The effects of bovine milk fat on human health

Health benefits of ghee: Review of Ayurveda and modern science perspectives

The scientific view on dairy fats is undergoing a change. While at one time they were associated with negative health effects, recent scientific research has provided new insights into the functional benefits of dairy fats and their fatty acids. This changing scientific view on dairy fats is also resulting in a scientific interest in Ghee, the clarified butter obtained from milk. Ghee, besides being a traditional milk product of cultural importance in India and finding extensive use in its cuisines, is also one of the most important ingredients of the materia medica of Ayurveda, the traditional system of medicine that originated in India. While modern scientific literature has limited studies on functional benefits of ghee, Ayurveda literature extensively catalogues the therapeutic potential of ghee and details different types of ghee based on source of milk, manufacturing method, maturation and physical phase. This work reviewed the Ayurveda literature on health benefits of ghee and examined the complementarity and gaps between Ayurveda literature and modern scientific literature to identify research questions and hypotheses for further exploring the therapeutic potential of ghee. The Ayurveda literature review involved curation of references to ghee in eleven important Ayurvedic texts spanning over 3000 years. 4000 references to milk and milk products were curated from these texts, of which 2913 mentions were in the context of therapeutic benefits of milk products. Of these, ghee had 774 mentions, the highest amongst milk-based products. These mentions were grouped into 15 benefit clusters. A review of ghee in modern literature published between 1990 and 2023 was also conducted. A comparison of this with the Ayurveda literature showed that there were major differences in the focus areas of health between the two. While recent research primarily focused on ghee's connection with cardiovascular health, wound healing and skin health, Ayurveda prioritized cognitive benefits, gastrointestinal health, and nourishing. These later areas are of growing importance to human health as global population ages, and chronic and brain related diseases start dominating public health concerns. As scientists search for solutions to these, ghee, its usage and formulations in Ayurveda and the detailed associations between ghee's animal source, processing, maturation, phases and health benefits, may have scientific insights to offer that can guide future research.

Effect of a High-Starch or a High-Fat Diet on the Milk Performance, Apparent Nutrient Digestibility, Hindgut Fermentation Parameters and Microbiota of Lactating Cows

In this study, changes in milk performance, nutrient digestibility, hindgut fermentation parameters and microflora were observed by inducing milk fat depression (MFD) in dairy cows fed with a high-starch or a high-fat diet. Eight Holstein cows were paired in a completely randomized cross-over design within two 35 d periods (18 d control period and 17d induction period). During the control period, all cows were fed the low-starch and low-fat diet (CON), and at the induction period, four of the cows were fed a high-starch diet with crushed wheat (IS), and the other cows were fed a high-fat diet with sunflower fat (IO). The results showed that, compared to when the cows were fed the CON diet, when cows were fed the IS or IO diet, they had lower milk fat concentrations, energy corrected milk, 3.5% fat-corrected milk yield, feed efficiency and apparent digestibility of NDF and ADF. However, cows fed the IO diet had a lower apparent digestibility of ether extracts. In addition, we observed that when cows were fed the high-starch (IS) or high-fat (IO) diet, they had a higher fecal concentration of propionate and acetate, and a lower NH3-N. Compared to when the cows were fed the CON diet, cows fed the IS diet had a lower pH, and cows fed the IO diet had a lower concentration of valerate in feces. In the hindgut microbiota, the relative abundance of Oscillospiraceae_UCG-005 was increased, while the Verrucomicrobiota and Lachnospiraceae_AC2044_group were decreased when cows were fed the IO diet. The relative abundance of Prevotellaceae_UCG-003 was increased, while the Alistipes and Verrucomicrobiota decreased, and the Treponema, Spirochaetota and Lachnospiraceae_AC2044_group showed a decreasing trend when cows were fed the IS diet. In summary, this study suggested that high-starch or high-fat feeding could induce MFD in dairy cows, and the high-fat diet had the greatest effect on milk fat; the high-starch or high-fat diet affected hindgut fermentation and apparent fiber digestibility. The changes in hindgut flora suggested that hindgut microbiota may be associated with MFD in cows.

Cheese and Butter as a Source of Health-Promoting Fatty Acids in the Human Diet

The assessment of fatty acid composition, including the content of conjugated linoleic acid cis9trans11 C18:2 (CLA) and trans C18:1 and C18:2 isomers in fat extracted from selected high-fat dairy products commonly available to consumers in retail sale on the Polish market, and a comparison of their indicators as to the quality of lipids was the aim of the study. The experimental materials were hard cheeses, white-mold cheeses, blue-veined cheeses, and butters. The conducted study demonstrated that various contents of groups of fatty acids and the values of lipid quality indices were found in the tested products. Butters turned out to be richer sources of short-chain, branched-chain, and odd-chain fatty acids. The fat extracted from butters and white-mold cheeses had a significantly higher (p < 0.05) content of n-3 fatty acids. Lower values of the n-6/n-3 ratio were determined in the fat extracted from butters and white-mold cheeses. The highest values of the thrombogenicity index (TI) were found in fat extracted from hard cheeses. Significantly lower values (p < 0.05) of the atherogenicity index (AI) and values of the H/H ratio were found in fat from mold cheeses. Fat from butters and white-mold cheeses had a significantly higher (p < 0.05) content of CLA and total content of trans C18:1.

