Dairy products, yogurt consumption, and cardiometabolic risk in children and adolescents

Abstract

The high prevalence of obesity in children is a global health issue. Obesity in children and adolescents can result in hypertension, dyslipidemia, chronic inflammation, and hyperinsulinemia, increasing the risk of death, as children grow into adulthood, and raising public health concerns. Type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents is a cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor. Dairy consumption may have a protective effect against the development of CVD, but there is scarce evidence of this in children and adolescents. Within the Healthy Lifestyle in Europe by Nutrition in Adolescence, the objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between dairy consumption and CVD risk factors in a sample of adolescents (aged 12.5-17.5 years) from 8 European cities. Overall, dairy products emerged as the food group that best identified adolescents at low CVD risk. Higher consumption of milk and yogurt and of milk- and yogurt-based beverages was associated with lower body fat, lower risk for CVD, and higher cardiorespiratory fitness.

Keywords: HELENA; adolescents; cardiovascular disease; children; dairy; diabetes; milk; obesity; yogurt.