Fructose intolerances: what you need to know
Posted: 24th October 2018 | Posted by Costa
Fructose intolerances: what you need to know
Sugar is everywhere; it’s hard to escape. For people who want to cut it out of their diet, it’s a challenge. For people who are intolerant to, say, fructose it’s that much harder. It’s difficult to find food that doesn’t contain the ingredient; it seems to be in everything. It’s a pain and can make eating everyday foods like fruit difficult. It can also cause concern if you are a parent of a child with the intolerance. So why does it happen?
What is it?
Fructose itself is a natural sugar but is often combined with glucose in sugar-based products. Think honey, syrup, and fruit juice. Fructose is a simple sugar that usually makes up about 50% of table sugar. The other 50% is glucose. When in your system, fructose is converted by the liver before being turned into glucose.
Glucose is an energy source for the body and can be utilised for energy by many parts of the body, whereas fructose can only be utilised by the liver which can cause a buildup of fat. This can be particularly overwhelming if you aren’t able to consume fructose. If you see added sugar under the ingredients, then it’s likely to be fructose.
Malabsorption
Fructose is a FODMAP, simple short-chain carbohydrates that some people can’t digest. They’re in fruit, vegetables, milk, and grains. Consuming these foods leads to symptoms like bloating, stomach pains, and diarrhoea. If this sounds like you, then you might have a case of fructose malabsorption.
Why?
Fructose Malabsorption (FM) is fairly common – 1 in 3 people have it. It happens when the intestines cannot absorb fructose properly. Left undigested, it’s sent to the colon where bacteria eats it away. This causes your intestine to produce gases which lead to the symptoms above.
Symptoms
If the FM is severe, it can lead to problems like inflammation, stress, and not being able to break down processed foods. It’s suggested that it can also lead to mental illness due to the lower level of tryptophan. People who have a gut problem are likely to be predisposed to FM.
Intolerance
Hereditary Fructose Intolerance (HFI) on the other hand is a lot more severe than malabsorption. The genetic disorder is a metabolic disease caused by the absence of the enzyme aldolase B. The deficiency of this enzyme causes fructose to react badly and cause hypoglycemia. It can also lead to a build-up of harmful substances in the liver.
Symptoms
Similar to FM, HFI symptoms also include stomach pains and bloating. However, the condition, if left undiagnosed or untreated, can cause life-threatening side effects such as kidney failure, liver failure, seizures, and even death.
Fortunately, there are ways to avoid a worst case scenario, so you can just enjoy life. If you have noticed that you suffer from any of the symptoms after eating specific foods, we recommend you consult with a doctor right away. From there, you can make food swaps so that you can enjoy eating without risking side effects.
If you think you might be suffering from an intolerance but have never had it diagnosed, why not get in touch? Find out once and for all what’s causing your stomach pains and book an appointment with us.