A little dairy food daily, even for those who haven’t traditionally consumed it, may reduce the risk of heart disease or stroke, say researchers at Australia’s Monash University.
A study of nearly 4,000 Taiwanese was led by Professor Mark Wahlqvist.
“In a dominantly Chinese food culture, unaccustomed to dairy foods, consuming them up to seven times a week does not increase mortality and may have favourable effects on stroke,” Wahlqvist said in a release on the study, which was published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition.
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Cancer and cardiovascular disease are the leading causes of death among Taiwanese. When Wahlqvist’s study began in 1993, there was little apparent concern about dairy foods, in contrast to a current belief that they may be harmful to health and in particular raise the risk of cancer.
The study showed such fears to be unfounded.
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“We observed that increased dairy consumption meant lower risks of mortality from cardiovascular disease, especially stroke, but found no significant association with the risk of cancer,” Wahlqvist said. According to the study findings, people only need to eat small amounts to gain the benefits.
“A little is beneficial and a lot is unnecessary,” Professor Wahlqvist said.
“Those who ate no dairy had higher blood pressure, higher body mass index and greater body fatness generally than other groups. But Taiwanese who included dairy food in their diet only three to seven times a week were more likely to survive than those who ate none.”
