Association between dairy product intake and hypertriglyceridemia in Korean adults

Hypertriglyceridemia may be a more important predictor of cardiovascular disease in Asian population consuming carbohydrate-rich foods than in Western populations. Dairy products are known to play a beneficial role in obesity, dyslipidemia, and metabolic syndrome, but the results vary depending on gender and obesity. In this study, we investigated the associations between dairy product intake and hypertriglyceridemia in Korean adults.

The participants were selected from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2007-2012 (KNHANES IV and V). A total of 22,836 participants aged 19-64 years were included in the analysis. A food frequency questionnaire used to determine the frequency of consumption of products (milk and yogurt). Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the associations between dairy product intake and hypertriglyceridemia.

A significantly decreased risk of hypertriglyceridemia was detected in the highest dairy product intake frequency group (≥ 1 time/day) (odd ratio [OR] = 0.79; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.64-0.97, P for trend = 0.022) compared to that for the lowest dairy product intake frequency group. Among obese participants, the group with the highest intakes of milk (in men, OR = 0.64; 95% CI: 0.46-0.91, P for trend = 0.036) and yogurt (in women; OR = 0.53; 95% CI: 0.29-0.94, P for trend = 0.019) showed inverse associations with hypertriglyceridemia. No associations were detected in normal weight participants.

The association between dairy product intake and hypertriglyceridemia differed by gender and obesity status. Further prospective studies are needed to confirm these associations.