Consuming whole milk reduces children's risk of being overweight: Study
| Jan 3, 2020, 14:54 IST
A new study claims children who drink whole milk rather than reduced-fat milk have 40 per cent reduced risk of being overweight. The study was conducted by researchers at St. Michael's Hospital of Unity Health Toronto.
The team examined 28 studies from almost seven countries. The research included 20,897 children between the ages one to18. The goal of the study was to understand the link between children drinking cow's milk and the risk of becoming obese.
The study's findings revealed 18 of the studies examined found children who consumed whole milk had a reduced risk of being overweight or obese. Even though the other studies examined did not find this association, they also showed no evidence that reduced-fat milk lowered the risk of becoming obese. The study's findings were originally published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Researchers now want to conduct a randomized controlled experiment to establish the cause and effect of whole milk. "All of the studies we examined were observational studies, meaning that we cannot be sure if whole milk caused the lower risk of overweight or obesity. Whole milk may have been related to other factors which lowered the risk of overweight or obesity," Dr Maguire told a news portal. Adding, "A randomized controlled trial would help to establish cause and effect but none were found in the literature."
Another study warns early exposure to obesity could increase the risk of type 2 diabetes. "Our data also indicated that baseline BMI among young women was significantly associated with risk of developing type 2 diabetes...The results highlight the importance of overweight or obesity in early adulthood as risk factors for adult diabetes, indicating that weight control starting before early adulthood is critical for reducing type 2 diabetes risk in later life," authors of the study, published in the journal Diabetologia, told a news portal.
Picture Courtesy: Google Images
The team examined 28 studies from almost seven countries. The research included 20,897 children between the ages one to18. The goal of the study was to understand the link between children drinking cow's milk and the risk of becoming obese.
The study's findings revealed 18 of the studies examined found children who consumed whole milk had a reduced risk of being overweight or obese. Even though the other studies examined did not find this association, they also showed no evidence that reduced-fat milk lowered the risk of becoming obese. The study's findings were originally published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Researchers now want to conduct a randomized controlled experiment to establish the cause and effect of whole milk. "All of the studies we examined were observational studies, meaning that we cannot be sure if whole milk caused the lower risk of overweight or obesity. Whole milk may have been related to other factors which lowered the risk of overweight or obesity," Dr Maguire told a news portal. Adding, "A randomized controlled trial would help to establish cause and effect but none were found in the literature."
Another study warns early exposure to obesity could increase the risk of type 2 diabetes. "Our data also indicated that baseline BMI among young women was significantly associated with risk of developing type 2 diabetes...The results highlight the importance of overweight or obesity in early adulthood as risk factors for adult diabetes, indicating that weight control starting before early adulthood is critical for reducing type 2 diabetes risk in later life," authors of the study, published in the journal Diabetologia, told a news portal.
Picture Courtesy: Google Images