lactase food supplements have an acute effect (lasting approximately 1 hour) and do not require prior maceration in the medium (milk or derivatives).

EssentialSeries Lactase

The HSN product recommends taking 1 tablet 15–30 minutes before consuming dairy products.

Proteins for lactose digestion

All the benefits of this enzyme can be found in dairy-based products such as:

• Evolate 2.0: Flavoured whey protein isolate, ideal for increasing protein intake for experienced users.
• Evodiet 2.0: Vegetarian powdered food preparation that combines whey proteins, caseins and soya, with essential fatty acids, plant extracts, enzymes and vitamins. Its standardised formula guarantees high quality, good solubility and a delicious flavour.
• Evocasein 2.0: Vegetarian powdered preparation based on micellar casein and the Digezyme® enzyme complex. It contains up to 82% protein, which contributes to the maintenance and growth of muscle mass.
• Evoexcel 2.0: high-quality powdered protein, combining whey protein isolate (WPI) and concentrate (WPC), complemented with enzymes (Digezyme®), probiotics (Lactospore®) and bovine colostrum. Its formula is designed for rapid absorption, ideal before or after training.

Conclusions

Lactose is the sugar found in milk and dairy products. Milk, like any other food, is not essential (except during breastfeeding, where substitutes also exist), although it is a complete food of high nutritional interest.

Missing out on the properties of dairy products because of mysticism or “because we are the only species of mammal that continues drinking milk after breastfeeding” is a reflection of genuine ignorance.

We are like this because we have evolved and adapted to environmental exposure, including the consumption of dairy products after breastfeeding.

If you are lactose intolerant, you can supplement your intake with lactase, although it would be preferable to leave this for occasional moments and generally avoid dairy products from quantities that cause you discomfort.

Bibliographical references

1. Corgneau, M., Scher, J., Ritie-Pertusa, L., Le, D. t. l., Petit, J., Nikolova, Y., … Gaiani, C. (2017). Recent advances on lactose intolerance: Tolerance thresholds and currently available answers. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 57(15), 3344–3356.
2. Fassio, F., Facioni, M. S., & Guagnini, F. (2018). Lactose maldigestion, malabsorption, and intolerance: a comprehensive review with a focus on current management and future perspectives. Nutrients, 10(11).
3. Flynn, A. (2016). Nutrition and Health: Galactosemia. In Reference Module in Food Science.
4. Ghoshal, U. C. (2016). Overview of hydrogen breath tests in gastroenterology practice. In Evaluation of Gastrointestinal Motility and its Disorders (pp. 87–94).
5. Szilagyi, A., & Ishayek, N. (2018). Lactose intolerance, dairy avoidance, and treatment options. Nutrients, 10(12).
6. Ugidos-Rodríguez, S., Matallana-González, M. C., & Sánchez-Mata, M. C. (2018). Lactose malabsorption and intolerance: a review. Food and Function, 9(8), 4056–4068.
7. Williams, C. A. (2003). Encyclopedia of food sciences and nutrition. In B. Caballero (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Food Sciences and Nutrition (Second Edition, pp. 2843–2846).

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