How to Use lactase in a Sentence

lactase

noun
  • Drinking milk after your lactase gene is turned off is no fun.
    — Bob Gathany, AL.com, 4 Mar. 2018
  • Most people are born with enough lactase in their gut, but levels can decrease over time.
    — Allison Forsyth, Health, 15 Apr. 2026
  • The spread of that culture had the effect of spreading the lactase persistence gene.
    — Quanta Magazine, 5 Jan. 2017
  • However, once the infants are weaned, the lactase-producing gene is turned off.
    — Bob Gathany, AL.com, 4 Mar. 2018
  • The infection damages the gut lining, which leads to a lack of lactase, the enzyme that breaks down lactose.
    — Adrianna Rodriguez, USA Today, 15 Feb. 2026
  • As an extra precaution, many brands also add lactase to their product to make sure not even trace amounts of lactose remain.
    — Audrey Bruno, SELF, 20 June 2024
  • The infection damages the gut lining, leading to a lack of lactase, the enzyme that breaks down lactose.
    — Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY, 7 Jan. 2025
  • By some measures, most adults do not produce the enzyme lactase, which is necessary to break down lactose sugars in milk.
    — Rob Dunn, Scientific American, 1 Sep. 2013
  • This condition occurs when the body doesn't produce enough lactase, an enzyme that breaks down the lactose in milk and yogurt.
    — Allison Herries, Verywell Health, 10 Feb. 2025
  • Famous enzymes include lactase, which breaks down milk sugars in those who are lactose tolerant.
    — Ian Haydon, Scientific American, 11 Apr. 2017
  • To digest lactose requires an enzyme called lactase, which infants of all mammals produce.
    — Bob Gathany, AL.com, 4 Mar. 2018
  • This happens if the small intestine doesn't make enough lactase, the enzyme that helps with dairy digestion by breaking down lactose.
    — Melissa Matthews, SELF, 5 Jan. 2021
  • Taking a lactase enzyme supplement has been shown to prevent symptoms when taken with lactose foods (dairy).
    — Suzie Finkel Ms, Rd, Cdn, Health, 26 May 2024
  • Their bodies don't produce enough lactase, a protein responsible for the breakdown of dairy products.
    — Lindsay Curtis, Health, 13 Nov. 2025
  • The enzymes lactase and sucrase, made in the small intestine, break down dairy sugar and sugar, respectively.
    — Kristen Rogers, CNN, 15 Feb. 2024
  • Lactose intolerance is caused by a lack of the enzyme lactase, leading to digestive symptoms when the body cannot break down milk sugar.
    — Allison Forsyth, Health, 15 Apr. 2026
  • This is one cause of lactase deficiency and lactose intolerance.
    — Korin Miller, SELF, 18 Apr. 2024
  • The widespread ability for humans to process lactase into adulthood is an example of such a mutation.
    — Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics, 7 Mar. 2023
  • In people with lactose intolerance, the body doesn’t produce enough of an enzyme called lactase, which is needed to break down lactose so it can be absorbed.
    — Jillian Kubala, Health, 14 May 2026
  • The proprietary enzyme blend, with alpha-galactosidase, amylase, lipase, lactase, and bromelin can help your body break down lactose, gluten, and fats.
    — Brianna Peters, Vogue, 30 June 2025
  • If your body doesn't make enough lactase, the enzyme that breaks down milk sugar, lactose travels to the colon, where bacterial fermentation occurs.
    — Christopher Bergland, Verywell Health, 7 Oct. 2025
  • People with lactose intolerance do not produce enough lactase, an enzyme needed to break down lactose for absorption.
    — Jillian Kubala, Health, 16 Apr. 2026
  • The fact that your weight stabilized with proper treatment of your lactase deficiency suggests that there are no other worrisome causes in your case.
    — Dr. Keith Roach, oregonlive, 19 May 2022
  • For instance, Lactaid pills contain the enzyme lactase, which helps break down milk sugar in people who are lactose intolerant.
    — Emily Mullin, WIRED, 23 Feb. 2024
  • During production, manufacturers will add an enzyme known as lactase to regular cow’s milk.
    — Angelica Bottaro, Verywell Health, 8 Aug. 2025
  • It's been found that in people with lactose intolerance, variations in the lactase gene change the protein building blocks (amino acids) of the lactase enzyme produced.
    — New Atlas, 25 Oct. 2024
  • Proponents argue that raw milk produces its own lactase thanks to beneficial bacteria, or probiotics.
    — Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 20 Dec. 2024
  • Trouble with lactose intolerance tends to begin in adulthood, when our bodies gradually makes less lactase, an enzyme that breaks down lactose.
    — Caroline Hopkins Legaspi, New York Times, 24 Dec. 2024
  • This often occurs because the damage gluten causes to the small intestine can reduce lactase production, the enzyme needed to digest lactose.
    — Devineé Lingo, M.s., Health, 5 Oct. 2024
  • Normally digested by the body with an enzyme called ‘lactase’, this sugar breaks down into lactic acid to feed the healthy bacteria in our intestinal microbiota.
    — Marie Bladt, Vogue, 24 Dec. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lactase.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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