What Bad Breath Can Really Mean
An all too common
story....
 Emma loved cheese.
She loved yogurt, milkshakes, and creamy macaroni and cheese since she was a toddler.
There was nothing better than a frosty bowl of ice cream.
Her older sister noticed that Emma, who was about 12 years
old, was beginning to stay in the bathroom longer and longer; with the door locked. Her
parents chalked this up to teen-age privacy and nothing more. But along with this
Emma was grouchy and seemed irritable most of the day. And her bad breath was so
strong that it seemed it could peel the paint off the walls. Again her family
chalked it up to teen-age growing pains.
About a month after her older sister noticed Emma
logging marathon bath room time, Emma decided to talk with her mother. Emma usually
wasn't one to sit down and actually start conversations but this particular morning she
was waiting for her mother right at the kitchen table, all geared up.
"Mom, I think I may be lactose intolerance".
 Big
words from a 12 year old. But this topic had been discussed in the
house before. Emma's mom had noticed that Emma wouldn't finish all of her
ice cream and started groaning when offered a cheese stick. Also Emma'
friend had spent the night recently and she too was lactose intolerant.
Emma started telling her mom how her stomach got upset after drinking milk
or eating cheese. She also revealed that the pin and diarrhea left her
irritable and feeling terrible. her mom also wondered if her bad breath
could be tied into this?
After reading up on lactose intolerance,
the pieces started to fit together....
What is lactose
intolerance?
 Lactose
intolerance is the inability to digest foods that contain lactose, the main sugar of milk
and other dairy products. Lactase, the stomach enzyme needed to digest these foods
is either missing or not produced in sufficient amounts to digest dairy foods.
Without lactase the stomach and intestinal system can't digest or breakdown these
foods. This results in some distressing but not dangerous symptoms.
What are the
signs and symptoms
of lactose intolerance?
The signs and symptoms of lactose intolerance mainly
involve the digestion system. Because these symptoms can signal other problems like
a stomach virus, sometimes it can be difficult to establish that the symptoms are caused
by lactose intolerance. A careful look at when these signs start up and keeping a
food journal noting the times and kinds of foods that are eaten leading to the upset is
crucial in making this diagnosis.
Signs and
symptoms of lactose intolerance:
- Nausea
- Cramping
- Bloating
- Gas
- Diarrhea
- Very bad breath
These signs can begin 30 minutes to 2 hours after a person eats or drinks foods containing
lactose. The severity of the symptoms varies depending on the amount of lactose a
person can tolerate.
It turned out that Emma was having severe stomach aches
followed by gas and diarrhea whenever she ate food or drank a beverage containing lactose
milk, milkshake).
The nausea, bloating, and cramping is the body's way of "getting rid" of these
foods since they can't digest them.
One common sign of lactose intolerance but not usually thought connected to lactose
intolerance is bad breath. This doesn't seem to go with the other signs
but it is very key in diagnosing lactose intolerance.
The bad breath is
much more
than "morning breath".
It is powerfully strong and people can sense it from feet
away. Others may think the person has poor oral hygiene when in reality they are
lactose intolerant. The oral hygiene has nothing to do with their bad breath.
The bad breath is caused by the lactose rich foods sitting in the person's
intestines and fermenting. The body tries to get rid of the gases that are produced
as the result of fermentation by having them reabsorbed by the bloodstream and exhaled
out.
The hydrogen breath test is a common way doctors make the diagnosis of lactose
intolerance. This tests measures the amount of hydrogen in the breath.
Normally, very little hydrogen is in the breath. But undigested lactose in the colon
(large intestine) is fermented by bacteria, and various gases including hydrogen is
produced. The hydrogen is absorbed by the intestines, carried through the
bloodstream to the lungs, and exhaled. In the test, the patient drinks a
lactose-loaded beverage, and the breath is analyzed at regular intervals. Raised
levels of hydrogen in the breath indicate improper digestion of lactose. Certain
foods, medications, and cigarettes can affect the test's accuracy and should be avoided
before taking the test. This test is available for children and adults.
How dose someone
become lactose intolerant?
There are between 30-50 million Americans who are lactose
intolerant. Certain ethnic and racial groups are more widely affected than others.
As much as 75% of all African-Americans and Native Americans and 90% of Asian Americans
are lactose intolerant. The condition is least common among people who have northern
European descent.
There are a couple of ways people can become lactose intolerant. First they can be
born with the inability to produce the enzyme lactase. The second way a person can
become lactose intolerant is that as they age they lose lactase production. It gets
less and less. In fact, many people over the age of 40 find themselves having a hard
time digesting foods high in lactose. It seems that after the age of 2 we all start
to make less lactase.
What do you eat
if you are lactose intolerant?
 Calcium,
which is found in most dairy foods, is very important for building bones and other vital
bodily functions. Green leafy vegetables and some types of seafood are rich in
calcium. Calcium can be gotten from other foods and meal planning should include these
foods:
Non-dairy foods
that contain calcium:
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Collard greens
- Kale
- Turnip greens
- Sardines
- Oysters
- Salmon
- Shrimp
- Molasses
- Tofu
There are also
foods that contain "hidden" sources of lactose.
- It
may not seem obvious
that a food or product contains lactose. It is very important to become a label
reader when a person in your family is lactose intolerant.
- People with a very low tolerance for lactose should know
about the many food products that may contain lactose, even in small amounts.
Food products
that may contain lactose:
- Bread and other baked goods
- Processed breakfast cereals
- Instant potatoes, soups and breakfast drinks
- Margarine
- Lunch meats ( other Kosher)
- Salad dressings
- Candies and other snacks
- Mixes for pancakes, biscuits, and cookies
There can be a
bit of confusion when reading labels.
Foods can contain lactose and not say it on
the label. Other words that indicate that the product contains lactose are: whey,
curds, milk by-products, dry milk solids, and nonfat dry milk powder.
Medications also have to be looked at before giving them to a lactose intolerant person.
These include prescription medications and over the counter medications.
Since lactose is used as the base for more than 20% of all these types of medications it
is very important to talk with your pharmacist.
There are products that can be bought over the counter that will allow people with lactose
intolerance easily digest and enjoy dairy foods. Products, like Lactaid, provide the
person with the missing enzyme, lactase. They are easily taken 5 minutes before eating any
food containing lactose. This will prevent the stressing problems associated with eating
dairy and other lactose rich foods.
Pink Eye (conjunctivitis)
by Sue Spataro, RN, BSN
 Pink eye or conjunctivitis is a very common infectious condition. It
can affect any age group but is predominantly found in school- aged children and children
who are in day care. Find out about the various forms of this problem and what you can do
to help your child.
Health Byte:
"Are Head Lice Bugging You?"
If your child attends daycare or goes to school outside of the home, then head
lice maybe a concern for you. Head lice is very easily transmitted from person to person
through direct head contact. Sharing personal items such as brushes, combs, and linens can
help in passing head lice from one person to another.
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