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Yogurt is an excellent source of calcium, which may help one reduce weight. (Cat Rooney/The Epoch Times)
I am a big believer in keeping our diet based on foods that are as natural and unprocessed as possible. For me, the core foods should be meat, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds, fruits, and vegetables.
I’m not a huge fan of milk since I find it to be a very common cause of problems related to food sensitivity. Either lactose or protein, such as casein, can cause problems, and the protein seems to be a particular problem after pasteurization.
I was talking to a receptionist yesterday who told me how her longstanding itchy rash disappeared on the elimination of milk from her diet but returned when she resumed milk.
While I’m not thrilled about pasteurized milk as a food, I’m much warmer to yogurt. This is primarily because it’s fermented, which makes it more digestible and less problematic. Also, there is some evidence that links eating yogurt with weight control.
It’s been theorized that this might have something to do with calcium. Consumption of calcium has been shown in research published in the FASEB Journal in June 2000 to paradoxically lower calcium level within fat cells, and this accelerates the process of lipolysis (breakdown of fat).
There is considerable evidence published in the January 2003 issue of the Journal of Nutrition linking higher intake of calcium with reduced body fat.
Vitamin D has also been associated with body-weight regulation. Several studies have linked low vitamin D levels with increased risk of excess weight. Some suggested that this might be because the more fat someone carries, the more vitamin D can end up being stored in fat cells.
A study found that women on a reduced-calorie diet with higher levels of vitamin D lost more weight than those on the same diet with lower D levels.
This information may help provide some explanation of the results of a study published online on Dec. 14 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. In this study, men and women were given one of two orange juices to drink on a daily basis.
One group received regular orange juice containing 110 calories per serving (1 cup), and they were to consume three servings a day. The other group consumed lite orange juice (with artificial sweetener) containing 50 calories per serving (three servings a day).
However, the study designed was actually more complex in that in each group, half of the people drank orange juice fortified with 350 milligrams of calcium and 100 IU of vitamin D, while the other half did not. In summary, therefore, there were four groups in this study:
• Group 1: regular orange juice, no fortification
• Group 2: regular orange juice fortified with calcium and vitamin D
• Group 3: lite orange juice, no fortification
• Group 4: lite orange juice fortified with calcium and vitamin D
The trial went on for 16 weeks. Each of the study participants was assessed for a range of body measurements, including body weight and waist circumference, and there were no significant differences between the groups.
However, another assessment measured the amount of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) fat found in the abdomen and strongly linked with chronic diseases such as heart disease and Type 2 diabetes.
Changes in VAT were not different between the regular and lite orange juice drinking groups.
However, there were differences between the results obtained by those drinking fortified and non-fortified drinks. Group 2 lost more VAT than group 1, and group 4 lost more VAT than group 3.
It’s only one study, and it was funded by The Beverage Institute for Health and Wellness, part of the Coca Cola Company, which supplied the product (Minute Maid).
Just to be clear: I’m not a fan of fruit juices, principally because of the large sugar load they provide. However, the results of this study are interesting and add to the body of evidence linking calcium and vitamin D with body weight and fat-storage regulation.Dr. John Briffa is a London-based physician and author with an interest in nutrition and natural medicine. His website is DrBriffa.com.
