April 2011

DAIRY CHECKOFF UPDATE

 

A periodic report for dairy media demonstrating how Dairy Management Inc.™ (DMI) and affiliated state and regional promotion organizations work to increase demand for and sales of U.S.-produced dairy products and ingredients through the programs of the American Dairy Association®, National Dairy Council® and U.S. Dairy Export Council®. For more information about these and other dairy checkoff programs, please contact Jennifer Wing at (847) 627-3225 or jennifer.wing@rosedmi.com.

           

Research Finds Milk Provides Necessary Nutrients

Without Impacting Body Weight in Children, Adolescents

 

Rosemont, IL – Scientific evidence indicates that consuming milk and milk products does not adversely affect body weight or body composition in children and adolescents.

 

Moreover, the majority of studies indicate a beneficial or neutral relationship between the consumption of milk and/or calcium and body weight and body composition in children and adolescents, according to results reviewed in a recent issue of Current Nutrition & Food Science, a leading journal that is widely read by nutrition and food scientists.

 

The Dairy Research Institute (DRI) has focused research on the connection between dairy consumption and healthy weight, including among children and adolescents. DRI – formed in 2010 under the leadership of dairy producers through Dairy Management Inc.™ (DMI) – strengthens U.S. dairy’s access to and investment in technical research to drive innovation and grow sales in the United States and around the world.

 

These results support the positive role that dairy can play as part of a balanced, healthy diet and lifestyle. They also reinforce the notion that dairy should not be singled out as a contributing factor in children who are classified as overweight or obese. Current estimates indicate the prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents could almost double by 2030.

 

“It’s rewarding for producers to see sound science again confirm dairy’s position as part of a healthy diet,” said Paul Rovey, Arizona dairy producer and chair of DMI, which manages the national dairy checkoff.

 

The Current Nutrition & Food Science article reviewed 36 observational studies that examined the relationship between dairy food consumption or calcium intake on body weight and body composition in children and adolescents. The results from nearly all of the studies demonstrate either a beneficial or neutral relationship.

 

The results from the few randomized clinical trials that investigated the effects of dairy consumption on body weight and body composition indicate that milk intake has a neutral effect on body weight and body composition in children and adolescents.

 

For more information about the Dairy Research Institute, visit www.USDairy.com

 

For more information about the checkoff, visit www.dairycheckoff.com

 

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