SOUTH SEFTON DIABETES GROUP

Dairy Products

• Dairy foods are an excellent source of calcium and B vitamins
• Wholemilk dairy products contain predominantly saturated fat
• Choose low fat varieties of dairy foods rather than cutting them out

A very wide range of milks and dairy products are available and they are a valuable part of the diet. Dairy products include cheeses, yoghurts, cream, fromage frais, butter and crème fraiche.

The Benefits Of Dairy Foods

Milk is an excellent source of many nutrients as it has evolved to be a complete food for young animals, and it remains a very useful food throughout life.

Milk provides us not only with protein and energy but also with vitamins and minerals. In particular dairy products are an important source of calcium - the most important source in the British diet, in fact - and of some of the B-group vitamins. A pint of whole or skimmed milk can provide close to a day's requirement of thiamine (vitamin B1), riboflavin (vitamin B2) and vitamin B12. (This is particularly important for vegetarians as there are few non-meat sources of vitamin B12.) Other minerals found in milk are phosphorous, magnesium and zinc.

Milk is also a source of vitamins A and D but as these vitamins are found in the fat in milk their levels are lower in skimmed milks and low fat dairy products.

Milk And Saturated Fat

Whole milk contains around 4g of fat in every 100ml of milk (that's around 23g in a pint). This fat makes milk a rich source of energy and it is very important that toddlers are given whole fat milk as they need this energy for growth.

As we get older, however, it is advisable to try and restrict the amount of fat in the diet, particularly saturated fats. Over half the fat in milk is saturated and this is undesirable as saturated fats increase levels of blood cholesterol - a major risk factor in coronary heart disease.

In Britain milk and dairy products are a major source of saturated fat in the diet because we consume so many of them. Fortunately there is now a wide range of milks and dairy products available made using skimmed or semi- skimmed milks and these products are just as rich a source of calcium and B vitamins as whole milk products.

Dairy Foods In The Diet

So, dairy products are an important part of our diets and with careful choices need not be such a major source of fat. To see how dairy foods fit into a healthy diet look at the food pyramid.

To cut back on dairy fats try some of the following:

• Choose skimmed or semi-skimmed milk
• Try low fat yoghurts and cheeses
• Switch cream on desserts for crème fraiche or low fat yoghurt
• Use polyunsaturated or olive oil-based margarines instead of butter fats.