The Medical Nutrition and Nutrition Entrepreneurs dietetic practice groups of the American Dietetic Association work with people who have a lactose intolerance or an allergy to the protein in milk to make sure they get enough calcium in the foods they eat. Dietitians often have their own private practice nutrition counseling services in addition to services provided in a clinic or hospital. You can find a dietitian at the American Dietetic Association. Include your zip code or city / state, the type of service you want (individual consultation) and expertise needed.

With your son being intolerant to milk products, any soy and or rice beverage would be appropriate for him, especially if he enjoys the taste. However, it is recommended that he get 800 mg of calcium daily.

The label of the soymilk should provide you with information regarding the calcium content of the soymilk. From that you could determine how many glasses it would require to reach his calcium requirement. You might also check the label to make sure that the soymilk is fortified with vitamin A, D, riboflavin and vitamin B-12 that are normally found in cow's milk. Foods other than milk that are high in calcium include calcium-fortified orange juice, broccoli, kale, tofu, calcium-fortified bread, breakfast cereals, breakfast bars and snacks.

I would suggest offering your son food sources of calcium along with the soy milk to meet the 800 mg requirement daily rather than totally relying onTums as a supplement. Tums might have adequate amounts of calcium if you take enough to meet your Recommended Dietary Allowances, but with its effects of lowering acidity, Tums might affect other nutrients (iron) that depend on an acid stomach environment for absorption. Your son can get adequate amounts of calcium through the foods listed above.

The following is a list of descriptive terms used regarding calcium content of labeled foods:

• High-calcium: 200 mg or more per serving
• Good source of calcium: 100-190 mg per serving
• More or added calcium: at least 100mg more per serving than reference food.

Milk has lots of protein, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals to help your bones and teeth get hard and stay strong (calcium, phosphorus and Vitamin D), see at night (vitamin A), make blood cells (Vitamin B 12) and turn the rest of the food you eat into fuel (riboflavin). Sugar water has no protein, vitamins or minerals and only provides empty calories as simple carbohydrates.

One long-term effect would be that your bones would not be as dense. Your bones increase in density until you are about 25 years old and after that age you have to eat calcium rich foods to keep calcium in bone. By the way, it also takes exercise to keep your bones hard and strong.

Whole milk is 3.5% (approximately as it depends on the cow's diet) and 2% contains just 2% fat. There is approximately 1 1/2 tsp. of butter in whole, 1 tsp. of butter in 2% milk, 1/2 tsp. of butter in 1% and no butter in skim.

Any soy and or rice beverage would be appropriate for lactose intolerant people though you should read the food label for milk ingredients. Avoid any foods containing milk, milk solids or whey. There is a lot of new soy and flavored soy beverages, which I think, taste really good and there are lots of health benefits to consuming soy products.

Eight ounces of soymilk contains 80 calories, 8 grams protein, 5 grams carbohydrate and 4 grams of fat. It contains more than 10% of the Recommended Dietary Allowances for protein (includes all 8 essential amino acids), thiamin, vitamin B6 , folacin, phosphorus, magnesium and iron. Eight ounces of cow's milk contains more than 10% protein, vitamin A, riboflavin, Vitamin B12, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium. I do not have the nutritional analysis of Rice Dream so I used a rice beverage called Horchata. One cup of this rice beverage contained 98 calories with less than 1 gram of protein and fat with 31 grams of carbohydrate. It was lacking in most vitamins and minerals, which would make it a poor substitute for milk. I found this information in nutritional analysis software food database.

I would suggest lactose intolerant people take a calcium supplement (1,000 mg per day) and include foods high in vitamin A, riboflavin and vitamin B12 to compensate for these nutrients normally found in cow's milk.

I cannot find any nutritional analysis of horse milk nor do I know the lactose content. I would guess that horse milk has lactose similar to humans, cows and goats for which I do have nutritional analysis.

Also, I am unaware if there is a market for horse milk in the US. I would suggest you contact the American Horse Breeders Association.

First see the next question and answer.

Next, most foods people eat are packaged and prepared, not basic fresh foods listed in the next question. The average grocery store has over 15,000 brand name food products. A complete list would be unmanageable here and I do not know if one exists. Lactose content is not required on the new food label and food manufacturers are unlikely to analyze for nutrients not required by the FDA. Presently, you and your day care will have to read label ingredient declarations for milk, lactose, milk solids and sodium caseinate.

Some resources you could check are "The milk sugar dilemma: living with lactose intolerance" by S Martens and RA Martens, Medi-ed Press, PO Box 957, East Lansing Michigan 48823, 1987. Also contact the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse, Box NDDIC, Bethesda Maryland 20892 for their "Lactose Intolerance Information Packet", 1991.

