Dairy products

Suggested

3 studies · 1 recommendation

Last updated: February 25, 2026

Suggested3 studies

Dairy and yogurt consumption linked to reduced breast cancer risk

Three studies spanning case-control, meta-analytic, and umbrella review designs consistently associate dairy intake with lower breast cancer risk. A Brazilian case-control study of 183 women found high milk and dairy consumption strongly associated with reduced risk compared to the lowest intake tertile. A dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies reported yogurt intake at the highest levels corresponded to a 10% risk reduction (RR 0.90, 95% CI 0.82–1.00) with zero statistical heterogeneity (I² = 0%) across studies. An umbrella review synthesizing multiple meta-analyses confirmed an inverse association between overall dairy consumption and breast cancer, consistent with protective patterns observed for colorectal, bladder, and gastric cancers. Yogurt's fermentation-derived bioactive compounds and probiotics may contribute to the protective mechanism.

Evidence

Dietary Protein Sources and Incidence of Breast Cancer: A Dose-Response Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies

Authors: Ho, JCM, Huang, J, Li, X, Wu, J, Zeng, R, Zhang, J, Zheng, Y

Published: January 1, 2016

Meta-analysis of prospective studies found that highest versus lowest yogurt intake was associated with RR 0.90 (95% CI 0.82–1.00, I² = 0%). The complete absence of statistical heterogeneity (I² = 0%) across studies suggests a consistent protective effect. While the confidence interval boundary touches 1.00, the point estimate indicates a 10% risk reduction with higher yogurt consumption. The protective mechanism may involve fermentation-derived bioactive compounds and probiotics in yogurt.

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Milk and dairy products: good or bad for human health? An assessment of the totality of scientific evidence

Authors: Abargouei AS, Abrams SA, Ahearn TU, Alexander DD, Anne Raben, Arne Astrup, Astrup A, Astrup A, Astrup A, Aune D, Aune D, Aune D, Beavers KM, Beavers KM, Bendtsen LQ, Bergholdt HK, Berneis KK, Bischoff-Ferrari HA, Bolland MJ, Booth AO, Bácsi K, Cauley JA, Chen M, Chowdhury R, de Goede J, Dietz WH, Doidge JC, Dong JY, Dror DK, Ellis D, Frid AH, Gao D, Genkinger JM, Gijsbers L, Gilbert JA, Heyman MB, Hjerpsted J, Holt PR, Holt PR, Host A, Hou R, Hu D, Huncharek M, Huncharek M, Huth PJ, Ian Givens, Jakobsen MU, Ji J, Kalkwarf HJ, Kanis JA, Karagas MR, Keum N, Krauss RM, Laaksonen MA, Lamprecht SA, Larsson SC, Latino-Martel P, Le Louer B, Li F, Lorenzen JK, Lu L, Maersk M, Maghsoudi Z, Mao QQ, Merritt MA, Michaelsson K, Mora S, Mursu J, Musunuru K, Newmark HL, Nilsson M, O'Sullivan TA, Onning G, Paganini-Hill A, Park YW, Power ML, Qin LQ, Raziani F, Rice BH, Rideout TC, Rizzoli R, Roddam AW, Rozen P, Sabita S. Soedamah-Muthu, Savaiano DA, Schoemaker AA, Sieber R, Sjogren P, Soedamah-Muthu SS, Soedamah-Muthu SS, Soerensen KV, St-Pierre AC, Tanja Kongerslev Thorning, Thorning TK, Tine Tholstrup, Tong X, Travis RC, Wang C, Weaver CM, Yang Y, Yu Y, Zang J, Zheng H

Published: January 1, 2016

The umbrella review assessing the totality of scientific evidence from meta-analyses found that milk and dairy intake was inversely associated with breast cancer risk. This was part of a broader pattern where dairy demonstrated inverse associations with several cancer types including colorectal, bladder, and gastric cancers. The pooled analyses of observational studies provided consistent evidence supporting a protective role of dairy consumption against breast cancer development.

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Dieta e câncer no Nordeste do Brasil: avaliação da relação entre alimentação e consumo de grupos de alimentos e câncer de mama

Authors: COSTA, Maria José de Carvalho, FISBERG, Regina Mara, LATORRE, Maria do Rosário Dias de Oliveira, LIMA, Flávia Emília Leite de

Published: April 1, 2008

Hospital-based case-control study in Northeast Brazil including 183 women (89 breast cancer cases with histological confirmation, 94 age-matched controls, ages 30-80). Dietary assessment categorized food groups into consumption tertiles and analyzed associations using unconditional multiple logistic regression. Milk and dairy product consumption (leite e derivados) demonstrated a strong association with reduced breast cancer risk when comparing the highest versus lowest tertiles of intake.

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