Milk foods high in milk fat reduce the risk of diabetes

A higher concentration of milk fat in the blood reduces the likelihood of developing diabetes. Scientists found that people who consume products with a high milk fat percentage have a 46 percent lower risk of developing diabetes than those who have lower levels of milk fat in their blood.

Surely almost everyone knows the saying that fat in dishes improves the taste. Researchers at Tuffs University have now discovered that milk fat can have other beneficial effects on our health. People with a higher milk fat content in the blood develop diabetes less often. The physicians published the results of their study in the journal "Circulation".

Products with a high milk fat content reduce the likelihood of diabetes. (Image: baibaz / fotolia.com)

The study examined 3,333 subjects over a 15-year period
For a long time, nutrition experts have recommended low-fat dairy products to improve health and reduce obesity. However, a recent Tuffs University study has found that this advice does not really make sense. People who consume full-fat milk products are less likely to develop diabetes or become obese, say the experts.

The study examined data from 3,333 adults over a 15-year period. The scientists were able to recognize that people with lower levels of milk fats in the blood have an up to 46 percent increased risk of developing diabetes, says the lead author. Dariush Mozaffarian from Tuffs University. Three years ago, a Swedish study had already indicated that middle-aged men who consumed high-fat dairy products over a twelve-year period were less likely to have diabetes. Some of the experts suggested that foods high in fat saturate longer, so we consume fewer sugary calories per day.

Further research is needed to better understand the relationships
It is not yet fully understood how fat helps to reduce the risk of diabetes. It may regulate glucose and insulin, say the doctors. The milk fat could also act directly on cells that are related to our muscles and the liver. This could improve the ability to dissolve sugar from food and then process it, the researchers explain. The question now is whether the microbes in certain fat-containing dairy products, such as cheese, improve the insulin response and thereby reduce the risk of diabetes.

The results of our study are still preliminary and should not be used as a new basis for nutritional advice Mozaffarian. However, this recent study and some older studies may in the future make it impossible to recommend low-fat dairy products. There is no real evidence that eating low-fat dairy products is healthier than eating full-fat milk products, experts say. (As)