Drinking yogurt not only promotes digestive function, a recent study from Finland has shown that eating fermented dairy products can also protect against heart disease.
There are different opinions on the effects of dairy products on human health, and there is still a lack of consensus. However, it is important to distinguish between different types of dairy products, because different dairy products have different effects on long-term health. This new Finnish study shows that fermented dairy products can protect the heart. They include yogurt, cheese, Kefir (fermented milk originating in the Caucasus) and quark (an acid dairy product originating in Germany). The research results showed that men who consumed fermented dairy products had a lower risk of coronary heart disease than men who did not consume fermented dairy products. The study analyzed data from 1981 men aged 42 to 60. None of the participants had coronary heart disease at the start of the study, and they provided detailed information about their eating habits. During an average follow-up period of 20 years, participants reported 472 cardiovascular events associated with coronary heart disease. Coronary heart disease is a disease with limited blood supply to the heart. Usually because of fat accumulation in human arteries, which carry blood to the heart muscle. Coronary heart disease (CHD) can cause serious health problems, such as heart failure and heart attack. Its main risk factors include smoking, high cholesterol and hypertension.
To determine how dairy intake affected participants'risk of coronary heart disease, the researchers divided them into groups based on their dietary intake of various fermented and non-fermented dairy products. Among men who consumed fermented dairy products with less than 3.5% fat, the highest intake group had a 27% lower risk of coronary heart disease than the lowest intake group.
Despite the limitations of the study, such as the fact that only men were involved in the analysis, and the potential mechanisms underlying these associations were not identified, the researchers speculated that certain compounds produced during the fermentation of dairy products might have protective effects on the cardiovascular system.
