Children who drink whole milk less likely to be obese

THE SYSTEMATIC REVIEW and meta-analysis, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition led by St. Michael’s Hospital of Unity Health Toronto, found a 40% reduction in obesity and overweight rates in children who consumed full fat dairy milk. The researchers analyzed 28 studies from across seven countries focused on the relationship between drinking of cow’s milk and the risk of being overweight or obese. None of the studies — which involved a total of 21,000 children between the ages of one and 18 years — showed that kids who drank reduced-fat milk had a lower risk of being overweight or obese. Eighteen of the 28 studies suggested children who drank whole milk were less likely to be overweight or obese. The fat in milk provides calories for young children, and also contains essential vitamins. But for older children and adults, it is a good idea to go for lower fat milks because having too much fat in your diet can result in you becoming overweight. If you are trying to cut down on fat, try swapping to 1% fat or skimmed milk, as these still contain the important nutritional benefits of milk, but are lower in fat.