Female adolescent dairy product consumption may decrease risk of T2D

January 01, 0001

Female adolescent dairy product consumption may decrease risk of T2D

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) prevention has generally focused on the identification of risk factors in adulthood. Dairy product consumption in adults has been associated with a lower risk of T2D. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relation between dairy product consumption during adolescence and risk of T2D in adulthood. The researchers examined the incidence of T2D in relation to high school dairy product consumption within the Nurses' Health Study II cohort. A total of 37,038 women who completed a food-frequency questionnaire about their diet during high school were followed from the time of return of the questionnaire in 1998-2005.

Compared with women in the lowest quintile of high school dairy product intake, those in the highest quintile (2 servings/d) had a 38% lower risk of T2D (RR: 0.62), after adjustment for high school risk factors. After adjustment for adult risk factors, the association persisted (RR: 0.73) but was attenuated after adjustment for adult dairy product consumption. In a multivariate joint comparison of dairy product consumption by adults and high school adolescents, compared with women with consistently low intakes, those with consistently high intakes had the lowest risk of T2D (RR: 0.57).

The researchers concluded: "Our data suggest that higher dairy product intake during adolescence is associated with a lower risk of T2D. Some of the benefits of dairy product intake during high school may be due to the persistence of the consumption pattern during adulthood."

Again, consumption based on questionnaire. Such an approach has been validated as a tool in nutritional research for many years, but is still not ideal. There may also be cofounders at work. This is only shown in females.

For the full abstract, click here.

Am J Clin Nutr 94(3):854-861, September 2011 © 2011 American Society for Nutrition
Adolescent dairy product consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes in middle-aged women. Vasanti S Malik, Qi Sun, Rob M van Dam et al. Correspondence to Frank Hu:

Category: T. Endocrine/Metabolic/Nutritional Keywords: dairy, consumption, adolescent, risk, type 2 diabetes, questionnaire, journal watch.
Synopsis edited by Dr Stephen Wilkinson, Melbourne, Australia. Posted on Global Family Doctor 9 September 2011

Pearls are an independent product of the Cochrane primary care group and are meant for educational use and not to guide clinical care.