Background: I am a 67 yr old male retiree. Have drank milk all my life
without problems (last 10 years, just skim milk).  A few years ago I
developed what appeared to be an allergic reaction to milk which
caused major GI upset, gas and diarrhea. VA doc called it lactose
intolerance. I then switched to lactose free lo-fat milk which worked
for awhile, but eventually same symptoms appeared.  I then switched to
lo-fat soymilk which worked for awhile, then problems resurfaced with
a vengeance.
Question: What do these three "milks" have in common and is there any
way I can ever drink any of these again?
FYI: Possibly not related, but I have had CFD/ME since 1992.

Hello Tulsa8144,

   
   My first thought was that soy milk IS made from beans, and beans
are notorious for causing intestinal problems! However, sensitivities
to milk and soy proteins can be cross reactive, as some of the sites
below explain. One can develop a sensitivity to a food that previously
caused no problems. According to the following site, about 50% of
people with a milk allergy will develop an allergy to other proteins;
one being soy!

  The offending protein in cow milk is alpha S1 casein protein:  ?It
may also be that the patient is not lactose intolerant at all, but
instead is one of the 1-in-10 people who are allergic to the major
protein of cow's milk ... alpha S1 casein protein. The symptoms are
almost identical to those of lactose intolerance. Both goat milk and
human milk lack this offending protein.?
http://www.chiroweb.com/archives/15/25/09.html


?It is not completely certain which specific component of soy is
responsible for reactions, but at least 15 allergenic proteins have
been identified.
The way soy foods are processed can affect allergenicity. All soy
products may not cause reactions. Some fermented soy foods may be less
allergenic than raw soy beans. Soybean oil, which does not contain
protein, may not produce symptoms. It just depends on the individual.?

?Cross Reactivity
Those allergic to soy beans may also cross react to certain foods,
such as peanuts, green peas, chick peas, lima beans, string beans,
wheat flour, rye flour, and barley flour.?
http://allergies.about.com/cs/soy/a/aa061499.htm



   ?Lactose intolerance and allergies may be more prevalent than you
think: "Among those over the age of five, approximately 90-95% of
black individuals and 20-25% of white individuals throughout the world
will have a partial or complete lactose intolerance."

?For example, soy milk does not result in lactose intolerance.?

?The human body is able to mount a variety of defense mechanisms
against proteins it regards as foreign or harmful. Scientists do not
clearly understand why food proteins are regarded as harmful by the
body, or how adverse affects occur. For example, some milk-sensitive
individuals produce IgE antibodies to milk proteins, but some develop
a milk protein "intolerance," which results from the body mounting a
non-IgE immune response to milk protein.?

?Unfortunately, 50% of cow's milk allergy patients will develop an
allergy to other food proteins (e.g., egg, soya, peanut), and 50-80%
will develop an allergy to one or more inhalant allergens (e.g., grass
pollens, house dust mite, cat) before puberty.?

?Among those over the age of five, approximately 90-95% of black
individuals and 20-25% of white individuals throughout the world will
have a partial or complete lactose intolerance.?

?Certain antibiotics, e.g., penicillin, may be present in milk from a
cow being treated for an infection. Individuals allergic to penicillin
can thus be exposed to this antibiotic, resulting in a severe allergic
reaction. Uncontrolled grazing by cows can result in the ingestion of
certain weeds that contain a variety of chemicals, e.g., alkaloids,
that may adulterate the milk.?
http://www.scienceinafrica.co.za/2002/may/milk.htm



   ?A higher prevalence of soy intolerance has generally been reported
in non?immunoglobulin E (IgE)-associated enterocolitis and enteropathy
syndromes. Authorities have failed to reach consensus on the risk of
feeding allergic or nonallergic infants with soy protein milks. This
divisive clash of opinion is also reflected in the mutually
antagonistic stances adopted by 2 important scientific societies, the
European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and
Nutrition (ESPGHAN) and the European Society of Pediatric Allergy and
Clinical Immunology (ESPACI). However, the general agreement is that a
significant number of children with cow milk protein intolerance
develop soy protein intolerance when soy milk is used in dietary
management.?

?Pathophysiology: Two heat-stable globulins (beta-conglycinin,
molecular weight (MW) 180,000 and glycinin, MW 320,000) constitute 90%
of the pulp-derived proteins. Immunoblotting and competitive
enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays have identified a 30 kD glycinin
from soybeans that cross-reacts with cow milk caseins and that is
constituted by 2 polypeptides (A5 and B3) linked by a disulphide bond.
The protein's capacity to bind to the different antibodies relies on
the B3 polypeptide. However, other soy proteins can act as allergens
in humans. At least 9 proteins with MW ranging from 14,875-54,500 were
found to react with human IgE in patients with asthma. Moreover, after
enteric digestion, a number of potential antigens are generated at the
mucosal surface.

According to some studies in animal models, soy proteins appear to be
less sensitizing than cow milk proteins; however, infants with a
previous history of cow milk protein intolerance have a greater risk
of developing soy protein intolerance. The intestinal mucosa damaged
by cow milk proteins may allow increased uptake of the potentially
allergenic soy proteins.?
?Causes: All soybean proteins and foods currently available for human
consumption contain significant amounts of the isoflavones daidzein
and genistein, either as the unconjugate form or as different types of
glycoside conjugates.

