Many types of sugar exist and are in many of the foods we eat daily. Some sugars occur naturally, like fructose, while others are human-made and found in many processed foods.
If you can't digest fructose, you have fructose intolerance. The inability to break down fructose often leads to uncomfortable symptoms like gas and bloating, with occasional diarrhea and nausea.
Living with fructose intolerance is tough—until now. At Gateway Gastroenterology, our team of experts offers fructose intolerance testing to help reduce symptoms.
If you have fructose intolerance, your body can't properly digest fructose. When someone with fructose intolerance ingests foods containing sugar, they often experience gastrointestinal symptoms like bloating, gas, or diarrhea.
Several types of fructose intolerance exist, one more severe than the others. The types of this condition include:
This type of fructose intolerance happens when you're a baby. You inherit the problem from your parents, and it leads to serious health problems if you ingest anything that contains fructose.
Most people with fructose intolerance are living with malabsorption. You're unable to digest fructose, causing foods containing it to sit in the large intestine and cause uncomfortable GI symptoms.
Essential fructosuria is a recessive condition in which the liver doesn't produce the enzyme necessary to break down fructose. Most people with this harmless condition don't know they have it and remain asymptomatic.
Diagnosing fructose intolerance is as simple as a fructose intolerance test. At Gateway Gastroenterology, our team provides quick and efficient testing to determine if your symptoms are due to fructose intolerance.
The test is simple and noninvasive. Before the test, you need to drink a very high-fructose beverage. After consuming the beverage, our team measures the amount of hydrogen in your breath to determine if you have fructose intolerance.
High hydrogen levels usually indicate an intolerance to fructose, but you must follow directions carefully to avoid false positives. For example, you should stop eating and drinking two hours before the test and avoid foods containing fructose and other sugars.
The test takes about four hours, depending on symptoms and results. To accurately measure hydrogen levels, we measure your breath every 20 minutes after you drink the beverage.
If you have fructose intolerance, we advise you to avoid certain foods that trigger uncomfortable abdominal symptoms. You should avoid fructose in many fruits and other foods.
High fructose corn syrup is an artificial form of fructose in many processed foods, so read food labels carefully. Other foods to avoid when you're fructose intolerant include:
You may need to experiment with your diet to determine which foods bother you more than others. Some people with fructose intolerance can manage fruits and foods lower in fructose, like blueberries, carrots, and green beans.
If you have hereditary fructose intolerance, avoiding foods containing sugar is essential. Ingesting these foods can lead to liver and kidney damage, seizures, and a coma as the result of organ damage.
To learn more about fructose intolerance testing, call Gateway Gastroenterology today to schedule an appointment with one of our specialists. You may also request a consultation right here on the website. We have offices in St. Louis, Chesterfield, and Ballwin, Missouri.