My cousin Eric’s stomach problems with dairy.  I was curious about my cousin Eric’s journey about his stomach problems with dairy, so I decided to do an interview with him!

Kelsey: What were your symptoms?

Eric: My symptoms are usually nothing but can include stomach pains and gas but if I have way too much dairy I will throw up.

Kelsey: How do you make your symptoms better?

Eric: To make the symptoms better I find time, water and lactase pills do wonders.

Kelsey: What is your diagnosis?

Eric: I am lactose intolerant, which means my body lacks the enzymes required to break down lactose. What this really means is that I cannot digest parts of dairy products.

Kelsey:  Do people see you differently with your dairy problems?

Eric: I don’t believe anyone sees me differently. Many of my friends also are lactose intolerant so we often share jokes about our shared intolerance.

Kelsey: How did your friends and family act when you told them?

Eric: My family and friends are okay with my lactose intolerance as they understand the nature it.

Kelsey: Can you have dairy?

Eric: I can have some dairy though I usually avoid things like milkshakes and drinks with steamed milk.

Kelsey: How do you plan your diet?

Eric: When planning my diet around this I try to have dairy in moderation though I do not always succeed mostly because of my love of dairy even though it can upset my stomach.

Kelsey: What’s your hobbies?

Eric: My hobbies include riding my bicycle and hiking.

Kelsey: What’s your favourite memory growing up?

Eric: My favourite memory growing up would have to be sledding down the drive at my grandparents’ farm.

Kelsey: What makes you feel better?

Eric: Nothing makes me feel better than a warm cup of tea and a good action movie.

Kelsey: What tips do you have?

Eric: Some tips I would have for people with the same symptoms would be to take it easy and do what you think is best because not everyone has the same severity of symptoms.

Kelsey: How’s school?

Eric: School is going well; it is now all online, so I get to work at my own schedule which is nice.

Kelsey: What’s your favourite Christmas present?

Eric: My favourite Christmas present growing up would be the books I have received over the years, plenty of which I have read multiple times.

Kelsey: What are you excited about this year?

Eric: I am excited for the new year I hope we can finally have a somewhat return to the way things were before. My goal for this next year is to start my career and hopefully get a full-time teaching job for next fall.

Kelsey:  What’s your favourite memory?

Eric: My favourite memory growing up with Ian must be all the rough housing we used to do when we were younger. I would say we got along well enough then, but we have become much closer over the last few years.

Here is a website I found on lactose intolerance if you want to check it out!

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/lactose-intolerance-101#TOC_TITLE_HDR_2

I asked my Auntie Gail to explain how she figured out how my cousin had an allergy to milk?

When Eric was almost 1 years old, I gave him some milk in a snippy cup and his whole face ballooned up and we had to take him to the emergency room. Then our doctor sent him to a pediatrician in Edmonton and they said he was allergic to milk and eggs. They told us to look for alternatives to milk like goats’ milk or soy milk. This was 25 years ago, and our grocery stores did not offer any alternatives. Today you can find all sorts of lactose free, almond and soy but back then it was hard to find.

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It was very difficult at first, but we had to learn to read labels and he loved peanut butter toast which was good because he could not have cereal. It has always been hard to get him to try new foods but as he has gotten older, he will now try anything. He does eat a bit of dairy now but only in small amounts and his reaction to it is not as severe as it once was.

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Thank you Eric and Auntie Gale for helping with this interview. I hope you learned something from this interview.

I am always looking for new educational topics so please contact me if you would like me to interview you. I send you a list of questions and you send me back your answers and some pictures. It is that easy!