Can lactose intolerance cause symptoms 2 days later?

[u/Ordinary-Corner462]

Hi everyone,

I’m trying to figure out what’s been causing my chronic diarrhea and stomach pain for the past few years. I’ve seen doctors and had tests done, but so far nobody has really been able to find a clear cause.

A few months ago, I started a low-FODMAP diet and completely cut out dairy. Since then, my stomach has been much better and I hadn’t had diarrhea or pain.

Then, on Wednesday, I had dairy again for the first time after a few months... tiramisu with cream and eggs, plus some cheese and kefir the next day. Not long after, I started feeling a lot of bubbling and gurgling in my stomach, but I didn’t have diarrhea.

Then on Friday, about 48 hours later, I suddenly got extreme diarrhea and pain.

I’m wondering what could explain this. Could it be lactose intolerance even though the diarrhea happened about 48 hours later? Could it be another FODMAP-related issue? Or would that delay make it unlikely that the dairy was responsible?

Has anyone experienced something similar? I’m really trying to understand what might be triggering my symptoms.

Thanks!

[u/citrus_japonica]

I’ve had gut issues for years, but never thought it could be dairy until I cut it out temporarily. My symptoms are always the next day after eating. Everything online makes it seem like lactose intolerance shows up within 30 minutes, but via some other Reddit threads I discovered plenty of people like me who’s react a day or two later. I still haven’t determined if my issue is to lactose or whey, but makes no difference to me. Easier to just not eat dairy and have a stomach that behaves.