Question

How does the mutation that results in lactose tolerance affect people?

Answer 1

People who are lactose intolerant are unable to digest lactose, the sugar commonly found in dairy, because their bodies don't make the enzyme lactase.

Lactase works by breaking down lactose into a simpler sugar that can be used by the body. Without it, lactose is not absorbed by the body & remains in the waste where gut bacteria metabolize it & cause the bloating, gas & other similar discomforts experienced by the lactose intolerant.

Hope that helps!

In truth, though, it is the non-lactose intolerant people that are the mutants. Not the other way around. Most wild animals don't consume milk after they have been weaned & it's just something humans developed to accommodate their diet.

Answer 2

The mutation that results in lactose intolerance prevents people from consuming milk and its derivatives.

Step-by-step explanation:

Lactose intolerance is a deficiency in the production of the enzyme lactase, responsible for digesting the sugar present in milk and dairy products. This problem, which affects more and more people, imposes limitations on diet and when the diet is not strictly followed and dairy foods are ingested, some reactions happen - the unpleasant symptoms of lactose intolerance.

In this disease, the amount of enzyme produced may vary from organism to organism, and in some cases it is completely nil. This results in various levels of intolerance and the less lactase is synthesized, the more intense the symptoms of milk sugar consumption.