Obesity and type 2 diabetes are escalating health concerns in the United States. Traditional dietary recommendations often encourage the consumption of low-fat or non-fat dairy products as a strategy to combat these issues.
However, a new study from researchers at the University of Vermont suggests that full-fat dairy products might play a beneficial role in managing blood glucose levels and fat metabolism, challenging the conventional wisdom that dietary fat contributes to weight gain and chronic diseases.
The study involved adult volunteers aged between 45 and 75 years, most of whom were prediabetic, with one diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
Prediabetes is a condition where blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be classified as type 2 diabetes, usually when fasting blood glucose levels range from 100 to 125 mg/dL.
The research was a crossover trial, in which each participant followed both dietary regimens. For three weeks, they consumed three servings of plain, full-fat yogurt daily.
Then, for another three weeks, they had three servings of fat-free yogurt each day. The amount of yogurt consumed was adjusted to each person’s nutritional needs.
On a 2,000-calorie diet, this equated to around 510 grams (or 17 ounces) of yogurt. In the full-fat phase of the diet, they consumed 17 grams of dairy fat daily.
Study Findings and Implications
The study revealed promising results. After three weeks of consuming full-fat yogurt, the participants’ average fasting glucose levels fell to 97.7 mg/dL, a level considered normal.
Victoria Taormina, a Ph.D. student and the lead author of the study, stated that these findings challenge standard dietary guidelines that typically advocate for low-fat or non-fat dairy.
This study adds to the increasing body of evidence that supports the consumption of full-fat dairy products.
Taormina expressed the hope that this pilot study will encourage further research into the relationship between dairy fat intake and blood glucose control.
Such research could provide a better understanding of the role of dairy in our diets and potentially transform our perception of dairy products.
The findings of this study will be presented at the prestigious American Physiology Summit, hosted annually by the American Physiological Society in Long Beach, California.
If you care about diabetes, please read studies that MIND diet may reduce risk of vision loss disease, and Vitamin D could benefit people with diabetic neuropathic pain.
For more information about diabetes, please see recent studies that Vitamin E could help reduce blood sugar and insulin resistance in diabetes, and results showing eating eggs in a healthy diet may reduce risks of diabetes, high blood pressure.
Follow us on Twitter for more articles about this topic.
Copyright © 2023 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
