Allergies are a common cause of illness that impact many individuals,
including millions of children.
What are they?
Allergies are defined as an ‘abnormal immune system reaction to things that are typically harmless to most people’ (Allergy.org.au, 2019). When a person is allergic to something, the immune system mistakenly believes that this substance is harming the body.
What causes them?
Allergies can be caused by many different substances such as some foods, animals, medicines, plants or even dust - these are known as allergens. In particular, one of the most common allergies is the allergy to dairy, known as “lactose intolerance”.
What is lactose intolerance you might be wondering? Lactose intolerance is a digestive disorder caused by the inability to digest lactose, the main carbohydrate
in dairy products.
What does it mean to be lactose intolerant?
If someone is lactose intolerance this usually means they try to avoid products containing milk or lactose. Some children develop a permanent intolerance to lactose and have to avoid milk products for the rest of their lives. Do you find yourself experiencing stomach pain or bloating, diarrhea or wind after consuming milk or milk products? These are all signs and symptoms of lactose intolerance, so this may mean that you may too have this allergy.
Watch Sebastian D, 14 years old, from the UK, do some of his comedy act and he also describes the difficulties living with his allergy – lactose intolerance. Season 8 – Unforgettable Youth – Part 2. https://teentalkproduction.okast.tv Streaming channel. Enter, subscribe, and stream for FREE for 7 days! Try it now!
This could mean that you may have to rid yourself of many of your favourite
foods like ice cream, pizza, chocolate, milkshakes and lots of other foods that
contain some type of lactose.
This can be really difficult at times, particularly when you're out with friends or family and they are all eating a delicious ice cream, or if you are at a birthday party and they have ordered everyone pizzas with lots of cheese! This may cause stress or social anxiety in children and embarrassment at the fact that they are unable to eat certain foods that everyone else can.
However, don't let this get you down as there are some excellent alternatives for this allergy. For example, there are many delicious dairy free foods available nowadays, including ice cream, cheeses and even lactose free milk! These products are usually easily accessible and make it a lot easier to enjoy your food whilst adhering
to food intolerances.
And another plus side to limiting dairy products is that you are actually helping the environment! The dairy industry has been under a lot of
scrutiny and received a lot of backlash for their
cruel treatment towards cows.
Ditch dairy, a movement targeting the issues with the dairy industry claims that the dairy industry has led us to believe that dairy cows live ideal lives, give birth, feed their young and welcome their daily milking. But the truth is somewhat different.
They claim that cows are kept continually pregnant, so they keep producing milk, forced to give birth to a calf every 13 months to ensure that she continues producing a high volume of milk into the next year- an extremely uncomfortable lifestyle for a cow. (Newkey-Burden, 2017)
So if you’re lactose intolerance is getting you down just remember that there are lots of delicious alternatives that are just as tasty as foods containing lactose, and think that in limiting dairy product you are doing something beneficial for the environment and putting a stop to the cruel dairy industry!
Some fun facts!
• Roughly 70% of the world’s population has some form of intolerance
• Humans are the only the only animal that drink another animal’s milk
• Lactose intolerance can run in families
Further information:
https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/about-allergy/what-is-allergy
https://www.paeats.com/news/2015/10-facts-you-didnt-know-about-lactose-intolerance/
