[Nutrition and bone health. Lactose and bone]

Lactose, a disaccharide in milk or dairy products, is known to promote calcium absorption. The enzyme lactase is needed to digest lactose. Although lactase is secreted normally in childhood, the secretion is decreased with growth, and the activity becomes lower in adulthood. When the activity of lactase is low, lactose passes intact the small intestine and reaches the large intestine, could cause unpleasantness such as diarrhea and stomach ache. This is called lactose intolerance. In this paper, we discuss promotion of calcium absorption by lactose, lactose intolerance, and bone health.