Mixed
Higher circulating levels of the dairy-specific fatty acid pentadecanoic acid (15:0) are inversely associated with the incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and coronary heart disease (CHD).
This observational study suggests that higher levels of pentadecanoic acid (15:0) in the blood, which serves as a biomarker for dairy fat intake, are associated with a lower risk of heart disease. While this does not prove that eating dairy prevents heart disease, it challenges the idea that all dairy fat is harmful. For general health, focusing on whole food sources like dairy may be neutral or beneficial, but this is not a prescription to increase dairy intake specifically for heart health without considering other dietary factors.
In multivariate models including demographics and lifestyle and dietary habits, each SD-unit of 15:0 was associated with 19% lower CVD risk (hazard ratio [95% CI] 0.81 [0.68 to 0.98]) and 26% lower coronary heart disease (CHD) risk (0.74 [0.60 to 0.92]).
Why this rating
Large multi-ethnic prospective cohort (N=2837) with objective biomarkers and adjudicated endpoints, though observational design prevents causal inference.
Source
Biomarkers of Dairy Fatty Acids and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in the Multi‐Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis
Marcia C. de Oliveira Otto et al. · Journal of the American Heart Association · 2013
DOI 10.1161/jaha.113.000092
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