Fresh fruit, vegetables, rice, meat, poultry, fish, some soy meat substitutes, broth soups without noodles, gelatin, vegetable oil and angel food cake are all OK. Italian, French or Vienna bread may be made without milk.

Lactose is the sugar in milk and dairy products which include milk (any kind including breast milk but not lactose reduced milk) cream, cheese, ice cream, ice milk, yogurt and sherbet. Butter and margarine contain trace amounts of lactose.

Milk solids may refer to non-fat dry milk and may contain lactose as well. Milk solids may only refer to the protein portion of milk. Sodium caseinate is probably OK. If in doubt, call the manufacturer whose phone number is on the food label and ask if their product contains lactose and how much.

Has your 2-year-old seen a doctor for this problem? A Registered Dietitian could help you with planning a diet for your child that will accommodate the lactose intolerance and calorie / nutrient needs for normal growth and development. Call your local medical clinic or hospital and ask to talk to a Registered Dietitian..

Adult milk allergies are usually caused by lactose, the sugar in milk. Whereas, infant milk allergies are usually to casein, the protein in milk, but also can be to lactose. Do you know if you are lactase deficient or allergic to milk protein? If not, go see your doctor to find out because your food choice options depend on which you have.

If you are allergic to milk protein, then do not eat any milk or milk products or foods containing milk ingredients.

If your are lactose intolerant, you should tolerate Lactaid. It is lactase enzyme that you add to milk in a carton to digest the lactose before drinking. After 48 hours, most of the lactose (90%) is digested to simpler carbohydrates, galactose and glucose, which should not cause an lactase deficiency symptoms. Sweet acidophilus milk contains lactose and is not generally recommended for lactose allergies.

Most persons with lactose intolerance can usually tolerate amounts between no milk up to a maximum of 2 cups per day. Tolerance to milk can be improved by drinking milk with meals, using milk with higher fat content or drinking chocolate milk instead. New research in fact suggests that lactase deficient people can actually improve their tolerance to milk products by consuming small amounts periodically during a day.

Salt-free butter usually contains less milk solids than salted butter. Read the food label of butter and margarine to find milk free spread. Aged cheeses (cheddar, Swiss or dry curd cottage cheese) are usually low enough in lactose to be tolerated in small quantities. Yogurt with active cultures contains lactase enzyme and helps digest lactose. Tofu frozen desserts can be substituted for milk based ice creams.

There are several infant formulas, such as Isomil, Prosobee, Pregestimil or Nutramigen that you could substitute for fluid milk. Adult formulas such as Ensure, Sustacal and Resource can be substituted for fluid milk. Non-dairy coffee creamers are available in liquid and dry form and can be substituted for fluid milk.

Many foods are made with milk or milk products. Look for whey or milk solids in the ingredient list on a food label. Italian, French or Vienna bread typically does not have added milk. To be sure, read food labels.

Read Martens Skinner "The milk sugar dilemma: living with lactose intolerance" by Medi-ed Press, 1987 for additional information.

First of all, whenever your health status changes and you don't feel the same, you should see your doctor. He/she is the only one who can accurately diagnose what your symptoms mean. You are not tolerating milk and in the meantime should not drink milk or eat milk products. Other dairy products such as soft cheeses, cottage cheese, ice cream, ice milk, sherbet, pudding, yogurt, evaporated milk, buttermilk, sour cream, half and half and whipping cream contain lactose and milk protein. They should be eliminated until you see your doctor.

Since you haven't like milk since you were a child, it is possible you are allergic to milk protein and should be taking calcium and vitamin D supplements. Then you shouldn't consume any milk or milk products. If on the other hand, you are lactose intolerant, you may tolerate small amounts of milk. If it is just a taste thing and you don't like the taste of milk, then you should talk to your doctor about calcium and vitamin D supplements.

If your doctor determines that you are lactose intolerant, he/she may recommend you add lactase to your milk. Ask your pharmacist for Lactaid, which is lactase, the enzyme your body produces in the intestines to break down the lactose (sugar in milk) to a simpler sugar. To use Lactaid, add 8 to 10 drops to a half-gallon of milk. Shake or stir a few moments to mix. Label, date and store the milk container in the refrigerator for 24 hours. During this waiting period, 70 percent of the lactose in the milk will be reduced to glucose and galactose (two simpler sugars).

For 100 percent lactose reduction, you will have to leave the milk in the refrigerator 48 hours or add twice as many drops of Lactaid for 24 hours. For one half gallon of milk, add 16 to 20 drops of Lactaid for 100 percent lactose reduction. Lactaid cannot be used in buttermilk as it is too acid.

