
15. What Are The Risks Associated With Lactose Intolerance?
There are specific factors that come into play that increase your risk of becoming lactose intolerant. It’s not to say that if you have all of these factors, you’re definitely not going to have dairy products, but there is an increased risk of not being able to ingest any milk or milk products if any of these factors are present in your life. The first significant factor is age. As you get older, you tend to become more lactose intolerant. As stated earlier, this is because mammals are not meant to ingest milk so long into their adult life.
The second factor is ethnicity; those who are of African, Hispanic, Indigenous American, or Asian descent are more likely to be lactose intolerant. A third factor involves certain diseases that affect the small intestine. These include diseases and conditions such as celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, and bacterial overgrowth in the intestine. Lastly, specific cancer treatments can play a role in how prone you are to becoming lactose intolerant. Radiation therapy especially can cause intestinal issues, which can increase your risk of becoming lactose intolerant.