Drinking Milk Wards of Chronic Disease

READING, United Kingdom—Drinking milk can lessen the chances of dying from illnesses such as coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke by up to 15 percent to 20 percent, according to new research from the Universities of Reading, Cardiff and Bristol.

The review brought together published evidence from 324 studies of milk consumption as predictors of coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke and diabetes. Data on milk consumption and cancer were based on the recent World Cancer Research Fund report and compared with current death rates from these diseases.

“Our findings clearly show that when the numbers of deaths from CHD, stroke and colorectal cancer were taken into account, there is strong evidence of an overall reduction in the risk of dying from these chronic diseases due to milk consumption,” the researchers wrote. “We certainly found no evidence that drinking milk might increase the risk of developing any condition, with the exception of prostate cancer. Put together, there is convincing overall evidence that milk consumption is associated with an increase in survival in Western communities.”