Most medicines would be impossible to use without excipients in the composition. They allow you to give the drug a form that will allow the active substance to reach the desired point in the body and act on the disease. Some of the excipients are more popular with the manufacturer, some are less popular. Lactose monohydrate - what is it, how is it used in medicine and the food industry?
General Properties
Lactose, as a substance, belongs to the carbohydrate class of oligosaccharides. Carbohydrates are chemical compounds that are found in all foods and have carbonyl and hydroxyl groups in their composition. Oligosaccharides, on the other hand, are a class of carbohydrates containing from two to four simple parts - saccharides. There are two such parts in lactose: glucose and galactose.
Becausethat lactose is found mainly in milk, it is also called "milk sugar". Pharmacological manuals indicate that lactose monohydrate is a lactose molecule with a water molecule attached to it.
Since lactose contains two simple sugars: glucose and galactose, it is called a disaccharide within the chemical classification, and upon splitting it forms two initial monosaccharides. Disaccharides also include sucrose known to us, which, when cleaved, forms glucose and fructose. Thus, in terms of carbohydrate properties and the rate of breakdown in the body, both of these molecules are extremely close to each other and can be interchanged in some cases.
Lactose without a water molecule (anhydrous) is stored much less than the crystalline form, and therefore water molecules are purposefully added to it to improve storage.
What happens
Lactose looks like an odorless white crystalline powder. It is soluble in water quite well, has a sweet taste. As an excipient, lactose monohydrate differs only in the level of fineness of particles: from the smallest substance for tablets with potent substances in small dosages to large particles for tablets with herbal extract. Particle size control is carried out mainly in medical practice due to the need to control the rate of absorption of the active substance of the drug. In the food industry, the requirements for the substance are less severe.
Body breakdown
Milk is the main source of lactose, which contains up to 6%. It is milk that contains lactose monohydrate, which enters our body when it is consumed. Normally, after entering the stomach, lactose is subjected to enzymatic action, it is divided into two monosaccharides: glucose and galactose. After that, simple carbohydrates can already go to the needs of the body, replenishing its energy supply.
Because the disaccharide breaks down into simple sugars, the use of lactose monohydrate, both as a food and as part of a drug, affects blood sugar levels by raising it.
The process of splitting is possible due to the work of the lactase enzyme. Its maximum amount is contained in the body of a he althy young child, and it is he who allows him to be on milk nutrition. After the nursing period is over, the amount of the enzyme drops and milk tolerance decreases. The smallest amount of the enzyme was found in the body of the elderly and residents of the Asian region. Europeans practically do not lose the ability to assimilate dairy products with age.
Medical use
Lactose monohydrate, magnesium stearate are the most common excipients for tablet dosage forms. It is extremely difficult to find a tablet that does not contain these two components. But due to the spread of lactose intolerance among people, pharmaceutical manufacturerslaunched lactose-free tablets on the market.
But even with the advent of a small number of milk sugar-free products, lactose is still one of the main components of medicinal tablets.
Manufacturers add lactose monohydrate to tablets as a filler, since this substance is the least pharmacologically active in the human body, and therefore does not affect the effectiveness of the active substance and the result of treatment. Substances that are completely neutral for the human body do not exist. It is also known that lactose monohydrate in the composition of drugs is not an absolutely indifferent filler, however, in addition to changing the concentration of sugar in the blood, this substance minimally affects the processes occurring in the human body. But in case the level of sugar is important (for example, when taking drugs for type 2 diabetes), then lactose monohydrate is not used.
Food industry use
In the food industry, lactose is used not only as part of dairy products. It can be found in glazes, pastries, and ready-made cereals. If lactose monohydrate is needed as an indifferent part in medicines, then food production actively uses its properties.
Canned foods do not lose color when lactose is added, and it is also added to soups, flour and canned vegetables for the same purpose. Due to the fact that the substance does not have a pronounced taste, it is easy to use in food production, and itwill not affect its final taste.
The confectionery industry actively uses lactose monohydrate as a sweetener. Milk sugar is less sweet than regular sucrose and less harmful. Therefore, it is artificially added to sweets, cakes and pastries to give them a light sweet taste.
The effect of lactose monohydrate on the body
Despite the apparent complete neutrality of the substance for the body, lactose has a set of fairly significant characteristics that directly affect the functioning of the body. This influence can have both positive and negative effects. Therefore, before using lactose monohydrate, it is necessary to take into account the properties of the substance and the individual reaction of the body to it.
Buff effects
Lactose monohydrate is known to be a carbohydrate. Like any carbohydrate, lactose is primarily an energy supplier to the body. It can be classified as a simple carbohydrate, as it consists of two simple sugars: glucose and galactose. Therefore, when ingested, it is very quickly broken down into the main energy elements and increases blood sugar levels.
It can also be used as a microflora-supporting substance, as it is the one that best nourishes the lactobacilli in the intestine.
Also, lactose has a stimulating effect on the nervous system, so it can be added to drinking cocktails used in sports training and during the recovery period after the treatment of diseases.
Negative impact
The negative effects of lactose monohydrate are much less than the positive ones: the substance can cause harm only in case of individual intolerance. In addition to intolerance, this component can, albeit slightly, affect blood sugar levels, especially if consumed as part of food. This can have an extremely negative impact on the he alth of people with diabetes.
Receive process
The process of obtaining lactose is completely connected with natural raw materials - whey. The simplest production technology available involves the concentration of dry matter from raw milk using a reverse osmosis process. The lactose is then purified, evaporated and dried.
Lactose intolerance
In some cases, the human body lacks those enzymes that allow the breakdown of lactose into simpler components for the absorption of sugar. In this case, we can talk about intolerance to lactose monohydrate. What is it, is it a disease in the full sense of the word? Doctors do not give an unequivocal answer to this, since the lack of the ability to break down lactose is inherent not only to individuals, but even to individual nations. It is also known that older people also have difficulty digesting this carbohydrate.
There are three different types of intolerance:
- Primary. It entirely depends on the age of the person. The older the body becomes, the strongerenzyme production in it decreases.
- Secondary. It occurs as a result of diseases, injuries and disorders of the body. Such intolerance can either last for a lifetime, or smooth out or completely disappear with time.
- Temporary. The third type is associated primarily with the problems of prematurity of infants, since the production of the enzyme begins from a certain month of fetal development. Over time, with proper treatment, the child's body matures, the enzyme begins to be produced in the right amount, and lactose intolerance disappears.
Intolerance has symptoms that are similar for different people. They are primarily associated with the digestive system. The main signs of lactose intolerance are diarrhea, bloating and flatulence after eating foods with this substance. In rare cases, nausea and vomiting may occur. The patient experiences severe heaviness in the abdomen.
Lactose intolerance can be confused with another disease with similar characteristics at first glance - milk allergy. But these two diseases differ from each other not only in the course and methods of treatment, but also in symptoms. Therefore, before you try to self-diagnose any of these diseases, you need to be diagnosed by a specialist.
