Eating yoghurt daily may help protect against developing diabetes, researchers reported last night.
The US study found that yoghurt eaters enjoyed an 18% reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes – the kind of diabetes associated with obesity and unhealthy lifestyles.
The researchers set out to establish whether dairy products could protect against diabetes but found that only yoghurt made any difference.
The findings come from an analysis of the records of nearly 200,000 health workers who have been involved in major studies in the US for periods of up to 40 years.
Some 15,000 people developed type 2 diabetes.
The research, reported in BMC Medicine, was conducted at the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
The researchers say it may be time to conducted randomised studies of the health benefits of yoghurt. Some studies have suggested that the calcium, magnesium and fats in dairy products found in milk may prevent diabetes – but it is also possible that the so-called "probiotic" bacteria in yoghurt improve health.
Researcher Frank Hu said: "We found that higher intake of yoghurt is associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, whereas other dairy foods and consumption of total dairy did not show this association.
"The consistent findings for yoghurt suggest that it can be incorporated into a healthy dietary pattern."
Dairy consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes: 3 cohorts of US adults and an updated meta-analysis. BMC Medicine 24 November 2014, 12:215 [abstract]
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