What foods can you cook for someone with a lactose intolerance

A.� Someone that is intolerant of lactose is missing the lactase enzyme that helps digest milk and milk products. Foods with lactose cause symptoms such as bloating and stomach pains. This means no mlik, milk powder, butter, margarine, cheese, yoghurt, cream, milk chocolate and milk products (labelled as casein, hydrolysed casein, whey, milk solids and lactose) in other foods. There are degrees of intolerance so you need to check with guests.

You can prepare foods with soya versions of milk, yoghurt, cream and margarine; low-lactose milk; lactose-free vegetarian margarines; and plain chocolate. Pittas, bagels, crispbreads and oatcakes are usually dairy-free, but check the labels.

By avoiding milk products, your guest may need extra calcium, so offer calcium-enriched soya milk, eggs, green leafy veg, nuts, seeds, dried or fresh figs, pulses, prawns and other fish.

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Q.� What kind of Christmas lunch could you serve

A.� Offer turkey with a low-fat stffuing, and prepare a dairy-free, wheat-free Christmas cake. You can make sauce for a Xmas pud by whizzing silken tofu with icing sugar and a dash of brandy.

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Q.� What if you've a diabetic coming to lunch

A.� If you're cooking for a diabetic, avoid sugary foods such as sweets, sponge cakes, and sweet drinks which can cause a sharp rise in glucose levels.

Diabetes UK suggests healthy eating - a moderate-fat diet, high in complex carbohydrates, with regular intakes of low-fat protein and vegetables. Foods low of the Glycaemic Index (GI - a measure of the rate of absorption of carbohydrates into blood) help keep blood sugar levels steady. These foods include pulses, wholegrain foods, oats, vegetables, citrus fruits and apples).

Providing you keep an eye on fat levels, roast turkey (with no fat) and trimmings would be acceptable. The ingredients of Christmas pudding and cake and mince pies are mostly low or moderate on the GI, so these foods can be eaten in small portions.

Small, regular meals and snacks help keep blood sugar levels even. Have a bowl of citrus fruits, such as grapes, apples and pears, as well as a pack of oatcakes, some fresh nuts and medium-fat cheese,m such as feta, prepared. For more information on diabetes, contact Diabetes Uk on 020 7232 1531.

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By Katharine MacColl