Milk

Why milk is rated high

Cow's milk is rated high overall, and the FODMAP group behind it is lactose, the natural sugar in milk. Lactose is one of the clearest dose-driven stories on the whole diet, because it is dissolved evenly through the milk and simply follows the volume. Milk is low at about 1 tablespoon (20mL), moderate at larger portions and high at much larger portions. That low serve is the most useful thing on the page, because it means a small splash in tea or coffee behaves very differently from milk poured over cereal or drunk as a glass. Once the pouring goes much beyond a splash the lactose builds quickly, and a full glass sits firmly in the high range.

What changes your risk

• How much is poured Lactose is dissolved evenly through milk, so the load simply follows the volume. About 1 tablespoon (20mL) is low, larger portions are moderate and much larger portions are high, which is why milk as a flavouring behaves very differently from milk as the main ingredient.
• Lactose free processing Lactose free milk is ordinary cow's milk with the lactase enzyme added, so the lactose has already been split before it reaches the carton. It pours the same, tastes slightly sweeter, and it is not dairy free and not suitable for a milk allergy.
• Ageing into hard cheese Hard, aged cheeses such as cheddar, parmesan and swiss lose nearly all their lactose in the making, which is why they sit very differently from milk. Soft and fresh cheeses such as ricotta, cottage cheese and cream cheese, and ordinary yoghurt, keep much more of it.
• Stacking lactose across the day Milk on cereal, ordinary yoghurt at lunch, a milky coffee and ice cream after dinner all carry lactose, so the day adds up even when each one looked manageable. Spreading dairy out rather than clustering it into one sitting makes the total easier to handle.
• Heating changes nothing Steaming milk for a latte, simmering it into a white sauce or baking it into custard does not break the lactose down. Heat does not destroy FODMAPs, so a milk based sauce carries whatever the milk brought to it.

Swaps

Lactose free milk is the direct swap, since it pours, froths and cooks exactly like regular milk and works in tea, coffee, cereal, porridge and white sauces. Among plant milks, almond, rice, macadamia and hemp milks are the usual stand ins, though it is worth checking the label for inulin or chicory root fibre. For cheese, reach for hard aged cheeses such as cheddar, parmesan and swiss rather than ricotta, cottage cheese or cream cheese, and choose lactose free yoghurt over ordinary yoghurt. Cream, evaporated and condensed milk, ice cream and ordinary yoghurt are not swaps for milk, because they carry the same lactose.

How to lower the load

Lactose free milk usually sits in the same chiller as regular milk and keeps the same way once opened, so swapping the carton is the simplest change in the whole fridge. If you keep ordinary milk, use it as a splash: about 1 tablespoon (20mL) is a dash in tea, while a milky latte or a bowl of cereal goes well past it. Ordering out, most cafes will make a coffee with lactose free or almond milk if asked, and a long black or an espresso sidesteps the question entirely. When cooking, lactose free milk thickens into a bechamel or a custard exactly as regular milk does, so no recipe needs rewriting. Watch packaged foods for milk, milk solids, milk powder, whey and skim milk powder in instant soups, sauce mixes, creamy dressings and milk chocolate.

Common questions

is milk high fodmap

Milk is rated high overall because of lactose. It is low at about 1 tablespoon (20mL), moderate at larger portions and high at much larger portions.

how much milk can i have on a low fodmap diet

About 1 tablespoon (20mL), a small splash in tea or coffee, is low. Larger portions are moderate and a full glass is high, so milk used as a flavouring sits very differently from milk as the main ingredient.

is lactose free milk actually low fodmap

Yes. It is ordinary cow's milk with the lactase enzyme added, so the lactose has already been split. It is not dairy free and is not suitable for a milk allergy.

can i still have cheese if milk is high in lactose

Hard, aged cheeses such as cheddar, parmesan and swiss lose nearly all their lactose during ageing, so they behave quite differently from milk. Soft and fresh cheeses such as ricotta, cottage cheese and cream cheese, along with ordinary yoghurt, hold on to much more of it.