Un-brie-lieveably good news for dairy fans, cheese might be the key to longer life.
Researchers from McMasters University in Canada found that those who indulge in around three potions of dairy per-day were at lower risk of cardiovascular disease (and death), compared to those who consumed less.
The study looked at 130,000 people in 21 countries aged between 35 and 70 and found that those who ate less than half a serving a day saw their mortality rate rise by 44.4 per cent, five per cent of which was down to cardiovascular disease.
Mahshid Dehghan, lead author of the study said:
“Our findings support that consumption of dairy products might be beneficial for mortality and cardiovascular disease, especially in low-income and middle-income countries where dairy consumption is much lower than in North America or Europe.”
But before you fall face first into a cheeseboard, Jimmy Chun Yu Louie from the University of Hong Kong and Anna Rangan of the University of Sydney have said that dairy dietary guidelines shouldn’t change just yet. They said:
“The results from the PURE study seem to suggest that dairy intake, especially whole-fat dairy, might be beneficial for preventing deaths and major cardiovascular diseases.
“However, as the authors themselves concluded, the results only suggest the ‘consumption of dairy products should not be discouraged and perhaps even be encouraged in low-income and middle-income countries.’
“It is not the ultimate seal of approval for recommending whole-fat dairy over its low-fat or skimmed counterparts. Readers should be cautious, and treat this study only as yet another piece of the evidence (albeit a large one) in the literature.”
Researchers from the McMasters are in agreement that more work needs to be carried out in the area, so do your bit to help and conduct some research of your own when the UK’s biggest cheese festival comes to Manchester in February.