How many of you have lactose and/or fructose intolerance?

[FionaGFG]

Often these go hand in hand with CD...yet a simple breath test at hospital can help diagnoise this.

[India1]

I think I may have fructose intolerance - fruits such as apples and pears really bother me my tummy and affect my energy and concentration. My gastro consultant can't order a test at his hospital and told me to ask my GP to refer me. However, my GP won't send me for a the test and just says that if certain foods bother me, I shouldn't eat them. Helpful chap, my doctor.

Happily though, I'm not lactose intolerant

[FionaGFG Administrator]

That's frustrating India - are you happy with your hospital? Options would be a) switch hospitals (the Royal Free do lactose & fructose tests)

b) ring the gastro's sec and ask him to write to your GP requesting he refers you for tests (what the gastro says the GP normally does)

c) go back and see your GP or another one and explain you need a proper diagnosis rather than just avoiding foods on a whim e.g. fructose is in much more than apples and pears

d) can you see a dietitan and ask them to book the tests?

e) or pay privately ?

Good that you're not lactose intolerant. The fructose test is very similar.

[Hidden]

I'm lactose intolerant, but fortunately that only gives gut symptoms not the fever etc. I've ben trying out lactase drops and using the milk for cooking, making yogurt etc. This seems to be cuttting down reactions by about 95%. Looking forward to icecream, pannacotta, gratin dauphinoise.....

[meanioni]

Not lactose intolerance but intolerance to milk and a violent one at that - goes straight through me and gives me a bad rash.

*very* frustrating as lots of GF foods contain milk. Most of the DS and Genius non-bread ranges are GF but not milk free.

Funny thing is of the coeliacs I know all have varying intolerances/allergies to milk.

[KimberleyB]

I am also fructose intolerant but I am not strictly coeliac, just wheat and gluten intolerant, which is similar I suppose.

Fructose intolerance is hard to deal with at first because it cuts out a lot of food in the diet and you have to look out for things like invert sugar syrups, and fructose-glucose syrup, and you can't eat honey or golden syrup!

Apples, pears and strawberries, are the worst fruits and I find tomatoes are really bad as well!

Luckily I have an amazing doctor who sent me for the breath test which came back at 122 (normal being 20-30). I have now been diagnosed for about half a year and am slowly getting there! It is just annoying when gluten free breads add apple juice "so it looks better". DS breads do this so I now can't eat their brown bread.