Higher dairy calcium intake compared to other dietary sources of calcium is associated with decreased whole body and regional adiposity in adolescent girls

Abstract

BACKGROUNDSkeletal muscle fat infiltration (SMFI) is strongly associated with type 2 diabetes. Insufficient calcium (Ca) intake is common in youth and has been associated with the development of obesity and lower bone mineral content. Dairy calcium (DC) is better absorbed compared to other dietary sources of calcium (OC) and has been linked to decreased adiposity.OBJECTIVETo examine the cross‐sectional (CS) and longitudinal (L) relationships between DC and OC intake with BMI, total body fat percentage (BF), android percent fat (AF), and SMFI in 201 healthy girls aged 8–13 years.METHODSMuscle density (MD) (mg/cm3), an index of fat infiltration, was measured at the 66% tibia and 20% femur sites using peripheral quantitative computed tomography. BF and AF were measured by dual energy x‐ray absorptiometry. DC and OC were assessed using the Harvard youth adolescent questionnaire (YAQ).RESULTSMultiple linear regressions with DC and OC, maturity, total energy intake, ethnicity, and activity (PYPAQ) were used to predict adiposity. In CS analysis, DC was inversely associated with BMI (P ≤ 0.05, partial r (ρ)= −0.16, β= −0.17), BF (P ≤ 0.05, (ρ)= −0.15, β= −0.17), AF (P ≤ 0.01, (ρ)= −0.18, β= −0.17), and SMFI (positively associated with MD of the calf (P ≤ 0.01, (ρ)=0.21, β=0.24) and thigh (P ≤ 0.01, ρ=0.17, β=0.20 )). OC was not significantly associated with adiposity. In L analysis, neither baseline DC or OC predicted significant measures of adiposity at 3 years.CONCLUSIONHigher DC consumption may be associated with decreased adiposity in young girls.Grant Funding Source: NIH/NICHD #HD‐050775