Many people choose skimmed or semi skimmed milk on the basis that it’s better for you, but the latest evidence suggests that we should think again.

It has been said that full fat dairy is higher in cholesterol which can fur up the arteries and in turn cause heart disease. However, a study has shown that full fat dairy is not to blame. Research done recently on the over 60’s found that those who consumed high levels of dairy were no more likely to die of heart failure than those consuming the lowest levels.

One type of full fat molecule was even found to be positive in helping protect against strokes. The evidence of saturated fats as a whole being connected with heart disease, are not in dispute. It is about the types of fats that you choose and it seems dairy is not on the list!

All saturated fats don’t behave the same, and dairy fats, unlike red meat, could be good for us. Sales of alternative milks have soared recently, so this could be good news for the dairy industry.

Butter has been linked to weight gain,whereas yoghurt is linked to weight loss, so you  can still consume a couple of portions of dairy products a day. A full fat latte contains a third of your daily intake of saturated fat, so this is a good option, but remember to stick to one!  200grams of full fat natural yoghurt has half your daily calcium needs, avoid the flavoured varieties though as they have lots of sugar.

Full fat cream cheeses is good too, but isn’t as nutritious as hard cheeses but keep the portions small. 40grams of hard cheese such as cheddar contains a third of your daily intake of calcium.

Try and keep the portions low and you will keep healthy.