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High-Fat Dairy Linked to Lower Dementia Risk, Swedish Study Finds
A comprehensive Swedish study has revealed that consuming certain high-fat dairy products may be associated with a reduced risk of dementia, potentially challenging conventional dietary wisdom.
Researchers analyzed data from the Malmö Diet and Cancer cohort, which included 27,670 adults aged 45 to 73 in Malmö, Sweden. Participants joined the study between 1991 and 1996 and were followed for an average of 25 years, with researchers collecting detailed information about dairy consumption through interviews, food diaries, and questionnaires.
The research team categorized dairy products by fat content, defining high-fat cheese as containing more than 20% fat and high-fat cream as containing more than 30% fat. Throughout the follow-up period, 3,208 participants developed dementia, allowing researchers to analyze potential correlations between dairy consumption and cognitive decline.
After adjusting for numerous factors—including age, sex, education, smoking habits, physical activity, alcohol consumption, body mass index, hypertension, and overall diet quality—researchers found significant associations between certain dairy products and dementia risk.
People who consumed at least 50 grams per day of high-fat cheese had a lower risk of all-cause dementia compared to those eating less than 15 grams daily. This group also showed a decreased risk of vascular dementia specifically, a form of cognitive decline caused by reduced blood flow to the brain.
Similarly, individuals who consumed at least 20 grams of high-fat cream daily demonstrated a 16% lower risk of all-cause dementia compared to non-consumers.
“We were a bit surprised to see a lower dementia risk among people who ate more high-fat cheese,” said Emily Sonestedt, associate professor of nutritional epidemiology at Lund University in Sweden. However, she noted that the finding isn’t entirely unexpected when considering vascular dementia, explaining: “Many dementia cases involve damage to small blood vessels in the brain. Our own previous work, and several international studies, including from the US, have shown neutral or slightly protective associations between cheese and cardiovascular disease.”
Interestingly, the study found that most other dairy products—including low-fat cheese, low-fat cream, milk, and fermented milk—showed no consistent association with overall dementia risk. One exception was butter, where high consumption (at least 40 grams daily) was associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
The researchers also discovered that high-fat cheese was linked to lower Alzheimer’s risk only among people who did not carry the APOE ε4 genetic variant, which is known to increase Alzheimer’s disease risk.
The findings, published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, add to growing evidence suggesting that the relationship between dietary fat and health outcomes is more complex than previously thought.
However, the researchers caution against drawing definitive conclusions. As an observational study, it cannot establish cause and effect relationships, and unmeasured factors could influence the results.
“The study was conducted in Sweden, where people mainly eat hard, fermented cheeses, so the results may not apply directly to countries with very different cheese types and eating patterns,” Sonestedt warned. Additionally, dietary information was collected only once, meaning researchers couldn’t account for changes in eating habits over the 25-year follow-up period.
Other limitations include potentially less precise measurement of cream intake compared to cheese consumption, possible missed dementia diagnoses, and the fact that the findings come from a specifically Swedish population, which may limit their applicability elsewhere.
Despite these caveats, the research contributes to a growing body of evidence questioning long-held beliefs about dietary fats. This aligns with recent statements from public health officials, including HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has promoted high-fat, high-protein foods and warned that replacing fat with sugar has contributed to America’s obesity crisis.
“Although we adjusted for many lifestyle and health factors, it is still difficult to say that the cheese itself is protective. It is more likely part of a broader eating pattern and lifestyle that may support long-term brain health,” the researchers concluded.
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7 Comments
This is an intriguing result that challenges some common dietary assumptions. I wonder what the proposed mechanisms are for how high-fat dairy could lower dementia risk. More research will be important to understand the underlying science.
Good point. The article mentions adjusting for various factors, but there could still be unaccounted confounding variables. Replicating the study in different populations would help validate the findings.
Hmm, I’m a bit skeptical of this study. The long follow-up is impressive, but the observational nature means we can’t infer causation. I’d want to see clinical trials before drawing firm conclusions about dairy and dementia risk.
That’s a fair critique. Observational studies have limitations, and the proposed link needs to be robustly tested in controlled experiments. More rigorous research will be important to confirm or refute these findings.
Fascinating study on the potential benefits of high-fat dairy for dementia risk. I’m curious to see if these findings hold up in further research. There may be some complex nutritional factors at play worth digging into.
This is a surprising and counterintuitive result. I wonder how the researchers accounted for potential selection bias, given the voluntary nature of the original cohort. Replication in other populations would help validate the findings.
Interesting study, but I’m curious about the mechanisms behind the proposed link between high-fat dairy and lower dementia risk. Are there specific nutrients or compounds in those dairy products that may be neuroprotective? More research is needed to understand the underlying biology.