Lactose-containing Food Products

Milk contains milk sugar — that makes sense. But sausage, pizza and medicinal products, too? How can that be? Find out which foods your digestive system can tolerate and which it can’t.

• Dairy products:

Cow, sheep and goat milk contain a lot of lactose. Those with lactose intolerance should therefore avoid all dairy products produced from them. The following list gives you an overview of lactose-containing dairy products.

• Cream cheese
• Cottage cheese
• Processed cheese
• Young cheese varieties
• Coffee creamer / condensed milk
• Kefir
• Whey
• Quark
• Sour cream
• Smetana
• Crème fraîche
• Sweet cream (whipped cream)
• Buttermilk
• Yoghurt (some varieties)
• Milk chocolate
• Ice cream

 

• The special case of cheese, yoghurt and butter

There are likely some dairy products that your stomach can handle quite well, despite your lactose intolerance. Some cheese varieties, for example, contain only a very small amount of lactose — often > 0.1 g of lactose per 100 g. A good rule of thumb: The more mature the cheese, the less lactose it contains.

The amount of lactose found in yoghurt depends on how it has been processed. For example, probiotic natural yoghurt is frequently very well tolerated, even with lactose intolerance.

 

And while the lactose content of butter is indeed higher than that of hard cheeses at 0.6 g lactose per 100 g, because of the rather small amounts generally put on bread, consuming it is normally quite harmless.

 

You can normally eat hard cheeses, natural yoghurt and butter without having to resort to the lactose-free version at the supermarket. Nevertheless: Always try them out first. Not everyone tolerates the same amount equally well.

 

• Lactose and the food industry

Now comes the question: Why do foods such as sausages or ready-made meals also contain lactose? This is because lactose has many useful properties for the food industry; for example, as a low-cost aroma and flavor carrier in cakes or biscuits. In addition, milk sugar ensures that baked goods and sausages turn that appetizing “golden brown” color that people love. It is also used as a flavoring agent in ready-cooked and frozen foods. Due to its high water-binding capacity, lactose is often used as a binding agent. Last but not least, it gives foods like yoghurt a thicker consistency. That’s why fat-reduced foods especially contain the substance lactose, since adding it hardly changes the caloric content.

 

• Hidden milk sugar:

Due to its diverse properties, lactose is used and often hidden in many food industry products. It is always worth it to take a look at the ingredient list. However, try to avoid ready-made products. Freshly cooked meals taste better anyway! Here’s a list of some lactose-containing products that might surprise you:

• Cold cuts / sausages
• Pre-cooked meals such as frozen pizza, ready-made soup etc.
• Breadcrumbs
• Mashed potatoes
• Dry pastries
• Salad dressings
• Sweeteners
• Cereal mixes
• Food spreads
• Medication / pills (not all of them!)

 

• By the way, did you know that…
• …if it says „May contain traces of milk“ on the packaging, it means that you can safely enjoy the product? The dairy content of these foods is negligible and far below the tolerance limit for lactose intolerance.
• On the other hand, if the carbohydrate content of cheese is indicated, this directly corresponds to the lactose content in the cheese. If the label says that the carbohydrate content is 0.0 g, this means that the cheese is lactose-free. Exception: Starch is added to grated cheese. So even “lactose-free cheese” does not have 0 g of carbohydrates.
• Although the ingredients of food products must be specified in the ingredient list on the food label, if these foods contain any milk products, a separate indication of lactose is no longer obligatory.

All in all, avoiding lactose-containing products is not always easy in everyday life — and sometimes it’s simply impossible. Make sure to always have a lactase supplement on hand for just such cases!