Your individual tolerance for this lactose-reduced milk will vary. Most people with lactose intolerance can drink one-half to two cups of lactose reduced milk daily. You will notice that lactose reduced milk is somewhat sweeter than regular milk because glucose has a greater sweetening power than the lactose naturally found in milk.

Skim milk contains 7 milligrams more sodium than whole or two percent milk which is not a significant difference. What is more important for you is getting an adequate intake of calcium, riboflavin, vitamin A and D.

Since you are overweight, skim milk is better for you to drink. Skim milk is actually whole milk (3.5%) with the butterfat removed. This amounts to approximately one and one-half teaspoons of butter or 90 calories. Otherwise, skim milk has approximately the same composition of other nutrients. Adults should drink two cups of milk per day unless they are allergic to milk.

To help wean yourself off a higher fat milk, try drinking two percent milk for one week, then drink one percent milk for one or two weeks and finally start drinking skim milk the remainder of the time. Over time you will become used to the taste of skim milk and higher fat milk will taste like cream to you.

You did not say how old your baby is now, but has he had cheese or other milk products like ice cream since he became allergic to milk? Aged cheeses like Swiss, American or cheddar, Farmer's cheese or cottage cheese are low in lactose (milk sugar) and may be tolerated, but contain milk protein, which would cause allergy symptoms. Ice cream contains lactose and milk protein so would not be tolerated at all. So does your son tolerate any milk products or do all cause the same symptoms?

Usually, infants are allergic to the protein casein in milk. I cannot predict whether your baby will or will not ever tolerate milk products. Have you asked your baby's doctor?

In the meantime, though, keep your baby on soy formula or soymilk. Otherwise, discuss a calcium supplement with your baby's doctor. Milk is the most important food in the diet of an infant or child. It is a major source of complete protein, calcium, phosphorus, riboflavin, vitamin A and D, water and calories.

Symptoms of lactose intolerance are abdominal cramping and watery diarrhea that occur within 30 minutes to a few hours after eating a milk product. Milk protein allergy can cause the same or more severe symptoms.

Since your daughter is drinking some milk, it is safe to say that she probably is lactose intolerant rather than allergic to milk protein.

The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of calcium for children age one to 10 is 800 milligrams per day. This amount of calcium equals two and one-half cups of fluid milk, milk pudding or custard, four ounces of hard cheese, four and one-third cups of ice cream or five cups of cottage cheese.

Your body also needs vitamin D in order to absorb calcium and deposit calcium in bones and teeth. Fluid fortified milk is the best source of vitamin D and calcium.

Call your daughter's doctor about continuing the calcium supplement. Unless she drinks more milk, she needs to continue the calcium-vitamin D supplement. Her doctor can suggest an appropriate calcium supplement.

By the way, current recommendations are to breast feed or to formula feed infants until they are 12 months of age. The protein in cow's milk, casein, is difficult for infants to digest and forms large curds in their stomachs. Also, babies fed cow's milk before one year of age are more likely to develop a milk protein allergy, especially if either parent has a similar milk protein allergy.

You should follow your doctor's advice and switch to skim milk for your low cholesterol diet.

If you were to compare eight ounces of 2% milk to eight ounces of skim milk, the 2% milk has one teaspoon of butterfat homogenized in it. Besides that is an extra 45 calories per glass. Whole milk has 3.5% butterfat or the equivalent of one and one-half teaspoons of butter and 60 calories more. One- percent milk has one-half teaspoon of butter and 20 calories more than skim. While this might not sound like much, multiply one teaspoon of butterfat times 24 days. That would equal one stick of butter every 24 days. Your blood cholesterol may not come down to recommended levels because of using two- percent milk.

Two- percent milk has 18.3 milligrams of cholesterol per one cup. If you drank two cups of two- percent milk per day for one week (256 milligrams of cholesterol), you should still limit egg yolks to four per week.

Skim milk is not watered down whole milk. Skim milk has 99 percent of the butterfat removed. Nutritionally, the only difference between these milks, is the fat content. The blue color you see is from the riboflavin content in skim milk which is not camouflaged by the yellow cream that has been removed from 2% milk.

If your doctor has advised you to follow a low cholesterol diet only skim or cultured buttermilk is allowed. To reduce the cholesterol in your blood, you first have to reduce the amount of cholesterol and saturated fat you eat, including two- percent milk.

The recommended dietary guidelines suggest two cups of milk per day to fulfill your calcium, phosphorus and vitamin D requirements.