ADULTS

New Research Shows Dieters Lose More Weight And Body Fat With Milk On Their Menu
(09/2005)

A study published in Obesity Research suggests that drinking milk while dieting may help you double the amount of weight you lose. The new research also suggests that milk may help you lose the fat and keep the muscle - even if you're not trying to lose weight. This is third clinical trial in the last two years that has reinforced milk's role in enhancing weight loss efforts when included as part of a reduced-calorie diet.

Dr. Michael Zemel and colleagues at the University of Tennessee studied the impact of increasing milk intake in a group of overweight African American adults who typically drank little or no milk. They found the study participants who increased their milk intake to three glasses a day lost about twice as much weight and body fat as those who drank their usual one glass or less.

• The group that drank milk also lost significantly more body fat - particularly fat around the waistline, which carries more health risks.
• They also maintained more of their lean muscle mass, which may be due to the high-quality protein in milk.
• The researchers concluded that the high-dairy diet in the study helped to accelerate loss of weight and body fat while preserving lean muscle mass.

This new research is especially important for African Americans, who are more likely to be obese and suffer from related diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. They're also more likely to have diets deficient in calcium, which other studies suggest may interfere with successful weight loss.