NEWS & NOTES

CLA in milk works for weight management

The use of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) as a functional ingredient in skim milk can cut body fat mass by 3 percent, says a new study from Spain. Drinking skimmed milk fortified with three grams of CLA (Tonalin, Cognis) led to significant body fat mass reductions among 30 healthy men and women over 12 weeks, compared to the same amount of people drinking a placebo milk.

The study adds to an ever-growing body of science supporting the potential of CLA for weight management and weight loss, a category of already estimated to be worth $7 billion worldwide.
“Dairy products are excellent carriers for CLA, considering taste, color, texture, processing and product development issues,” said David Cai, senior scientist, Cognis Nutrition & Health. “Formulators will find CLA to be a health-enhancing ingredient that can be added to a dairy product without adversely affecting the sensory characteristics of the product,” he added.

Published recently in the British Journal of Nutrition, the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled intervention trial showed that 12-weeks of supplementation with the CLA-rich milk led to significant reductions in fat mass in the trunk (torso) area of the body.

University of Barcelona researchers recruited 60 overweight and obese men and women, aged between 35 and 65, and randomly assigned them to a daily intake of 500 ml skimmed milk fortified with 3 grams of CLA, or a placebo milk.

The researchers, led by Amalia Lafuente, report that consumption of the CLA-rich milk was associated with a significant 3 percent reduction of body fat mass in overweight subjects, while no significant fat loss was found in the obese volunteers or in either group taking the placebo. 

“These findings have considerable significance for Tonalin CLA, indicating that the ingredient can work as well in a functional food product - a dairy matrix, for example, as it does in a food supplement,” said Dr. Doris Bell, leader of Cognis’ global research program on Tonalin CLA.

“Pending Novel Food approval, there are clearly huge opportunities for functional food manufacturers to join supplement producers in marketing successful products for healthy fat loss featuring Tonalin CLA,” she concluded.

This story was excerpted from an article by Stephen Daniells in the Oct. 16, 2007 issue of DairyReporter.com.

Post-workout milk boosts fat burn
By André Picard, Aug. 9, 2007, Globe and Mail

Want to get the most from your workout? Then ditch the Gatorade and reach instead for a tall, cool glass of milk. That is the message emerging from a new Canadian study that found that exercisers who drink milk after a workout gain more muscle and lose more fat than those who consume sports drinks.
The reason, researchers believe, is that, in addition to liquid for hydration and carbohydrates for energy, milk is also rich in protein, while sports drinks contain little or no protein.

“The protein in milk is high quality,” Stuart Phillips, associate professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Hamilton and lead author of the study, said in an interview. “We also think the way milk proteins are digested by the body confers some benefits.”

Phillips said prior research has demonstrated that what exercisers drink and eat in the one or two hours after a workout is crucial in determining muscle gain and fat loss.

The new study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, involved 56 men, aged 18 to 30 who signed up for a rigorous 5-day-a-week weightlifting program over a 12-week period. The participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups, based on their recovery drink.

One group drank 500 milliliters (about two cups) of skim milk that contained 17.5 grams of protein, 25.7 grams of carbohydrates and 0.4 grams of fat. A second group received a soy drink with identical ratios of nutrients, while a third group got a sports drink.

All three beverages contained 735 calories and were flavored identically with vanilla and served in opaque containers so participants did not know what exactly they were drinking.

Over the study period, all the young men gained muscle mass and most lost fat, but the milk drinkers came out ahead across the board. For example, the milk-drinking group lost, on average, two pounds of fat each, compared with one pound each for those in the sports-drink group. The soy-beverage drinkers neither lost nor gained fat.

The milk drinkers also came out on top in muscle gain, adding, on average, 2.5 pounds more muscle than the soy-beverage drinkers and 3.3 pounds more than the sports-drink group.

“The practical results are obvious: If you want to gain muscle and lose weight as a result of working out, drink milk,” Phillips said.

While the study did not involve aerobic exercise, he noted that other research has also pointed to the benefits of milk – and chocolate milk in particular – for rehydration and recovery. At marathons, for example, chocolate milk – which is packed with more carbs than regular milk – has become the recovery drink of choice for many finishers.

 “A glass of cold milk is refreshing, it rehydrates you and it helps restore muscle. It’s also the source of nine essential nutrients so you get everything in one convenient package,” Phillips said.

The research was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the U.S. National Dairy Council. Dr. Phillips stressed that the dairy council grant came with no strings attached and the lobby group had no input on the study design or outcome.

“I don’t have any agenda here, and I think the science stands on its own merits,” he said.
Canada’s new food guide, released earlier this year, recommends two to four servings of milk, dairy products or milk alternatives daily as part of a healthy diet.