What Is Lactose-Free Milk?

Milk. It does a body good. That was the slogan for milk when I was a kid. After that slogan, they went to “Got Milk?” Looking back, it seems a little weird that milk had a slogan. Why y’all pushing milk so hard? It seems like it’s just a thing that everyone either drinks or puts on their cereal or in their coffee. It turns out, that’s not the case. In fact, some people can’t drink milk. Milk makes some people sick! These people are lactose intolerant. 

Generally speaking, everyone is born with the ability to digest milk, but by adulthood, the majority of people on Earth become lactose intolerant. For all of those folks, there’s lactose-free milk! But what is lactose free milk? How is lactose free milk made? Why is lactose free milk sweet? Does lactose-free milk have sugar? Let’s get to the bottom of lactose free milk!

What is lactose-free milk?

Lactose-free milk is milk that does not contain any lactose. Alright, glad we figured that out! What? You want a more in-depth answer? Fine. Lactose is a type of sugar that can be found in dairy products. We’re talking milk, ice-cream, and cheese. In order for lactose to be absorbed in the body, people need to produce an enzyme called lactase. Lactase breaks down lactose into sugars that can be more easily absorbed. 

Lactose intolerant people do not produce lactase, so that lactose stays in there, eventually getting broken down by bacteria in the large intestine and causing all sorts of nasty gastrointestinal issues. 

So what is lactose-free milk? It is milk that has had the lactose removed, allowing lactose intolerant people to drink it. You might think that would change something with all those vitamins and minerals in the milk. But nope, lactose-free milk is virtually identical nutritionally to regular, lactose-filled milk. And cow milk isn’t the only milk you can find in a lactose-free version. Every type of milk can be made lactose-free!

How is lactose-free milk made?

We know lactose-free milk has the lactose taken out, but how exactly do they do that? How is lactose-free milk made? Remember that lactase we were talking about earlier? The stuff that allows people to digest lactose? Well lactose-free milk just has that lactase already put into it. That lactase enzyme breaks down the lactose that’s in the milk. Lactose-free milk usually contains 0.1% or less of lactose. But keep in mind that the FDA does not actually regulate how much lactose can be in milk labeled lactose-free.

Why is lactose-free milk sweet?

Lactose-free milk is pretty much the exact same nutritionally as plain old milk. So why do some people think it tastes sweeter? Does lactose-free milk have sugar? Kinda, but they don’t add sugar. 

See, when that lactase is added to the milk, the lactose, which is already a natural sugar, gets broken down into simple sugars. The lactose becomes glucose and galactose. Those two simple sugars can make the milk taste sweeter. Normally that lactose would become glucose and galactose in your body. Keep in mind that lactose-free milk is still a dairy product. If you’re looking for lactose-free, non-dairy options you can find that in soy, almond, hemp, and a variety of other milks.