?	The isoflavones have structural homology to steroidal estrogens;
therefore, they are considered to be phytoestrogens, but little is
known about their biological activity.

?	Unquestionably, isoflavone ingestion can elicit biological effects;
however, isoflavones and their metabolites have biological properties
that are quite separate from classic estrogen action.

?	Genistein is a potent inhibitor of tyrosine kinases and can
interfere with signal transduction pathways.

?	The threshold intake of dietary estrogens necessary to achieve a
biological effect in healthy adults appears to be 30-50 mg/d.

?	In soy flours and concentrates, isoflavone concentrations are
relatively high (0.5-3 mg/g). In soy milk and soy infant formulas, the
concentration of isoflavones is lower (0.3-0.5 mg/g), but it is
10,000-fold higher than the concentration found in breast milk.
Moreover, the volume intake of these products is sufficient to account
for a significantly high dietary intake of isoflavones.?
http://www.emedicine.com/PED/topic2128.htm


?"... differential diagnosis must consider other causes of enteropathy
(eg, infectious, metabolic, lymphangiectasia, Celiac disease). The
disorder is caused by an immune response most commonly to cow milk
protein, but soy, cereal grains, egg, and seafood have also been
implicated. Diagnosis is based on the combined findings from
endoscopy/biopsy, allergen elimination, and challenge. Biopsy reveals
variable small bowel villus injury, increased crypt length,
intraepithelial lymphocytes, and few eosinophils. The immune
mechanisms seem to involve T cell responses19 and are not associated
with IgE antibodies. Although features are shared with Celiac disease,
this enteropathy is unlike Celiac disease because resolution generally
occurs in 1?2 years and there is no increased threat of future
malignancy.16 Dietary protein enteropathy may persist into later
childhood,20 but the frequency of persistence of the disorder into
adulthood is unknown."
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/111/6/S2/1609


   Alternatives to cow?s milk and soy milk could be goat milk and coconut milk:

?There are other alternatives: take goat's milk, for example. Patients
with diarrhea, asthma, bloating and irritability may be suffering from
the most common food allergy: cow's milk. Goat's milk is a natural
alternative to cow milk and can comfortably be consumed by many
patients who suffer from cow milk allergies or sensitivity.

Although goat milk, like cow's milk and human milk, contains lactose,
many people with lactose intolerance can drink goat milk. Why? It has
been hypothesized that the reason lies in goat milk's superior
digestibility. Goat milk is more completely and easily absorbed than
cow's milk, leaving less undigested residue behind in the colon to
quite literally ferment and cause the uncomfortable symptoms of
lactose intolerance.?

?Goat milk is an excellent option for any patient who is cow milk or
soy milk sensitive and is necessarily concerned with obtaining
adequate calcium from a natural dietary source. Goat milk is also an
excellent source of dietary calcium important in the prevention of
high blood pressure, osteoporosis and other bone-related problems. For
menopausal women, goat milk provides 13% more calcium than cow's milk
and can be consumed comfortably even by those women with milk
sensitivity.?
http://www.chiroweb.com/archives/15/25/09.html



Coconut Milk:

Coconut milk is high in calories though, and low in calcium.
http://www.calorie-count.com/calories/item/12117.html

http://www.thaifoodandtravel.com/ingredients/cocmilk.html

http://www.wildernessfamilynaturals.com/coconut-milk-bottles.htm

http://sneakykitchen.com/Ideas/coconut_milk.htm


   Please discuss this problem with your doctor, as malabsorption,
celiac disease, among other diseases/syndromes, could be a
possibility.
http://www.medicineonline.com/medicine/Diseases_and_Conditions/Allergies/Milk_Intolerance/Malabsorption/

Celiac Disease
http://www.celiac.com/index.html

I hope this has helped you out! Please check each site for complete
information. If any part of this question is unclear, please request
an Answer Clarification, and allow me to respond, before you rate. I
will be happy to assist you further, on the question, before you rate.

Sincerely, Crabcakes

PS. I've never heard of CFD/ME either, nor could I find it! Care to decipher? 



Search Terms
============
Soy milk intolerance
soy + milk + protein + intolerance + enteropathy
Goat milk
Coconut milk

---

Clarification of Answer by crabcakes-ga on 29 May 2006 09:10 PDT

Hi again Tulsa,

   I forgot to mention rice milk in my answer, as an alternative to
cow milk or soy milk. As you can see by the chart on the link below,
nutritionaly, there is no comparison, so you would need another source
of protein and calcium. However, rice milk might go nicely on a bowl
of cereal, or as a coffee creamer. Do read the labels for a fortified
rice milk product.
http://parenting.ivillage.com/baby/bnutrition/0,,3vrt,00.html

Regards, Crabcakes

Have you ever tried a lactase supplement such as Equate or Lactaid?

You can become allergic to milk sugar (lactose) or milk protein. As
far as I know, soymilk doesn't contain either of these. Can you
elaborate on the meaning of CFD/ME? Do you have a large number of
allergies?

