We’ve all heard of lactic acid. It’s present in our bodies when we work out and as the name suggests, it’s an acid that builds up in the body during intense bouts of physical activity. However, it is also often found in many different food stuffs including milk products, like yoghurt, as well as some processed foods such as olives, bread and beer.
To confuse matters further it can occur naturally in these food products so when you buy olives and lactic acid is listed as an ingredient it might not be lactic acid from dairy. It might be from the food acid, naturally found in olives that is produced during the fermentation process, similar to what happens when you make wine.
But how do we know which is which? When you have allergies you get used to scanning labels and spotting the ingredients that you can’t have, but is it really safe to ignore labels which say lactic acid when we see them on olives, or beer, which also ferments for that matter?
Whilst researching this I’ve unearthed some very conflicting results. Some websites say lactic acid is dairy free, some say it’s potentially dairy free as it can be prepared with milk as the initial growth medium, and some say that it should definitely be avoided by those with a dairy allergy.
On the Go Dairy Free website they say that: “Lactic acid is created via the fermentation of sugars, and can be found in many dairy-free and/or vegan foods. Most commercially used lactic acid is fermented from carbohydrates, such as cornstarch, potatoes or molasses, and thus dairy-free. Though lactic acid can be fermented from lactose, its use is generally (I said generally; where concerned, always check with the manufacturer) restricted to dairy products, such as ice cream and cream cheese.”
They have a very concise list of what to avoid and also some surprisingly dairy free ingredients which sound very much like they contain dairy from their name. Visit www.godairyfree.org for their exhaustive list.
Now I’m really confused. Can anyone shed any light on this subject? Should those with a dairy allergy avoid lactic acid? or is it a little more complicated than that? Should we always check with the manufacturer before eating products containing lactic acid? Does the law mean that if lactic acid is derived from dairy that this should be stated in the ingredients?
Have I been avoiding lactic acid needlessly for all these years? All comments and feedback on this one would be greatly appreciated as I will be rushing back out to buy those olives I put back on the shelf last week…
The lactic acid one is a puzzle, quite rightly as you have noted it can be derived from dairy however if this was simply the case then lactase enzymes would work with it and it would be digested no problem. Lactase enzymes however do not work with lactic acid. There are various reactions to lactic acid, one that I deal with at my clinic is the appearance of tiny pimples/whiteheads that appear over the face and neck area as well as a feeling of being unwell, the conditions of the eyes provide the answer to this reaction. Sore and itchy eyes indicate a problem with the liver and it would seem that a damaged liver that is unable to cope with the build up of acid from certain foods, is extremely sensitive to the lactic acid often used as a perservative. It is worth pointing out that if pimples/whiteheads appear for no reason especially after drinking wine, this can solely relate to lactic acid. My research showed that lactic acid is pumped into most new world wines to age them. Wines therefore from New Zealand and Australia should be avoided and only Reserve wines should be drunk from these countries as these DO NO contain lactic acid. The traditional way in which French wine has been made has also been interfered with by Australian wine producers so French wine should also be watched and only reserve wine to be drunk. Reserve wine is the first press of the grape and is full of flavour hence the reason why lactic acid does not need to be added (this information regarding wine was provided to me directly from a New Zealand wine producer). Italian and Spanish wine do not contain lactic acid. All reserve wines from any country will be fine. I hope this helps to explain lactic acid.
Hi Elaine, thanks for the comment. You say that lactic acid from dairy would be no problem due to the lactase enzymes – I’m not sure this would be the case if someone had a severe food allergy… can you confirm? For an intolerance then maybe, but when the body has got itself so worked up about a certain foodstuff evern very tiny traces can trigger and life threatening anaphylactic reaction. Very interesting what you say about the liver – I have no whiteheads but I do think my liver struggles with some things, and also very interestingly I love Spanish wine – perhaps because it’s so tasty and I rarely have a reaction to it – could lactic acid in wine be the connection? I have heard from another readed on a post about wine and what’s really in it that manufacturers no longer have to declare the presence of such tiny quanities of dairy etc. – I’ve never seen lactic acid on a wine ingredients label. How can they get away with this without telling us? It all seems very wrong to me. Thank you very much for the comment. Reserve, Italian and Spanish for me from now on then!
