Milk can be considered a daily necessity, but do you know the taboos associated with drinking it? Not everyone is suitable for drinking milk. Many people experience diarrhea, poisoning, and other symptoms after consuming milk. Today, the editor will tell you about 9 groups of people who may experience diarrhea or poisoning from drinking milk.
1. Milk Allergies
Some people experience symptoms like abdominal pain and diarrhea after drinking milk. In severe cases, individuals may even develop rhinitis, asthma, or urticaria.
2. People with Frequent Lead Exposure
The lactose in milk can promote the absorption and accumulation of lead in the human body, easily leading to lead poisoning. Therefore, people who are frequently exposed to lead should not drink milk and can switch to yogurt, which contains very little lactose as most of it has been converted into lactic acid.
3. Iron-deficiency Anemia, Lactase Deficiency
4. Lactose Intolerance
Some people have a severe deficiency of lactase in their bodies, which means the lactose in the milk they consume cannot be broken down into galactose and glucose for absorption by the small intestine. Instead, it goes directly into the large intestine, increasing the osmotic pressure in the intestinal cavity and causing the intestinal mucosa to absorb a large amount of water. Furthermore, when lactose is fermented by bacteria in the intestine, it produces lactic acid, lowering the intestinal pH value to below 6, which irritates the large intestine and leads to symptoms such as bloating, abdominal pain, flatulence, and diarrhea. (90% of Chinese people are lactose intolerant). Individuals with lactose intolerance need to control their intake; generally, 200ml is fine, but some people can only drink very little milk or none at all, otherwise, it will cause bloating and diarrhea. Therefore, drinking milk can have its downsides for some people.
5. The Elderly Should Not Drink Too Much Milk
Milk is globally recognized as an important source of calcium supplementation due to its rich nutritional value, high calcium content, and high bioavailability. For many years, many elderly people have chosen to drink more milk to supplement calcium. Although milk is a good source of calcium, for the elderly, drinking too much milk for this purpose is not worth it because milk can promote the development of senile cataracts. This is because milk contains 5% lactose, which can easily deposit in the lens of the elderly eye and affect its normal metabolism. Moreover, proteins are prone to denaturation, leading to a decrease in lens transparency, which can induce or worsen senile cataracts. Patients with cholecystitis, pancreatitis should not drink it; those with a weak spleen and stomach causing diarrhea, or with phlegm-dampness accumulation should use it with caution.
6. Patients with Reflux Esophagitis
Milk can lower the pressure of the lower esophageal sphincter, thereby increasing the reflux of gastric or intestinal fluid and worsening esophagitis.
7. Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
This is a common functional bowel disease characterized by abnormal physiological reactions of intestinal muscle movement and intestinal mucous membrane secretion to stimulation, without any structural damage to the intestine. Symptoms are mainly related to psychological factors and food allergies, including allergies to milk and its products.
8. Patients After Abdominal or Gastric Surgery
The patient's lactase levels can be affected and reduced. After drinking milk, the undigested lactose will ferment in the body, producing water, lactic acid, and a large amount of carbon dioxide, causing the patient to become bloated. During abdominal surgery, the intestines are exposed to the air for a long time, and the mesentery is stretched, which delays the recovery of postoperative intestinal motility. Gas produced by swallowing or fermentation in the intestinal cavity cannot be expelled in time, worsening bloating and potentially causing abdominal pain, increased intra-abdominal pressure, or even the bursting of sutured areas or the opening of the surgical incision. After gastric surgery, the remaining stomach pouch is very small. Milk containing lactose will quickly rush into the small intestine, making an already insufficient or deficient lactase level even more so.