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Path: utzoo!decvax!genrad!panda!talcott!harvard!seismo!hao!noao!terak!doug
From: doug@terak.UUCP (Doug Pardee)
Newsgroups: net.med
Subject: Re: Drinking milk
Message-ID: <676@terak.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 15-Aug-85 12:38:28 EDT
Article-I.D.: terak.676
Posted: Thu Aug 15 12:38:28 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 18-Aug-85 19:44:02 EDT
References: <1832@aecom.UUCP> <667@terak.UUCP> <2569@amdcad.UUCP>
Distribution: na
Organization: Calcomp Display Products Division, Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Lines: 22

> >We of European ancestry tend to forget that the majority of the world's
> >adults become violently ill if they drink milk.
> 
> That's funny, I drink milk often and enjoy it. Meanwhile I have three
> roundeye friends who have lactose intolerance. I know these data points
> are unimportant statistically but I find them interesting nevertheless.

In looking up the statistics on lactase deficiency/lactose intolerance,
I found I erred in claiming "majority...violently ill".  A more correct
statement would be "the majority of the world's adults get diarrhea and
gas if they drink milk, with the the more serious cases experiencing
severe stomach pain."  So much for my infallible memory...

The Merck Manual indicates that the prevalence of lactose intolerance
is not known precisely, but provides estimates for some ancestries:
  Orientals -- 90%
  American blacks -- 75%
  American Indians -- 75%
  Mediterranean -- High incidence
  Northwest European -- <20%
-- 
Doug Pardee -- CalComp -- {seismo!noao,decvax!noao,ihnp4}!terak!doug