Reactions to cow’s milk refer to various conditions that arise from consuming cow’s milk, including cow’s milk intolerance, cow’s milk allergy, and lactose intolerance. Cow’s milk intolerance involves difficulty digesting milk proteins, often leading to digestive discomfort. Cow’s milk allergy is an immune response that can cause more severe symptoms. Lactose intolerance occurs due to the inability to digest lactose, the natural sugar found in milk. Each condition differs in cause, symptoms, and treatment.
Cow’s milk intolerance involves digestive issues due to difficulty processing cow’s milk, whereas an allergy triggers an immune response, potentially causing more serious reactions.
Common Symptoms of Cow’s Milk Intolerance:
Common Symptoms of Cow’s Milk Allergy:
In the UK, lactose intolerance is relatively common, affecting about 5% of the population, primarily adults. This contrasts with cow’s milk allergy, which is less common and mostly seen in children, with most outgrowing it by age five. Food intolerances in general, including lactose intolerance, are more prevalent than food allergies.
Milk allergy involves an immune response to proteins in milk, intolerance is difficulty digesting milk without an immune reaction, and lactose intolerance specifically relates to difficulty processing lactose in milk.