Eating full-fat milk, yogurt and cheese may help protect against Type 2 diabetes, says a study of 3,333 adults published in the journal Circulation. Researchers tracked dairy biomarkers in blood samples from the participants beginning in the 1980s, and looked to see who developed diabetes over the next 20 years, says NPR.
“People who had the most dairy fat in their diet had about a 50-percent lower risk of diabetes” compared to participants with the lowest dairy fat consumption, says Dariush Mozaffarian, dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University and an author of the study. Mozaffarian has called on officials to revise the National School Lunch Program rules, which only allow for low-fat and skim milk.
While the study’s researchers stopped short of confirming a cause and effect between dairy fat and diabetes, other studies also have suggested that fat may not deserve its villainous reputation. A 12-year study in Sweden found that middle-age men who consume full-fat dairy are less likely to become obese compared with men who don’t eat dairy or only eat low-fat versions. A meta-analysis of 16 studies also found that eating fat protected against obesity. Researchers have posited that when people lower fat in their diet, they overcompensate with carbohydrates, leading to weight gain.