I have developed a dairy sensitivity in the last 6 years, and this year it got bad enough that I went to an allergist and was declared allergic enough to have an epipen.
Before the test and before I cut dairy out completely, I tried Tofutti in an effort to replace cream cheese and my mouth and throat felt very dry for days, and there is now a rough texture to parts of the skin inside my mouth. About a week later I was feeling stubborn and had an ice cream cone. All the skin that was affected inside my mouth swelled up and my throat felt like I had a bad cold/cough, very dry and croaky. The Tofutti is supposed to be totally dairy free but it does have “non-dairy lactic acid” in the ingredients list. Recently I tried a margarine from the brand Earth Balance, which also had “non-dairy lactic acid” in the ingredients, and I reacted to that too.
So I’m not sure what is going on there. Maybe some people are just allergic to all dairy, but others are actually allergic to lactic acid no matter what it comes from???
I think there is something nasty going on with this non dairy lactic acid. I’ve been having similar problems. I’ll see what I can find out. Still confused about lactic acid. If it’s an acid perhaps that’s the problem? Keep away from it in the meantime. It’s not natural anyway!
Katie: We have a dairy allergy in our family too. We have researched and found that many who have a dairy allergy also have a soy allergy as well. So maybe that is what is going on with you. Ironically. My daughter had an issue with acidic food items before we found out that she had a dairy issue. I am guessing that they somehow are tied together after reading everyones posts. I came across this post to find out if veggie lactic acid would be okay, but now I am thinking not.
By the way, most people think if you have a dairy sensitivity that they are lactose intolerant. That is not always the case. Lactose is a sugar. It can cause discomfort, stomach cramps and bowel issues (which can also occur in an dairy allergy) but is not actually an allergy. If I understand correctly, its the protien in the dairy that is an allergy problem and it affects the immune where the lactose intolerance does not. Therefore you would be more inclined to have other health issues such as eczema and sinus infections, anaphalatyc shock…etc. You can also have a dairy protien allergy and be lactose intolerant.
Been struggling with this mystery of Lactic Acid myself. I have a dairy allergy. But starting about 5 years ago I thought I was oddly also developing a gluten allergy. After years of experimenting and trial and error, I found that when I ate anything with Lactic Acid (regardless if its stated dairy free or not), I had symptoms.
Seems like they put LA in everything. Olives, pickles, meats, even jelly beans for petes sake.
I also discovered that I cannot tolerate any food with Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate. Bread. They use it as a dough conditioner. So, I don’t have a gluten allergy, I can eat all the bread I want unless it contains Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate
So my advice is that if anyone is having issues, either dairy or gluten, avoid the above two chemical additives for starters and see how it works. Hope this helps some.
Kurt I have similar problems myself. The purer and less processed the better for me. If it’s got a funny name is not actually ‘food’ then I seem to react. I wouldn’t be at all surprised that these things added to our food are not nice at all. No wonder we react. Wish I could find out definitely what this lactic acid is on labels though. Am inclined to avoid it as if it’s there they’ve added it and why do they do that? Give us fresh food!
This is very interesting. I have been quite allergic to milk for a long time. I also have trouble with foods containing lactic acid, even if they are derived from vegetarian sources – they give me symptoms just like dairy foods do. This is something that has puzzled me, because even vegan sources of lactic acid shouldn’t give me any trouble according to what I’ve read, but they definitely do. I’ve had reactions from earth balance, toffutti, vegan sourdough bread etc. I have had an injury to my liver many years ago. They said that it would heal up just fine, and that I would have no lasting problems, but I wonder if that has any role to play?
