Cardiovascular disease is the main cause of death in Iran and the prevalence of the disease is still rising. New research in Tehran found an estimated prevalence of >30% in adults, which is significantly higher than in most developed countries. A population-based, cross-sectional study of 357 men and 470 women (18–74 years) assessed the association between dairy consumption and the metabolic syndrome, which was defined by the guidelines of the Adult Treatment Panel III.
Dairy calcium as key indicator
The average intake of milk, yogurt, and cheese contained respectively 0.7, 1.06 and 0.9 servings daily. Participants with high dairy consumption had a lower risk of having enlarged waist circumference (r=0.89), hypertension (r= 0.88) and metabolic syndrome (r= 0.83). The inverse association between dairy consumption and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome would be influenced by calcium.