From: gts (gts_2000@yahoo.com)
Date: Thu Apr 24 2003 - 01:19:09 MDT
This factoid comes from http://www.lactose.co.uk/intolerance/
"Around 95% of Asians have lactose intolerance. 75% of Blacks and 50% of
Mediterranean people also have lactose intolerance."
If these stats are correct then the majority of the homo sapiens are not
adapted to dairy. This suggests very strongly that even those of us who show
no symptoms are not yet fully adapted.
Personally I enjoy the taste of dairy products, and like the majority of
Caucasians of European descent my body shows no obvious symptoms that I am
not adapted to them. I am not lactose intolerant, per se. However I do not
believe that my body actually expects dairy as part of my diet.
If my genes could speak, I would guess that if I were to add dairy products
back to my diet they would say something like this: "Damn! There he goes
again! We have an emergency change of plans! Ramp up the production of
lactase! Send some extra help to the gastrointestinal tract for the
digestion of casein! It's time once again to devote energy and resources to
things we really ought not be doing!"
The situation is of course much worse for people with clinical lactose
intolerance. In their case the genes are incapable of handling the stress
from this non-paleolithic food. Milk-sugar (lactose) does not get broken
down into simpler sugars, causing gastrointestinal distress, and/or milk
protein (casein) is not digested which also causes gastrointestinal
distress. In some cases there is an allergic reaction.
-gts
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