A new American study confirms the benefits of milk for bone health, especially against osteoarthritis of the knees. The evolution of this disease, characterized by the deterioration of the cartilage of the knee joint, could be slowed down by the daily intake of a glass of milk in women. Researchers at Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston, USA, found that only women seem to benefit from drinking skimmed milk. Women are more affected than men by osteoarthritis of the knee.
A total of 2,148 people with this condition participated in the study. The impact of the consumption of dairy products (milk, cheese, yogurt) on their joints was studied at different intervals (one, two, three and four years). In women, the gradual increase in the consumption of glasses of milk, from 0 to less than 3, from 4 to 6 then to more than 7 per week benefited the thickness of the cartilage, which was reduced more slowly.
Strangely, milk is the only food to have had a positive effect on knee osteoarthritis. While the yogurts didn’t change anything, the cheese actually accelerated the progression of the disease.
The study appeared in the journal Arthritis Care & Research.
