Lactose Intolerant People Can Drink a Glass of Milk : Science File / An exploration of issues and trends affecting science, medicine and the environment

Can a single glass of milk cause gas, cramps and bloating? Millions of Americans think so, but a new study of lactose intolerance concludes that they are wrong. “The final result is, there is virtually nobody out there who cannot tolerate a glass of milk a day,” said Dr. Michael D. Levitt of the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Minneapolis.

Levitt’s team recruited 30 volunteers who claimed that they were lactose intolerant and assigned them to drink an 8-ounce glass of milk with breakfast for two weeks. One of the weeks, the milk was treated with the enzyme lactase to break down the sugar. The other week it was not.

The volunteers, who didn’t know which form they were receiving, reported no difference in their symptoms during the two weeks, indicating that they could tolerate at least small quantities of milk.