Lactose Detector Tool
From your favourite crisps to the coating on your medicine, lactose can be found in more products than most of us realise. To make life easy, our detector tool will help you to quickly discover what you can and can’t enjoy while living lactose free.
All the information in the tool has been approved by the British Dietetic Association.
Milk, dairy and alternatives |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Lactose free milk, rice milk, soya milk, almond milk, potato milk, coconut milk. Cream and soya made from these mills. |
| Things you may need to check |
| Cheese or any other products made from the above milks. |
| Lactose containing |
| Greek yogurt, butter, parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese, blue cheese, swiss cheese, cream, cottage cheese |
Vegetables |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Fresh, frozen and canned vegetables without added milk or milk products; tomato paste and purée; tomato and spaghetti sauces without cheese or cream. All vegetable juices. |
| Things you may need to check |
| Coleslaw or vegetables in mayonnaise and salad cream. |
| Lactose containing |
| Creamed, scalloped, mashed with milk or breaded/battered vegetables, packaged dried potato mixes, tomato and spaghetti sauce with milk (white sauce) or cheese (cheese sauce) |
Fruits |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Fresh, frozen, canned, and dried fruits. All fruit juices. |
| Things you may need to check |
| Fruit bars |
| Lactose containing |
| None. Chocolate and yogurt covered dried fruit. |
Breads & Grains |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Water-based breads (Italian [focaccia, ciabatta], French, Jewish rye), wraps, bagels, rice and popcorn cakes, graham crackers, some rusks, poppadoms, chapatti, Pareve-Jewish bakery products, cooked and dry cereals without added milk solids, pasta, rice (plain, boil in the bag, rice noodles), rye (rye crackers), oats (oatcakes), barley, cornmeal/corn flour, bulgar, and other plain grains such as quinoa, millet, arrowroot, cous cous |
| Lactose containing |
| The following made with milk or milk products, breads (brioche, naan breads), rolls, biscuits, muffins, pancakes, sweet rolls, croissants, waffles, crackers, instant and dry cereals with added milk products (particularly some muesli and chocolate flavoured), some packaged grain mixes, packaged macaroni and other pasta mixes. Dried savoury rice. Cheesy crackers, cheese thins, cheese oatcakes. |
Meat and Meat Substitutes |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Plain beef; lamb; veal; pork; wild game; poultry; liver, kidney, offal, fish; shellfish; eggs; kosher prepared meat products (also called pareve or parve); peanut butter; peas, beans, or lentils (dried, canned or frozen e.g. dhal or hummus); all nuts and seeds; tofu. Meat, poultry and fish canned without milk and milk products |
| Things you may need to check |
| Other processed meats – those sold on the bone (deli counter) may be less likely to contain milk products. Roasted nuts, Quorn based products |
| Lactose containing |
| Eggs (Scotch eggs, quiche, scrambled or omelette), breaded/battered/creamed fish, meat and poultry; luncheon meats; sausage; frankfurters; some brands of egg substitutes and powdered eggs. Pies and pates. |
Fats & Oils |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Bacon, margarine without milk derivatives (whey), salad dressing without cheese or milk, vegetable oils, olives, most non-dairy creamers, real mayonnaise, gravy made without milk or milk products |
| Lactose containing |
| Cream, half & half, sour cream (creme fraiche) , cream cheese, chip dips, some types of margarine, salad dressing with cheese or milk, whipped toppings |
Beverages |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Postum, lactose-free nutritional supplements (Sustacal, Ensure, Nutren), vegetable juice, fruit juices and drinks, tea, carbonated beverages, beer, wine, distilled spirits (gin, rum, etc.), cocoa powder, most coffee. Flavoured water |
| Lactose containing |
| Instant iced tea, instant coffee (latte and cappuccino mixes), Ovaltine and other malted drinks, chocolate drink mixes, cordials, some liqueurs, milk-based nutritional supplements (Build-up, Complan, Carnation Instant Breakfast) |
Soups and sauces |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Bouillon, broth, meat, or vegetable stock soups; bisques and chowders made with water, soy milk, or 100% lactose-free milk. Sweet and sour sauces |
| Things you may need to check |
| Tomato based sauces, cook-in sauces seafood sauces, guacamole |
| Lactose containing |
| Cream soup, canned and dehydrated soup mixes containing milk products |
Miscellaneous Foods |
|---|
| Lactose free |
| Popcorn, plain pretzels, plain potato and corn tortilla chips, salsa, mustard, mayonnaise and salad cream, ketchup, pickles, uncreamed horseradish, relish, vinegar, sauces made without milk or milk products, sugar, honey, jams and jellies, maple and corn syrup, molasses, herbs, spices, salt, pepper, yeast, yeast extract, stock cubes/concentrates, gravy granules, food essence and food colouring, fruit based pouring syrup |
| Lactose containing |
| Toffee/chocolate popcorn, cream or cheese sauces, ranch-style or cheese-flavored snack pretzels or chips, cheese curls, sugar substitutes (sweeteners) with lactose added, medications and vitamin/mineral supplements with lactose added. Some crisps, Coffee whiteners |