All dairy products naturally contain lactose, because it's one of the sugars found in milk. That includes cheeses like mozzarella. Cheese generally contains less lactose than milk, because the lactose is removed in the process of creating the cheese. That makes cheese, including mozzarella a good source of calcium if you're lactose intolerant, which 75 percent of people in the world are, according to registered dietitian Leslie Beck.
What is Lactose?
Lactose is one of two sugars, or carbohydrates, that occur naturally in milk and in dairy products like cheese. Your body can only absorb carbohydrates after they've been broken down into glucose. Lactose breaks down with the help of the enzyme lactase, produced in the cells lining the small intestine. For a large portion of the world's population, lactase production greatly decreases after the age of weaning from breast-feeding, around age 2. When lactase no longer breaks up lactose so your body can absorb it, the lactose travels intact into the large intestine, where bacteria will cause it to ferment. The fermentation produces the gas, diarrhea and abdominal discomfort associated with lactose intolerance.
The lactose in milk is water soluble, meaning it dissolves in liquid. The liquid part of milk is called whey. The solid protein that forms cheese is the curd, or casein. The firmer the cheese, the less whey it contains. The less whey it contains, the less lactose it has, because the lactose is poured off in the whey as the cheese firms and sets. Softer fresh mozzarella will contain more lactose, while firmer types, such as grated mozzarella, which ferments for two weeks, will contain less.
Lactose in Cheese
Because the firmness of the casein, or protein that forms the cheese influences the amount of lactose left after processing, mozzarella will vary in the amount of lactose it contains. Cheeses such as mozzarella, provolone, cheddar, Swiss and blue cheese generally contain less than 1 gram of lactose per ounce. By comparison, a 1-cup serving of low-fat yogurt or cottage cheese contains between 4 to 6 grams; milk and ice cream contain as much as 11 grams per 1-cup serving.
Tolerable Amounts of Lactose
Although mozzarella cheese is low in lactose compared to milk, that doesn't mean you can eat endless amounts of it without experiencing the gastrointestinal symptoms of lactose intolerance. Many people can tolerate a small amount of lactose, such as the equivalent of a 3- to 5-ounce glass of milk, Beck explains. Eating mozzarella cheese as part of a meal, such as on pizza, might cause you no symptoms, whereas eating a piece of cheese alone would.
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