"What do you mean you cannot drink milk??"

"It's because I have Lactose Intolerance (LI), ok? "

I got asked this a lot. And when I told them why, they automatically assume that I don't drink milk. Actually, it doesn't mean that I cannot take milk at all, in fact I love dairies, but consuming milk or any type of dairy products will eventually cause bloating, flatulence, abdominal cramps, and last but not least, acute diarrhea that could lead to dehydration if proper countermeasures are not taken.

Why me??
Well, thanks to the 1/8 chinese, and the remaining jawa part of me = Genetic predisposition, of course. And plus milk-drinking is never really a Malay culture, isn't it?

When will I have the symptoms??
Whenever I have appeased my cravings for something dairy i.e. milk, yoghurt, cheese, ice-cream.....YUMMM!!

How come??
Basically, we lack the enzyme lactase that breaks down lactose, a form of sugar found in milk & other dairy products. Lactose is a big-moleculed sugar and cannot be absorbed by the small intestinal (ileum) walls.
Therefore;
No lactase --> Lactose passes intact from ileum to colon --> Fermentation of lactose by the normal intestinal bacteria --> Production of a lot of gasses --------> Bloating, Flatulence, Cramps + Diarrhea (by lactose that attracts water into colon)

What to do??
Avoid dairy products (unless they are lactose-free), oral rehydration salt, water, water, water, water, water... + Oral enzyme substitution (never tried this before coz can't seem to get my hands on it yet)

Where??
Check out the prevalence of LI in the world population:

If you are still clueless and don't know what I'm talking about, go watch White Chicks the movie. Pay attention to what happens to one of the agents when he ate cheese. Oh yeah, I soooo know the feeling. Been there done that, sigh....

IMHO, being lactose intolerant ain't fun I tell ya. Especially for a person who loooooves dairy and can't live without them, like moi. And yes, different individuals have different levels and degrees of intolerance. But 'lucky' me, I got stuck with the one-glass-of-milk-will-make-you-have-diarrhea-the-whole-night type of LI. And imagine what would happen if I'd have 1 glass milk+1 slice cheese+1 stick ice-cream, in 1 day. Berkampung kat dalam bilik air ler jawabnya...

A lactose intolerant gal who loves lactose-full dairies. What a bummer, ain't it?