Carol I’m beginning to think you’re right. I’ve been wondering what some of my unexplained reactions have been from and perhaps it is this lactic acid. For me, if anything is processed then I’m likely to have problems. If it’s not ‘food’ as such but some other thing added in manufacture for whatever reason my tummy doesn’t like it. We’re not made to eat this rubbish. This is all so complicated. Think I’m going to move to a commune. We just don’t know what we’re eating any more. Very frustrating. If I find our more about lactic acid I will write some more. I’ll ask my allergy specialist. What I want to know is, what is this dairy free lactic acid made from then? I can’t seem to find out. We continue the journey. We’ll find out one day.
Ruth, alot of the items that say dairy free lactic acid say they are processed from beets. I am still not clear whether they are safe.
Just wanted to comment-I bought a bag of Herr’s tangy bbq chip-advertised as “All natural-gluten free-no preservatives” and reacted immediately as if I had eaten milk , soy or corn-all severe allergies for me-can lead to asthma , hives, etc-
Yet-none of those allergens were listed in the ingredients-everything looked natural-potatoe flour rice flour, natural flavors” wait-someone warned me “natural flavors ” may include a whole list of not-so-natural- and allergic ingredient like MSG, etc.
When I called Herr’s they said the natural flavoring is Lactic Acid- when I looked it up online I found your above comments which I find VERY helpful and interesting so I now know- Lactic acid can be made from dairy or even corn- possibly also soy! The company could not tell me-on my initial call what the source is-they promise to call me back. But I think we should all call them-800- 523-5030-if we have issues with lactic acid and ask them to NOT hide behind the ” natural flavors” label. If I hadn’t read this site I would have been completely puzzled about why I was having an allergic reaction. Sometimes you think you’ve developed a NEW allergy-only to find it the same old one-hiding “in sheep clothing”- let the buyer beware!!!
I hate the ‘natural flavours’ label, a bit like ‘spices’ which is equally as unhelpful. I tend to stick to plain ready salted crisps now but I’ve noticed a trend for all crisp companies to now state, “May contain milk, soy, gluten due to manufacturing processes”. Let the buyer indeed beware and very aware!
my son has a milk and egg allergy and also moderately severe eczema. i used some nappy wipes on him last week which i stupidly didnt read the label on (deeerr!!) and he came up in a nasty nettle like rash all over his bum within 10 minutes and was screaming. i read the label of the wipes and these had lactic acid in. i thought his milk allergy was due to the proteins cassein and whey that are found in milk. has anyone else had skin reactions due to lactic acid?
I haven’t had a reaction to lactic acid on my skin and I’ve seen it in washing up liquid as well, it could be to anything in the wipes though, sensitive skin can be tricky. Anything is possible though.
What luck to find this site. I’ve been narrowing the source of my allergy (vomiting, ezema, bowel, etc) to lactose, of which I finally (I thought) found all various forms. Today I discovered a new one: supermarket produce departments that spray lactic acid on cut-up fruit to preserve it under the plastic wrap. What I thought would be a lovely bowl of watermelon caused my entire lunch to be upchucked. Not a happy afternoon. Add one more health hazard, and this was even from a health food store! As if that’s not enough, be aware that Dulcolax laxatives, which are often recommended to prepare for a screening colonoscopy, has lactose in it. From this site, I now see why some wines have been giving me a hard time. What else is lurking out there in our food, drink, and drugs?
I`ve been wondering about lactic acid for a while also, I want to make red pepper jelly and the recipe calls for liquid pectin which contains lactic acid…after reading this I think I will make an attempt with poedered pectin which is lactic acid free. On another point, I have a milk protein allergy thgat gives me a reaction of having millions of tiny spiders crawling all over my body, very very annoying( happy to have Benedryl) At one point I replaced all milk products with soy products…within 2 years I was highly allergic to soy, same spiders plus headaches and flushes. Soy is in everything under so many different names. The gentleman who tried Earth Balance probably tried the regular stuff which contains soy. Earth Balance also has a soy-free margaine that has been working great for me so far. It is one of the very few soy-free margaines. All this to say that if there is some sort of link in the allergies then watch out for the many faces of soy in your food.
I think Pure dairy free do a vegetable oil spread which is dairy and soya free. Gives you another option.
