Intakes of Dairy Products and Calcium and Obesity in Korean Adults: Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES) 2007-2009

The possible effects of dairy product intake against obesity have been suggested in animal studies; however, the association is still not well established in epidemiological studies. Few studies in Asian countries with relatively low intake of dairy products exist.We investigated the association between dairy products and calcium intake and obesity in Korean population with relatively low intake of dairy products..Higher frequency of dairy product intake was associated with a reduced prevalence of obesity (OR = 0.63; 95% CI = 0.45–0.89 for ≥2 times/day vs. ≤1 time/month; p for trend = 0.003) using the intake data from FFQ. Similarly, high frequency of milk or yogurt intake had an inverse association with obesity. The association between milk and yogurt intake and obesity was similar when the intake from 24-hour recall was examined. Higher calcium intake from dairy products as well as total dietary calcium intake was associated with a decreased prevalence of obesity (OR = 0.83; 95% CI = 0.71–0.98 for highest vs. lowest quintile of dairy calcium intake; p for trend = 0.02, OR = 0.78; 95% CI = 0.64–0.94 for highest vs. lowest quintile of total calcium intake; p for trend = 0.04). The associations appeared to be stronger in women than in men.These results suggest that high consumption of dairy products is associated with a lower prevalence of obesity and that calcium in dairy products may be one of the components contributing to the association. Further longitudinal studies are warranted to replicate our findings