title: The effect of lactose maldigestion on the stools of young Tswana children.
abstract: During diarrhoeal disease, stool mass is usually increased. Lactose content of stools and stool pH have been used as tests for secondary lactose maldigestion. The effect of a lactose-free diet and various lactose loads on the stools of 30 children with primary adult-type lactose maldigestion was investigated. Stool mass following the lactose tolerance test was the largest (mean = 80 g/day); that following the milk tolerance test less--62 g (not significantly), that on a milk containing diet significantly less (35 g), while stool mass produced on a lactose-free diet (22 g) was significantly less than that produced on any of the three lactose-containing diets. The stool pH on a milk containing diet (mean = 6.3) was significantly higher than those of the three other diets (after lactose tolerance test, pH = 5.85; after milk tolerance test, pH = 5.86; after lactose-free diet, pH = 5.83). Although stool bulk was greater when these lactose maldigesters were consuming a lactose containing diet, it was still considerably less than the stool mass associated with secondary lactose maldigestion, which is believed to be a cause of diarrhoeal disease. In contrast, the primary adult-type of lactose maldigestion does not commonly cause diarrhoea, as shown in this study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of the Witwatersrand Medical School, South Africa.
authors.forename: F P
authors.initials: FP
authors.lastname: de Villiers
mesh_terms: D000349:Africa; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005243:Feces / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007787:Lactose Intolerance / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000178:diet therapy / Q000378:metabolism*; D007789:Lactose Tolerance Test