Trying to get pregnant? Skip the skim milk and choose cheese instead! According to a recent study published in Human Reproduction, consuming low-fat dairy products may significantly increase a woman's risk of infertility. The study showed that women who ate two or more servings of low-fat dairy products daily had an 85% higher risk of ovulation-related infertility than other women.
Researchers studied the diet and lifestyle habits of 18,555 women with no history of infertility. Four hundred and thirty-eight of the women developed anovulatory (lack of ovulation) infertility, which was strongly correlated to a low-fat dairy intake. In addition, women who ate a high-fat dairy food at least once a day had a 27% reduced risk of infertility compared to women who ate a high-fat dairy food once a week or less.
The researchers suspect the presence of a fat-soluble substance that improves the ovarian function might explain the lower risk of infertility from high-fat dairy foods. Lead Researcher Dr. Jorge Chavarro suggests that women trying to conceive should change their diet to include full-fat dairy foods, but switch back to lower-fat dairy once they become pregnant.
Note: whether you’re trying to conceive or not, it’s always best to purchase organic dairy products.
Reference: Chavarro, J.E., Rich-Edwards, J.W., Rosner, B., & Willett, W.C. (2007) “A Prospective Study of Dairy Foods Intake and Anovulatory Infertility,” Human Reproduction.10.
Alcohol Increases Breast Cancer Risk
The spotlight has abruptly shifted away from the benefits of alcohol for heart health to it’s influence in the development of breast cancer.
Researchers have long known that alcohol consumption raises estrogen levels which can elevate the risk of breast cancer. How much and what types of alcohol were not known until recently. Kaiser Permanente researchers Yan Li, MD, PhD, and her colleagues recently reported their findings at the European Cancer Conference in Barcelona, Spain. Their evaluation of over 70,000 women indicates that three or more drinks a day increases a woman's risk for developing breast cancer by 30%, the same risk as smoking a pack of cigarettes daily. Women who drink one or two drinks a day have a 10% greater chance of developing breast cancer than women who drink less than one alcoholic drink daily. Surprisingly, the type of alcohol is insignificant, whether it be wine (red or white), beer or spirits.
In the general population, a woman’s risk of getting breast cancer during her lifetime is one in eight, but the risk for women who have three or more drinks a day is one in six.
Past research linked alcohol consumption (particularly red wine) to a lower risk of heart disease. However, more recent findings suggest there are no health benefits to drinking alcohol and no circumstances where the benefits outweigh the dangers. Drinking alcohol for better heart health is no longer recommended until we know more about the pros and cons.
For the moderate drinker, Dr. Rod Jackson, Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Auckland New Zealand said it perfectly: “… moderate drinkers are moderate people, and moderate people do all sorts of other things in moderation which is good for your health.”
Reference: European Cancer Conference, Barcelona, Spain, Sept. 23-27. News release, Kaiser Permanente. Yan Li, MD, PhD, oncologist, Kaiser Permanente, Oakland, Calif. Shumin Zhang, MD, ScD, associate professor of medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston.
