Free NIH Lactose Intolerance Conference

Roseline Hooks wrote to me from the National Institutes of Health Office of Medical Applications of Research. And it sounds exciting for the technically-mnded among you.

I thought your readers might be interested to know about an upcoming NIH state-of-the-science conference sponsored by the National Human Genome Research Institute and the NIH Office of Medical Applications of Research:


Lactose Intolerance and Health
February 22-24, 2010

Register Online
Agenda
Background

The purpose of the conference is to evaluate the available scientific information on lactose intolerance and health and to develop a statement that advances understanding of the issue under consideration and will be useful to health professionals and the public.

Discussion topics:

* What is the prevalence of lactose intolerance, and how does this prevalence differ by race, ethnicity, and age?
* What are the health outcomes of dairy exclusion diets?
* What amount of daily lactose intake is tolerable in subjects with diagnosed lactose intolerance?
* What strategies are effective in managing individuals with diagnosed lactose intolerance?
* What are the future research needs for understanding and managing lactose intolerance?

What happens at an NIH state-of-the-science conference?

* At the conference, invited experts will present information pertinent to these questions, and a systematic literature review prepared under contract with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) will be summarized.
* Conference attendees will have ample time to ask questions and provide statements during open discussion periods.
* After weighing the scientific evidence, an unbiased, independent panel will prepare and present a consensus statement addressing the key conference questions.

Please visit our e-toolkit which includes short drop-in newsletter articles, a Web button, a prewritten email notification of the event, etc. If I may forward these materials, or if you have any questions, please let me know.

I hope that you will share this conference with your readers.

I've already registered. Even if I can't get away to go, I hope to monitor some of the webcasts and look at the conference statement. I'll share as much as I can with all of you.