Hmm...it seems like your symptoms keep recurring everytime you drink
thick liquids? (simplified..)

Or just with those 3 types of liquids?

Anyway, have your Amylase and Lipase (possibly LFT's) checked out, it
might be something different

I had a very similar problem. It is actually a food intolerance. I
have some enzymes missing which makes my body react very much as if it
was allergic reaction.

Hope this articles help 
=======================



http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn1787.html

Genetic basis for lactose intolerance revealed

    * 13:20 14 January 2002
    * James Randerson

A quick and cheap genetic test will soon be able to identify people
with lactose intolerance. The test will be a boon for doctors, since
many people suffer from the condition without realising it, and
existing tests are time-consuming and unreliable.

For perhaps the majority of people in the world, including most
southern European, Asian and African populations, lactose intolerance
is the norm. It sets in at weaning or shortly after, when the body
stops producing lactase - the enzyme it needs to digest the sugar
lactose, which is a major ingredient of human and animal milk.

Without lactase, lactose passes through the stomach undigested and
reaches bacteria in the large intestine. There some bugs feast on it,
belching out by-products that can leave people feeling gassy and
nauseous, or worse.

Now Leena Peltonen's team at the University of California, Los
Angeles, has discovered the genetic basis for lactose intolerance. The
discovery supports the theory that retaining the ability to digest
milk evolved only in some peoples in the past ten thousand years, as
an adaptation to dairy farming.
Drinking milk

Peltonen's team studied nine extended Finnish families, as well as
some Germans, Italians and South Koreans. The researchers found two
variations in the human genome associated with lactose intolerance.

One of these "single nucleotide polymorphisms", or SNPs, was present
in all 236 people who were lactose intolerant, while the other was
found in 229. Both SNPs are near the lactase gene, and probably affect
proteins that regulate the expression of the gene.

The fact that the same variations occur in distantly related
populations supports the theory that all humans were once lactose
intolerant, and that "lactase persistence" evolved only after people
domesticated animals and began drinking their milk.
Original condition

Lactase persistence also seems to be most common among peoples with a
long tradition of dairy farming, such as northern Europeans, some
groups in India and the Tutsis in central Africa. "I find it ironic
that a so-called disease actually represents the original condition,"
says Peltonen.

It is a nice example of a genetic change prompted by a cultural
practice, says Kevin Laland, an expert on the interaction between
genetics and culture at Cambridge University. "There are bound to be
thousands of such changes, but there are comparatively few where the
gene has been isolated."

The widespread prevalence of lactose intolerance was only recognised
in the 1960s. Before that, a dislike of milk in countries such as
China was ascribed to cultural differences.

Journal reference: Nature Genetics (DOI 10.1038/ng826)


------------------------------------


http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg16021547.000.html


Genes in a pill

    * 03 October 1998
    * From New Scientist Print Edition. 
    * Ian Lowe


MAKING the cover of prestigious international journals is the Holy
Grail for most researchers.

Scientists at the University of Auckland's School of Medicine achieved
that milestone this week with a series of experiments that for
starters open up the way for a cure of lactose intolerance, the
world's most common genetic disorder.

But if the techniques developed can be applied more generally, the
possibility of using gene-carrying drugs to treat a range of human
genetic disorders has come a good deal closer. And the treatment could
be achieved with as little as one dose. The research is of such
significance that it is the cover of the October issue of Nature
Medicine (vol 4, p. 1131), published last Thursday.

The experiments were conducted in lactose-intolerant rats. Lactose is
the main sugar in milk from which glucose is derived. Those with
lactose intolerance do not possess the enzyme that converts lactose to
glucose, the body's primary source of energy. They are unable to
digest dairy products and run the risk of developing calcium
deficiency. Impaired bone mass, giving rise to osteoporosis, is one of
the main consequences. About half the world's population is affected,
according to most estimates.

The researchers attached b-galactosidase, the gene responsible for the
production of the lactose-digesting enzyme, to a virus which is
naturally found in the stomach. The gene was then incorporated into
the cells lining the gastrointestinal tract of the rats, allowing them
to metabolise lactose. Six months later, the rats were still lactose
tolerant.

The researchers have been able to deliver the gene-carrying drug
direct to the tissue that needed it. Moreover, only a single dose was
needed to improve function over a long period. "With gene therapy,
delivery of the gene has always been the problem, but this research
makes it feasible that we could give gene therapy orally?in a pill,"
team leader Matthew During said this week.

However, During stressed that long-term safety trials would be needed
before any human application was possible. It is hoped that one day
the technology will be used to combat inherited conditions such as
haemophilia, diabetes and obesity.

I just found out that if you have celiac disease (grain allergy)
you'll often have an intolerance to milk and soy, as well. Here's a
quote:
Since filing the appeal, I have discovered that a few of my symptoms
started returning after I started adding milk and soy to my diet. I
have since gone milk free and soy free in addition to gluten free.
Gluten, Milk, and Soy are the three foods which can flatten villi if
you are intolerant to them and also have Celiac Disease.