Dieting: Eating dairy foods on a calorie-reduced diet signals the body to burn more fat and increases weight loss, according to a prominent US nutrition expert.
Dr Michael Zemel, professor of nutrition and medicine and director of the Nutrition Institute, University of Tennessee, is credited with the discovery that those who consumed at least two servings of yogurt daily lost an average of 11lbs during a one-year study, without reducing their overall intake of calories.
Further clinical trials have since proven the dairy products/weight-loss connection, he told Irish nutritionists and GPs. He presented his findings at the Irish College of General Practitioners and to the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute.
Eating dairy foods daily seems to be particularly effective at burning fat in the abdominal area.
Prof Zemel said: "The unique combination of essential nutrients in dairy foods has a powerful, positive impact on metabolism and weight loss." However, dairy foods are not magic, he accepted. If calorie intake is excessive, weight gain will occur.
