Milk as a food for growth? The insulin-like growth factors link

The mechanisms underlying the association of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and leg length (a marker of prepubertal growth) with cancer risk are uncertain. One hypothesis is that diet in early childhood might provide the link. The aim of the present study was to examine the association between early diet - in particular, the intakes of cows' milk and dairy products - and height, leg length and IGF-I levels at age 7-8 years.

Children participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children.

Diet was assessed using a 3-day unweighed food record. Anthropometry, IGF-I and insulin-like growth factor-binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) were measured by standard methods.

Data on both diet and height were available for 744 children (404 boys) and on diet and IGF for 538 (295 boys). After adjusting for energy, both cows' milk and dairy product intakes were positively associated with IGF-I (P=0.040 and 0.027, respectively) and IGFBP-3 levels (P=0.082 and 0.067, respectively). These associations persisted on adjustment for potential confounders, but were abolished on controlling for protein intake. In energy-adjusted models there was only weak evidence of associations of milk and dairy product intakes with anthropometry. In boys only, dairy product intake was positively associated with leg length (equivalent to a 0.058 (0.002, 0.114) standard deviation score increase in leg length per 100 g increase in daily intake).

These data provide some evidence that variation in childhood milk and dairy product intakes underlies associations of leg length, IGF-I and cancer risk. The association appears to be due to the protein content of milk.