Lactose Intolerance in Children

Unexplained tummy aches, sporadic diarrhoea and constipation, mood swings, sudden energy drops. Could your child be dairy intolerant?

Dairy intolerance in children may be difficult to detect so here is a mother’s story about her five year old boy called Connor.

“Connor is a very active child, full of beans and chat, but I noticed when he was about four that his moods would swing quite violently at weekends. He would eat a good breakfast and then by mid morning he often complained of tummy ache and would flop on the couch. He often craved chocolate and sugar which perked him up, a little too much sometimes, and then by the afternoon he was lethargic and often struggling to go to the toilet or have a runny tummy.

A dairy free friend of mine thought his symptoms sounded like hers so I tried him on a soya diet for a weekend. Only then did I realise just how much dairy he ate. He loved chocolate cereal for breakfast, he had yogurts and milk chocolate as a snack, I often gave him cheese sandwiches, pizza, lasagne, basically lots and lots of dairy. I noticed a difference in him that weekend, his moods were so much better but he missed his chocolate. His poo was better and didn’t smell as bad and he never complained of stomach ache.

I took him to the doctors because I was worried that if he couldn’t have milk he wouldn’t get enough calcium and the doctor sent us to a dietician who gave me lots of good advice. Connor doesn’t like being different from other kids and still eats dairy from time to time but he’s already realising that when he does, he suffers for it afterwards.”

If you think your child might be dairy intolerant please be sure to talk to your doctor before changing your child’s diet to a dairy free one. There may be other reasons for your child’s symptoms so be sure they receive a full medical examination and referral to specialists if necessary.

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