Lactose Intolerance Glossary of Terms

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Abdominal: Relating to the abdomen, the belly, that part of the body that contains all of ...

Abdominal pain: Pain in the belly. Abdominal pain can be acute or chronic. It may reflect ...

Abnormal: Outside the expected norm, or uncharacteristic of a particular patient.

Acquired: Not inherited, or present at birth (congenital), but developing after birth. For...

Allergy: A misguided reaction to foreign substances by the immune system, the body system ...

Bacteria: Single-celled microorganisms that can exist either as independent (free-living) ...

Bacterial: Of or pertaining to bacteria, as in a bacterial lung infection.

Baseline: Information or data gathered at the beginning of a period from which variations ...

Biopsy: The removal of a sample of tissue for examination under a microscope to check for ...

Birth control: Birth control is the use of any practices, methods, or devices to prevent p...

Blood glucose: The main sugar that the body makes from the food in the diet. Glucose is ca...

Bowel: The small and large intestine.

Calcium: A mineral found mainly in the hard part of bones, where it is stored. Calcium is ...

Carbohydrate: One of the three nutrient compounds, along with fat and protein, used as ene...

Celiac disease: A disorder resulting from an immune reaction to gluten, a protein found in...

Colon: The long, coiled, tubelike organ that removes water from digested food. The remaini...

Colonic: 1. See: Colonic (adjective). 2. See: Colonic (noun).

Crohn's disease: A chronic inflammatory disease, primarily involving the small and large ...

Diabetes: Refers to diabetes mellitus or, less often, to diabetes insipidus. Diabetes mell...

Diagnosis: 1 The nature of a disease; the identification of an illness. 2 A ...

Diarrhea: A common condition that involves unusually frequent and liquid bowel movements. ...

Endoscopy: Examination of the inside of the body by using a lighted, flexible instrument c...

Enteropathy: A disease of the intestine.

Enzyme: A protein (or protein-based molecule) that speeds up a chemical reaction in a livi...

Enzyme replacement: A strategy designed to replace missing enzyme activity in a patient. T...

Enzymes: Proteins that act as a catalysts in mediating and speeding a specific chemical re...

Fasting: : going without food or drink. Patients may be advised to fast for a certain peri...

Fever: Although a fever technically is any body temperature above the normal of 98.6 degr...

Flatulence: Excess gas in the intestinal tract. But excess flatulence is difficult to defi...

Flatus: Gas in the intestinal tract or gas passed through the anus. Intestinal gas contain...

Galactose: A sugar found in milk. Galactose is a disaccharide that is made up of two sugar...

Gastroenteritis: Inflammation of the stomach and the intestines. Gastroenteritis can cause...

Gastroenterology: The medical specialty devoted to the study, diagnosis and treatment of d...

Gene: The basic biological unit of heredity. A segment of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) need...

Genetic: Having to do with genes and genetic
information.

Giardiasis: Infection with Giardia lamblia.

Glucose: The simple sugar that is the chief source of energy. Glucose is found in the bloo...

HIV: Acronym for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, the cause of AIDS (acquired immunodefi...

Hydrogen: The most plentiful element in the universe and one present in all organic compou...

Incidence: The frequency with which something, such as a disease or trait, appears in a pa...

Infant: A young baby, from birth to 12 months of age.

Infection: The invasion and multiplication of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, an...

Inflammatory bowel disease: A group of chronic intestinal diseases characterized by infla...

Internal medicine: The medical specialty dedicated to the diagnosis and medical treatment ...

Intestine: The long, tubelike organ in the abdomen that completes the process of digestion...

Lactase: Enzyme that breaks down the milk sugar lactose into glucose and galactose. Perso...

Lactase deficiency: Lack of the enzyme lactase in the small intestine. Lactase is needed t...

Lactose: The sugar found in milk. Lactose is a large sugar molecule that is made up of two...

Lactose intolerance: The inability to digest lactose, a component of milk and some other d...

Large intestine: Comes after the small intestine. Large because it is wider than the smal...

Lungs: The lungs are a pair of breathing organs located with the chest which remove carbon...

Medical history: 1. In clinical medicine, the patient's past and present which may ...

Metabolism: The whole range of biochemical processes that occur within a living organism. ...

Molecule: The smallest unit of a substance that can exist alone and retain the character o...

Mouth: 1. The upper opening of the digestive tract, beginning with the lips and con...

MPH: Master of public health, a degree designating successful training in analyzing past, ...

Nausea: Stomach queasiness, the urge to vomit. Nausea can be brought on by many causes, in...

Nutritionist: 1) In a hospital or nursing home, a person who plans and/or formulates spe...

Objective: In a microscope, the objective (also called the objective lens) is the lens nea...

Osteoporosis: Thinning of the bones, with reduction in bone mass, due to depletion of calc...

Pain: An unpleasant sensation that can range from mild, localized discomfort to agony. Pa...

Parasitic: Having to do with a parasite, as in a parasitic infection; or acting like a par...

Placebo: A "sugar pill" or any dummy medication or treatment.

Prevalence: The proportion of individuals in a population having a disease or characterist...

Primary care: A patient's main source for regular medical care, ideally providing continui...

Prognosis: The forecast of the probable outcome or course of a disease; the patient's chan...

Progressive: Increasing in scope or severity, advancing, or going forward. For example, a ...

Protein: One of the three nutrients used as energy sources (calories) by the body. Protein...

Radiation: 1. Rays of energy. Gamma rays and X-rays are two of the types of energy ...

Radiation therapy: The use of high-energy rays to damage cancer cells, stopping them from ...

Rectum: The last 6 to 8 inches of the large intestine. The rectum stores solid waste until...

Resolution: In genetics, the degree of molecular detail on a physical map of DNA. Resoluti...

Shigella: A group of bacteria that can cause infantile gastroenteritis, summer diarrhea of...

Small intestine: The part of the digestive tract that extends from the stomach to the larg...

Stomach: The digestive organ that is located in the upper abdomen, under the ribs. The upp...

Stool: The solid matter that is discharged in a bowel movement.

Syndrome: A combination of symptoms and signs that together represent a disease process.

Therapy: The treatment of disease. Therapy is synonymous with treatment.

Viruses: Small living particles that can infect cells and change how the cells function. I...

Vitamin D: A steroid vitamin which promotes the intestinal absorption and metabolism of ca...

Yogurt: A common dish made of milk curdled and fermented with a culture of Lactobacillus (...