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. 2016 Feb;55(1):349-60.
doi: 10.1007/s00394-015-0855-8. Epub 2015 Feb 7.

Dairy product consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes in an elderly Spanish Mediterranean population at high cardiovascular risk

Andrés Díaz-López  1   2 , Mònica Bulló  1   2 , Miguel A Martínez-González  2   3 , Dolores Corella  2   4 , Ramon Estruch  2   5 , Montserrat Fitó  2   6 , Enrique Gómez-Gracia  2   7 , Miquel Fiol  2   8 , Francisco Javier García de la Corte  2   9 , Emilio Ros  2   10 , Nancy Babio  1   2 , Lluís Serra-Majem  2   11 , Xavier Pintó  2   12 , Miguel Ángel Muñoz  2   13 , Francisco Francés  2   4 , Pilar Buil-Cosiales  2   3 , Jordi Salas-Salvadó  14   15
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Free article

Dairy product consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes in an elderly Spanish Mediterranean population at high cardiovascular risk

Andrés Díaz-López et al. Eur J Nutr. 2016 Feb.
Free article

Abstract

Purpose: The possible effects of dairy consumption on diabetes prevention remain controversial. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the dairy consumption and type 2 diabetes (T2D) risk in an elderly Mediterranean population at high cardiovascular risk.

Methods: We prospectively followed 3,454 non-diabetic individuals from the PREDIMED study. Dairy consumption was assessed at baseline and yearly using food frequency questionnaires and categorized into total, low-fat, whole-fat, and subgroups: milk, yogurt, cheeses, fermented dairy, concentrated full fat, and processed dairy. Hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated using Cox proportional hazards regression models.

Results: During a median follow-up of 4.1 years, we documented 270 incident T2D cases. After multivariate adjustment, total dairy product consumption was inversely associated with T2D risk [0.68 (95% CI 0.47-0.98); P-trend = .040]. This association appeared to be mainly attributed to low-fat dairy; the multivariate HRs (95% CIs) comparing the highest versus the lowest tertile consumption were 0.65 (0.45-0.94) for low-fat dairy products and 0.67 (0.46-0.95) for low-fat milk (both P-trend <.05). Total yogurt consumption was associated with a lower T2D risk [HR 0.60 (0.42-0.86); P-trend = .002]. An increased consumption of total low-fat dairy and total yogurt during the follow-up was inversely associated with T2D; HRs were 0.50 (0.29-0.85), 0.44 (0.26-0.75), and 0.55 (0.33-0.93), respectively. Substituting one serving/day of a combination of biscuits and chocolate and whole grain biscuits and homemade pastries for one serving/day of yogurt was associated with a 40 and 45% lower risk of T2D, respectively. No significant associations were found for the other dairy subgroups (cheese, concentrated full fat, and processed dairy products).

Conclusions: A healthy dietary pattern incorporating a high consumption of dairy products and particularly yogurt may be protective against T2D in older adults at high cardiovascular risk.

Keywords: Dairy; Older adults; PREDIMED; Type 2 diabetes; Yogurt.

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