A recent from the Netherlands explored the potential association between dairy consumption and knee osteoarthritis (OA), and found that higher intake of full-fat dairy and Dutch cheese -- but not milk -- was significantly associated with the lower risk of knee OA.
The authors studied the risk of knee OA in 3,010 individuals, ages 40-75 years, comparing those without knee OA to the 427 (14%) participants classified as having knee OA. Knee OA classification was based on a modified version of the American College of Rheumatology clinical classification criteria (minus knee crepitus measure). Data on dairy consumption were evaluated using a 253-item survey covering 47 dairy products.
By comparing the highest and lowest tertiles of dairy intake, the researchers found significant inverse association between knee OA and intake of full-fat dairy:
- Full-fat dairy: OR 0.68 (95% CI 0.50-0.92)
- Dutch cheese (semi-hard cheeses such as Gouda, Edam, or Maasdam): OR 0.75 (95% CI 0.56-0.99)
- Other dairy product categories, including milk: No significant associations
Further research is needed to assess the relationship between dairy consumption, and in particular semi-hard cheeses, with incident knee OA.
, is the director of clinical rheumatology at the Baylor Research Institute and a professor of medicine and rheumatology at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. He is the executive editor of . A version of this article first appeared on RheumNow, a news, information and commentary site dedicated to the field of rheumatology. Register to receive their free rheumatology newsletter.
Primary Source
European Journal of Nutrition
Denissen KFM, et al "Consumption of dairy products in relation to the presence of clinical knee osteoarthritis: The Maastricht Study" Euro J Nutr 2018; DOI: 10.1007/s00394-018-1818-7.