Dietary diversity and food security status among heart failure patients in the north of Iran

Background

Dietary diversity score (DDS) is an indicator for assessing nutritional adequacy. Food security is another important measure in nutrition field which can be associated with several cardiovascular risk factors. Considering the importance of nutrition in heart failure (HF) patients, this study was designed to evaluate the DDS and food security of patients with HF.

Methods

A total of 200 HF patients were enrolled. DDS was evaluated using valid and reliable food frequency questionnaire and was calculated by scoring food intakes as 5 main groups. Household food insecurity access scale was applied to assess food security status. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square and Kruskal-Wallis tests and multiple logistic regression models.

Results

The mean age of patients was 65 (standard deviation: 12) years and 59% of patients were male. Median of DDS was 1.96 (range: 0.29 to 6.12). Adjusted odds of greater DDS (> = median of 2) was 2.58 times higher for patients without hypertension than for patients with hypertension (95%CI: 1.31–5.08, P = 0.006). Also, odds of greater DDS were more in ex-smokers’ patients when compared to non-smokers (adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 2.70, 95%CI: 1.27–5.75, P = 0.010), patients with supplement use (AOR: 2.42, 95%CI: 1.16–5.05, P = 0.019), patients with lower total cholesterol level (AOR: 1.01, 95%CI: 1.00–1.02, P = 0.051), and patients with higher ejection fraction (AOR: 1.03, 95%CI: 1.00–1.05, with borderline.

P = 0.073). About 57% of patients had experienced degrees of food insecurity as mild (26%), moderate (16%) and severe (15%). On the other hand, women (AOR: 1.90, 95%CI: 0.90–3.71, with borderline P = 0.061) and patients with middle (AOR: 3.48, 95%CI: 1.79–6.76, P < 0.001) or high (AOR: 20.32, 95%CI: 2.56–161.19, P = 0.004) socio-economic status were more likely to be food secure or mild insecure. Also, no relation between DDS and food security was found (r = − 0.08, P = 0.262).

Conclusion

This study found that HF patients had a low DDS and more than half of the patients were food insecure to some extents.

How does milk fat replacement influence cheese analogue microstructure, rheology, and texture profile?

Over the past few years, the market for cheese substitutes has been growing on account of the simple and cost-effective production of these cheese-like products. It is well established that the functional properties of cheeses are directly related to their composition. Therefore, the variation of fat in cheese substitutes certainly affects the characteristics of the cheeses. The purpose of this review was to summarize the latest research on the effects of milk fat replacement with vegetable oils on the rheological, textural, and microstructural properties of cheese analogues. The findings suggest that the primary effects of modifying fat in cheese analogues are associated with an alteration in the interactions among the components of the protein matrix, which varies because of milk fat extraction. Overall, changes in the functional properties of analogous cheeses will depend on the type of oil, the percentage of fat modification, and the type of cheese produced.

Milk fatty acid profile in cows as influenced by diet supplementation with rapeseed pomace and extruded full-fat soya in different feeding periods

The aim of the study was to estimate the effect of rapeseed pomace and extruded full-fat soya in the diets of dairy cows on changes in the milk fatty acid (FA) profile. The experiment was carried out on 30 dairy cows and divided into two periods: the indoor feeding period and the grazing period. Control diet cows were fed the farm’s total mixed ration (TMR); cows of experimental group 1 (ES) cows were fed the farm’s TMR supplemented with extruded full-fat soya; cows of experimental group 2 (RP) were fed the farm’s TMR supplemented with rapeseed pomace. The total content of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) tended to be lower in the RP and ES groups than in the control group during both feeding periods. Our results suggest that supplementing diets with rapeseed and soybean products are both effective in improving the fatty acid proportion of desirable (hypocholesterolaemic) FAs, mainly oleic acid (18:1n-9), linoleic acid (18:2n-6) and conjugated linoleic acid (CLAcis9trans11). The study showed that during the indoor feeding period, the unsaturated fatty acid (UFA) contents were significantly higher in the ES group compared to the control group (P < 0.05). The nutritional value of milk from the feeding groups in which rations were supplemented with ES or RP was better due to a quartile reduction of the atherogenicity index (AI) and the significantly increased spreadability index (SI) of the butter manufactured during the indoor feeding period (P < 0.01).