Why does does eating dairy too soon before/after shellfish make me sick?

[RangerM]

This is a total personal (vanity?) thread, but I have searched Google, and can't find the exact answer I'm looking for.

For many years I have learned to never eat dairy and shellfish within a certain timeframe, because it will make me very sick (nausea and all the other unpleasant things that go with it).

I ate shrimp for lunch yesterday, and after many hours (4-5 is my usual minimum) I ate ice cream. I still got ill, although not as severely as I would have, had I not heeded my usual rule. I now know I will have to wait longer.

Does anyone else suffer this and does anyone know why it is this particular combination (shellfish/dairy) that does it?

Thanks in advance.

[the OlLine Rebel]

You might want to check out HealthBoards and ask people there. Check the “Digestive Disorders” area primarily. There is also “Bowel Disorders” and “Acid Reflux” of the same general variety of problems.
http://www.healthboards.com/boards/index.php

[raybbr]

If you are lactose intolerant or simply ate an extremely irritating food your stomach and intestines will react and cause gas and diarrhea as a normal defensive mechanism to get the irritants out as fast as possible, even in as little time as 15 minutes.

Hmmmm.... Not sure I buy it. I can see a couple of hours but not minutes. By vomiting yes. In order for what you claim to happen your system would have to empty your bowels first before it could void the irritant.

[aft_lizard]

My bad, I was off on the time it actually takes as little as 30 minutes to have problems.
http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/lactoseintolerance/

[Rebelbase]

” the movement of food through the entire length of the alimentary tract takes from 15 to 30 hours”

Thanks. That explains where the steak is I had for dinner last night.

[raybbr]

People who do not have enough lactase to digest the amount of lactose they consume may feel very uncomfortable when they digest milk products. Common symptoms, which range from mild to severe, include nausea, cramps, bloating, gas, and diarrhea. Symptoms begin about 30 minutes to 2 hours after eating or drinking foods containing lactose. The severity of symptoms depends on many factors, including the amount of lactose a person can tolerate and a person’s age, ethnicity, and digestion rate.

"Symptons begin..." That doesn't mean diarrhea in 30 minute. Still you would have to clear any food already present. In an extreme case? Maybe. I know from personal experience that it takes about four hours for the diarrhea to kick in. :(

[aft_lizard]

Really not trying to argue but I will tell you that you will get gas and diarrhea that fast, I am a lactose intolerant individual and give me anything that is heavy with lactose and I am clearing rooms and destroying toilets within the hour. I can’t find my old physiology books but lactose intolerance is one of many conditions that will give you fast bowel movements.

[texas booster]

My mother is from Europe and she would never let us eat that combination.

Never knew why but Moms over there must talk and share secrets!

[brownbrown]

I’m from rural North Carolina and my Mamaw told me that you should never eat fish and ice cream together. Too bad she told me after the fact. Is this a common ‘old wives’ tale”?