The consumption of cheese, yoghurt and butter protects against type 2 diabetes

Why high-fat dairy products reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes

Researchers found that eating cheese could help lower the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. When people consume high-fat dairy products such as cheese, cream and yogurt, they are less likely to suffer from type 2 diabetes.

Researchers at the internationally recognized University of Cambridge in the UK found in their study that consuming high-fat dairy products can protect people from type 2 diabetes. The physicians published the results of their analysis of various previous studies in the English-language journal "PLOS Medicine".

Is milk unhealthy?

There have been repeated warnings in recent years that milk and dairy products are bad for health. But the University of Cambridge research team found that people should not be discouraged from consuming dairy products. Study participants rarely developed type 2 diabetes when they consumed cheese, cream and yogurt compared to patients who did not consume such foods, the researchers report.

Nutrients in dairy products contribute to a healthy diet

Currently, the US diet guidelines for Americans do not recommend more than three servings of dairy products per day and they also advise on fat-free and low-fat options. This statement is based on research that has shown that saturated fats in full-fat products increase LDL cholesterol, a marker of heart disease. However, there is evidence that many nutrients are present in dairy products, including calcium, potassium, magnesium, vitamin K1 and K2, and probiotics (in yoghurt), which could contribute to a healthy diet, explain the physicians.

Over 63,600 subjects were medically monitored for over 20 years

Some previous studies have already shown that the consumption of dairy products, especially cheese and yoghurt, is associated with a lower incidence of type 2 diabetes, but the results were contradictory. For the review of this statement, the team evaluated the data from 20 years of more than 63,600 adults from 16 different studies. Participants were tested for milk fat biomarkers, molecules in the body that serve as indicators of dairy consumption. All adults were free of type 2 diabetes at the beginning of the study, but more than 15,100 subjects developed this type of diabetes during the follow-up period.

Risk of type 2 diabetes was reduced by up to 30 percent

The researchers analyzed the relationships of milk fat biomarkers in all studies with the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The experts found that subjects with higher levels of milk fat biomarkers had a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Participants in the upper fifth of the high levels of milk fat biomarkers had a 30 percent lower risk of disease than the bottom fifth, the authors of the study explain. This result was independent of other potential risk factors such as age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, physical activity and obesity.

Further research is needed

The findings provide the most comprehensive global evidence yet for the association of milk fat biomarkers with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, says study author Dr. Fumiaki Imamura from the Medical Research Council of the University of Cambridge. However, further investigations of the underlying mechanisms are now required. The physicians emphasize that the results do not indicate which dairy products offer the greatest protection. Therefore, in future research, the team would like to look at different types of dairy products to see if the cooking methods play a role. (As)