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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Davis, California » Western Human Nutrition Research Center » Obesity and Metabolism Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #302560
Title: Associations between dairy foods, diabetes, and metabolic health: potential mechanisms and future directions

Author
item Hirahatake, Kristin
item SLAVIN, JOANNE - University Of Minnesota
item MAKI, KEVIN - Biofortis Clinical Research
item Adams, Sean

Submitted to: Metabolism: Clinical and Experimental
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/12/2014
Publication Date: 5/1/2014
Citation: Hirahatake, K., Slavin, J., Maki, K.C., Adams, S.H. 2014. Associations between dairy foods, diabetes, and metabolic health: potential mechanisms and future directions. Metabolism: Clinical and Experimental. 63:618-627. DOI: 10.1016/jmetabol.2014.02.009.

Interpretive Summary: Context: Epidemiological evidence supports an inverse relationship between adequate intake of dairy foods and susceptibility to type 2 diabetes (T2D). The biological mechanisms responsible for this association remain to be established. Evidence Acquisition & Synthesis: Epidemiological studies indicate that consumption of milk and dairy products is almost uniformly associated with a lower incidence of T2D, and a positive role for dairy-rich diets on cardiometabolic health indices is supported by results from animal and cell culture models. This review provides a current perspective on proposed mechanisms that may underlie these effects, and highlights how randomized clinical trials can be applied to investigate these relationships. Conclusions: Emerging evidence indicates that dairy components that alter mitochondrial function (e.g., leucine actions on silent information regulator transcript 1 (SIRT1)-associated pathways), promote gut microbial population shifts, or influence inflammation and cardiovascular function (e.g., Ca-regulated peptides, calcitonin gene-related peptide [CGRP] or calcitonin) should be considered as part of the mechanisms of dairy's effects on cardiometabolic health. The possibility that dairy-derived trans-palmitoleic acid (tC16:1) has metabolic bioactivities has also been proposed. Pre-clinical and clinical studies focusing specifically on these parameters are needed to validate hypotheses regarding the potential roles of dairy products and their components on the determinants of glucose tolerance, insulin sensitivity, pancreatic endocrine function, and inflammation in individuals at-risk for T2D development. Positive outcomes from these studies would complement epidemiological data to bolster the evidence base for recommendations regarding consumption of dairy products and their individual components.

Technical Abstract: Context: Epidemiological evidence supports an inverse relationship between adequate intake of dairy foods and susceptibility to type 2 diabetes (T2D). The biological mechanisms responsible for this association remain to be established. Evidence Acquisition & Synthesis: Epidemiological studies indicate that consumption of milk and dairy products is almost uniformly associated with a lower incidence of T2D, and a positive effect of dairy-rich diets on cardiometabolic health indices is supported by results from animal and cell culture models. This review provides a current perspective on proposed mechanisms that may underlie these effects, and highlights how randomized clinical trials can be applied to investigate these relationships. Conclusions: Emerging evidence indicates that dairy components that alter mitochondrial function (e.g., leucine actions on silent information regulator transcript 1 (SIRT1)-associated pathways), promote gut microbial population shifts, or influence inflammation and cardiovascular function (e.g., Ca-regulated peptides, calcitonin gene-related peptide [CGRP] or calcitonin) should be considered as part of the mechanisms of dairy's effect on cardiometabolic health. The possibility that dairy-derived trans-palmitoleic acid (tC16:1) has metabolic bioactivities has also been proposed. Pre-clinical and clinical studies focusing specifically on these parameters are needed to validate hypotheses regarding the potential roles of dairy products and their components on the determinants of glucose tolerance, insulin sensitivity, pancreatic endocrine function, and inflammation in individuals at-risk for T2D development. Positive outcomes from these studies would complement epidemiological data to bolster the evidence base for recommendations regarding consumption of dairy products and their individual components.