Dairy consumption and risk of falls in 2 European cohorts of older adults

Optimization of lactic acid bacterial starter culture to improve the quality and flavor characteristics of traditional Hurood

Hurood is a traditional fermented milk product prepared by traditional Mongolian techniques of fermenting raw milk, partial degreasing, heating, whey drainage, emulsification of curd, and molding. Currently, Hurood available in the market is generally prepared by small-scale enterprises at home or in open air. Therefore, lack of standardization of bacterial starter culture leads to variation in the flavor and sensory properties of Hurood from batch to batch. In this study, we aimed to assess the best starter culture combination obtained from 37 lactic acid bacterial strains isolated from traditional Hurood. The solidification state and sensory quality were used as indexes for determining the fermentation efficiency of the bacterial starter culture combinations. The yield and texture characteristics were used to determine the optimal ratio of bacterial strains in a combination and the processing conditions for traditional Hurood production. The most optimal bacterial culture combination was observed to be NF 9-3:NF 10-4:CH 3-1 in 5:4:1 ratio and in 3% amount. The most optimal whey temperature and heating-stirring temperature were observed to be 55°C to 60°C and 85°C to 90°C, respectively. Hurood prepared with the optimal combination of bacterial strains exhibited significantly enhanced sensory quality, flavor, and contents of AA and fatty acids. Therefore, the use of optimal starter culture of lactic acid bacteria could produce Hurood with significantly superior sensory qualities, making the product more acceptable to consumers.

Dairy consumption in adults in China: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Research on dairy consumption in China is lacking, however, some evidence has demonstrated significant changes in recent years, with a reported increase in the overall consumption of dairy products. To fully understand these changes, a systematic review was conducted to examine reported dairy intakes and differences between dairy consumption in different population groups in China.

METHODS

Web of Science, Embase, and PubMed databases were searched for studies published from January 2000 to September 2022. The China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) was used to retrieve papers available in Chinese. Papers reporting dietary intakes of dairy consumption across age, sex, and geographical location sub-groups were considered for inclusion in this review. In addition, this review includes the consumption of different types of dairy foods and changes in dairy intake over time.

RESULTS

Forty-seven papers were included in the present study. Twelve papers examined dairy consumption across age groups, showing that middle-aged adults tend to consume less dairy than other age groups. Studies comparing across location-specific cohorts reported dairy intakes among urban populations were higher than rural, as well as being higher than the national average. Coastal, Northern and Eastern residents consumed more dairy products than those living in other regions of China, and people in larger cities had higher reported intakes than smaller cities. Milk was the primary dairy product reportedly consumed by Chinese population, followed by yogurt. Concerning sex, evidence showed that females generally reported a greater daily dairy intake than males.

CONCLUSIONS

This review shows that, in China, several different population groups displayed significant differences in the amount and type of dairy consumed. When considering the incorporation of dairy products into healthy eating guidelines or positioning specific dairy products on the market, it is important to consider the differences and variations in consumption patterns within population groups.

Dairy intake and incident functional disability among older Japanese adults: the Ohsaki Cohort 2006 Study

PURPOSE

Previous studies have investigated the association between dairy intake and functional disability, but their results were inconsistent. Our study aimed to investigate whether dairy intake may protect against incident functional disability among Japanese older adults.

METHODS

We conducted a longitudinal analysis of dairy intake with incident functional disability in a prospective cohort study of 11,911 Japanese individuals aged ≥ 65 years who were followed up for 8.2 years on average. Data on milk, yogurt, and cheese intake were collected using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Total dairy intake was the sum of the daily intake of milk, yogurt, and cheese, which was sex-specifically categorized in quintiles. Data on functional disability were retrieved from the public Long-term Care Insurance database. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate the multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) for incident functional disability.

RESULTS

During 97,234 person-years of follow-up, 4874 persons (40.9%) were ascertained as having functional disability. Our study suggested a null association between total dairy intake and incident risk of functional disability; compared to Q1 (the lowest quintile) group, the multivariable-adjusted HRs (95%CIs) were 0.96 (0.88-1.05) for Q2, 0.93 (0.85-1.02) for Q3, 0.93 (0.85-1.02) for Q4, and 1.01 (0.92-1.10) for Q5 (p-trend = 0.840). We did not find any associations between milk, yogurt, or cheese intake and incident risk of functional disability.

CONCLUSION

We found no evidence showing that dairy intake was associated with functional disability among Japanese older adults.

Effect of Dairy Protein Intake on Muscle Mass among Korean Adults: A Prospective Cohort Study

This cohort study aimed to identify the associations of dairy protein intake with the risk of developing a low muscle mass during a 12-year follow-up period, using data from 4412 middle-aged Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study participants with a normal baseline muscle mass. Dairy protein intake at baseline was assessed using a semi-quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire. Skeletal muscle mass index (SMI), defined as the weight-adjusted skeletal muscle mass, was measured biennially using multi-frequency bioelectrical impedance analyses. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to calculate multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Overall, 395 subjects developed a low SMI (%) during an average follow-up of 141 (19-152) months. The average consumption of milk and other dairy products was 73.6 and 104.1 g/day, respectively. In men, a higher dairy protein intake was associated with a decreased risk of developing a low SMI (tertile 3 [T3] vs. T1, HR: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.42, 0.94; p for trend = 0.029). In a stratified analysis according to a total protein intake, this association was stronger in the lower-protein intake group (HR: 0.59; 95% CI: 0.35, 0.99; p for trend = 0.036) but not detected in the higher-protein intake group. Men who consumed milk ≥1 time/day had a significantly lower risk of developing a low SMI (HR: 0.62; 95% CI: 0.39, 0.98; p for trend = 0.023). No significant associations were observed in women. In summary, dairy consumption appears to be beneficial for decreasing the risk of developing a low muscle mass in middle-aged Korean men.