Dairy Diet May Cut Type 2 Risk

The conclusions of a new dietary study are somewhat counterintuitive, showing that overweight adults who consumed at least 35 servings of milk, butter, yogurt, and cheese a week had a 71% lower risk of being diagnosed with insulin resistance syndrome (IRS). IRS causes abnormalities in glucose metabolism, lipid metabolism, obesity, and high blood pressure. It is a major risk factor for heart disease and type 2 diabetes. The same people in the study were also least likely to be diagnosed with high cholesterol or elevated blood pressure. These findings were published in the April 24, 2002, Journal of the American Medical Association.

?Our findings suggest that dairy consumption may be part of a dietary pattern that reduces the risk of obesity and IRS,? said Harvard Medical School?s Mark A. Pereira, PhD, the study?s lead author.