Objective: In previous cross-sectional analyses of the Data from an Epidemiological Study on the Insulin Resistance Syndrome (DESIR) cohort, we have found inverse associations between dairy product consumption and metabolic syndrome (MetS) traits. We have now analyzed in a prospective way the influence of dairy product and calcium consumption at inclusion on the 9-year cumulative incidence of the MetS and associated traits in the French prospective study with a 9-year follow-up, DESIR.
Methods: After exclusion of diabetic subjects and those being on a diet at inclusion, 3417 men and women who completed a food frequency at baseline could be studied. Logistic regression models were used to study associations between dairy products and dietary calcium density at baseline and incident MetS and impaired fasting glycemia/type 2 diabetes (IFG/T2D) after adjusting for gender, age, and lifestyle parameters (alcohol, smoking, physical activity, fat intake). An additional model adjusting for the same covariates and for body mass index (BMI) was also used. Associations between dairy products and continuous variables were studied by repeated measures analysis of covariance, using the same covariates.
Results: Total dairy product consumption, dairy (except cheese) consumption, and dietary calcium density were inversely associated with incident MetS and IFG/T2D. Cheese consumption was negatively associated with incident MetS but not with glycemic disorders. All parameters were associated with lower diastolic blood pressure and triglycerides (average over the 9-year period) and with a lower BMI gain in the same period. Higher total dairy and cheese intake and calcium density were associated with a lower increase in waist circumference and triglycerides during the 9-year follow-up.
Conclusion: In the French general population, these results show beneficial effects of dairy product consumption on the metabolic syndrome and glycemic disorders. Therefore, dairy product consumption could be protective against cardiovascular risk.