Dairy Consumption and Risk of Stroke in Swedish Women and Men

Abstract

Background and Purpose-Epidemiological studies of the associations of low-fat dairy and specific dairy food consumption with risk of stroke are sparse. Our aim was to examine the association between consumption of total, low-fat, full-fat, and specific dairy foods and risk of stroke in a prospective cohort study. Methods-We followed 74 961 Swedish women and men who were free from cardiovascular disease and cancer and who completed a 96-item food frequency questionnaire in 1997. Incident cases of stroke were ascertained from the Swedish Hospital Discharge Registry. Results-During a mean follow-up of 10.2 years, we ascertained 4089 cases of stroke, including 3159 cerebral infarctions, 583 hemorrhagic strokes, and 347 unspecified strokes. Consumption of low-fat dairy foods was inversely associated with risk of total stroke (P for trendϭ0.03) and cerebral infarction (P for trendϭ0.03). The multivariable relative risks for the highest compared with the lowest quintile of low-fat dairy consumption were 0.88 (95% CI, 0.80 -0.97) for total stroke and 0.87 (95% CI, 0.78 -0.98) for cerebral infarction. Consumption of total dairy, full-fat dairy, milk, sour milk/yogurt, cheese, and cream/crème fraiche was not associated with stroke risk. Conclusions-These results suggest that low-fat dairy consumption is inversely associated with the risk of stroke. (Stroke.

Dairy Consumption and Risk of Stroke: A Systematic Review and Updated Dose–Response Meta‐Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies

“…Table 1 shows the characteristics of the 18 prospective cohort studies11, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 including 1 case‐cohort study,29 which comprised 762 414 participants and 29 943 stroke events. Two studies presented sex‐specific results,19, 29 2 comprised only women,17, 28 and 3 only men 20, 30, 32.…”

“…Two studies presented sex‐specific results,19, 29 2 comprised only women,17, 28 and 3 only men 20, 30, 32. Eight studies were from Europe,15, 16, 20, 21, 22, 29, 30, 32 5 were from east Asia (China and Japan),11, 19, 24, 31 3 were from the United States, 17, 23, 28 and 1 was from Australia 33. The Asian populations mainly consumed milk.…”

“…BMI indicates body mass index; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; DM, diabetes mellitus; FFQ, food frequency questionnaire; GP, general practitioner; ICD, International Classification of Diseases; MI, myocardial infarction; MUFA, monounsaturated fatty acids; NR, not reported; PA, physical activity; PUFA, polyunsaturated fatty acids; SBP, systolic blood pressure; WHI‐OS, Women's Health Initiative Observational Study.aMidpoint of range.bFermented dairy comprised yogurt and sour milk,25 fermented sour cream and yogurt,21 or fermented low‐fat milk,29 which were the largest contributors to total fermented dairy in these studies.cRetrieved from other publications of this cohort.dAccording to the authors, total dairy is mainly milk: 93% of total dairy19 or almost all dairy (personal communication Dr Lin) comprised milk and is therefore included in milk analysis.eBased on milk as exposure.…”

“…For 21 eligible articles, the full text was retrieved. Several authors provided additional information upon request 14, 15, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25. One of the authors (A.P.)…”

“…One article provided results for 2 studies (Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow up Study)23 and 2 presented results for men and women separately,19, 29 resulting in 18 studies (see flow chart in Figure 1). 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 …”