I am gluten intolerant, dairy and soy intolerant, nitrates are out and I’ve been having big GERD problems, no known cause, the medications for it do not work or I have a bad reaction to the medication. I can no longer drink wine, coffee, tea, etc., and today I had some naturally cured ham that contained lactic acid. What an acid bath that caused. Anyone have any cure for over acidity in stomach? And maybe the problem with wine is partly the lactic acid?? I’m getting desperate!
Hi Pam, sounds like we are cut from the same cloth! I have all of the same allergies that you mentioned and, I have a great remedy for GERD! Drink some high quality (“Bragg” is the best), apple cider vinegar once or twice per day. I mix mine with some water and stevia sweetner. I would guess I probably use 4 tablespoons worth. It is nasty tasting, but it will clear up GERD in nothing flat! When I was waking up with a GERD attack, I would drink some and it settles it right down. It also has a whole list of other beneficial side effects. After just a few days of drinking it, my GERD went away for good!
If you have problems with lactic acid build up in your muscles after activity, like working in the yard, you can take a warm bath with a cup of apple cider vinegar right after the activity and it will help to keep you from getting stiff and sore. If you don’t take the bath in it after the exercise activity and wake up stiff and sore the next day, take the bath then and it will relieve 90% of the soreness. It causes the lactic acid build up (the cause of stiffness and soreness) to release from your muscles.
As I read these blog posts, I wonder if anyone that has problems with lactic acid has noticed that the naturally occurring lactic acid build up in muscles with exercise bothers them in an allergic way?
I have a new milk allergy. After eliminating dairy products I have found that I have a reaction to lactic acid. I thought I was going crazy when I had a reaction to V8 Splash juice. Thanks for the post!
We just found out that our 2yo son is allergic to dairy, eggs, soy, wheat and peanuts. We took him to an allergist to find this out. We also feel he is allergic to citric acid, (which apparently can’t be tested for). The dr. tested him for acidic foods (oranges and lemons) and they came back mildly allergic, so the dr. said it’s not a big deal, but anytime he has juice, popsicles, anything w/citric acid he break out terribly all over his body and goes on a rampage! I’m wondering if non-dairy lactic acid will cause him the same problems. I’m trying to find a non-dairy, non-soy margarine but I’m not comming up w/anything. Whenever I find something it’ll say non-dairy lactic acid (which after reading this I’m afraid to try), or “natural flavors”. Why can’t they just print what’s in the darn stuff and be done?!?! SOOOOOOO frustrating!!! I can’t wait till my son is a little older and can tell me when he’s having a reaction to something he ate, and not having to wait until he blows up or guess what he ate when he goes on his rampages. When he eats something that bothers him he just becomes this mean, nasty little boy. So frustrating cause it’s hard to discipline him when we don’t know if it just from being 2 or from an allergic reaction to something.
I am finding that all of these processed things, not just lactic acid, cause me a problem. I’m sticking to a totally freefrom processed foods diet at the moment (I am having a bit of #GF bread I know is OK, plamil chocolate as a real treat and plain crisps… cheating I know) and finding it really helps. I don’t know what is giving me the problem sometimes but it’s anything processed that does it. It’s as if I’ve had dairy or soya but I haven’t. Could it be cross contamination? As for dairy free spreads, have you tried Pure dairy free spread sunflower? Ingredients: Sunflower Oil (40%), Water, Vegetable Oils, Salt (0.75%), Emulsifier (Mono and Diglycerides of Sunflower Fatty Acids), Vitamin E, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin A, Colour (Natural Carotenes), Vitamin D as D2, Vitamin B12. Alternatively you can buy coconut butter, I hesitate because it’s expensive, but that is then just one ingredients, pure coconut butter. I’ve bought some and using it sparing but it’s good. It does taste coconuty though so your son may not like the taste. Or there are also some processed coconut butters on Goodness Direct http://www.goodnessdirect.co.uk/cgi-local/frameset/detail/754571_Tiana_Organic_Pure_Coconut_Butter_350ml.html although health food shops stock lots of other brands so shop around.