News & Research

Adolescent dairy product consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes in middle-aged women, by Vasanti S. Malik and colleagues. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 94:854–861, 2011

What is the problem and what is known about it so far?

With the recent increase of type 2 diabetes, researchers are focused on finding and reducing risk factors for developing diabetes in adulthood. A number of reports indicate that a high intake of dairy as an adult lowers type 2 diabetes risk. There is now evidence that conditions early in life can impact the chance of getting type 2 diabetes. Even a mother’s diet during pregnancy can affect the likelihood of developing the disease. Given the positive effects of a diet high in dairy in adults, it is possible that high dairy intake as a teenager may help prevent type 2 diabetes.

Why did the researchers do this particular study?

The scientists wanted to find out whether dairy intake as a teenager is related to developing type 2 diabetes in adulthood in women.

Who was studied?

Women who were part of the Nurses’ Health Study II, which began in 1979, participated. They had been 24–42 years old at the beginning of that study. In 1997, 37,038 women—about half of the original group—agreed to be part of the current study.

How was the study done?

In 1997 the participating women were asked to answer a set of questions about their diets during high school. They then answered similar questions several times during the study period, which continued until 2005. Women who developed diabetes during the study period answered additional questions about their diabetes treatment.

What did the researchers find?

Compared with those who did not eat or drink a lot of dairy during high school, women who did have a s lot of dairy as teens were much less likely to develop type 2 diabetes as adults. They had also gained less weight as adults and continued to have a diet high in dairy products.

What were the limitations of the study?

The researchers were unable to take measurements of factors that impact diabetes while the women were of high-school age. Because the women who had higher dairy intake as teenagers continued to have higher intake as adults, the researchers could not verify whether it was the intake during adolescence or the continued intake as adults that reduced the risk for type 2 diabetes. They were also unable to tell whether it was dairy itself or the healthier lifestyle connected to diets high in dairy that caused the lower risk of type 2 diabetes.

What are the implications of the study?

For teenage girls, eating a diet high in dairy may lower the risk of type 2 diabetes later in life.

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