Lactose intolerance is actually the human norm – but racism, the US government and business interests have made it into a condition

The Conversation, in a piece published on Tuesday, notes that about two thirds of the global population are unable to digest lactose, making the condition the human norm rather than an exception. Historians trace the label of lactose intolerance to the 1960s, when American dairy producers and the U.S. government promoted milk consumption abroad and framed the natural variation as a defect. The article concludes that enjoying dairy is a personal choice and there is nothing medically wrong with being lactose intolerant.

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