Women counting fat grams and cutting calories in anticipation of “bathing suit season” may be cutting dairy products, which are perceived as high in fat, from their diets — to their detriment.
According to a study in the December 2000 Journal of the American College of Nutrition, women with the highest intake of calcium from dairy foods — relative to the number of calories they consumed each day — lost the most weight and body fat over two years, regardless of exercise.
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Both calcium and vitamin A have a major impact on body weight and body fat, according to the report. The study’s researchers recommend that young women of average body weight who want to lose weight, should consume about 1,950 calories a day, 5,000 international units (IU) of vitamin A, and 1,000 milligrams (mg) of calcium. Although the recommended calcium level for young women is 1,000 mg daily, the study found that the average woman’s daily intake of calcium was only 781 mg per day. Dairy calcium accounted for 69 percent of total calcium intake.
“This study adds to a growing body of work supporting the concept that increased calcium intake is associated with weight loss,” said Eileen Paul, nutritionist and educator with Group Health Cooperative in Seattle. “Low fat dairy products are high in calcium, and can be incorporated into a weight management program.”
This new study supports previous research from The Nutrition Institute at the University of Tennessee that indicated a diet high in low-fat dairy foods causes fat cells to break down fat and produce less fat. That study also found that women who consumed at least three servings of low-fat dairy foods per day were at the lowest risk of becoming obese.
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