cheese: Say cheese
Research suggests cheese might be healthier than you believed
Cheese, which is rich and creamy, tastes delicious on a cracker, with fresh fruit, or sprinkled on top of a bowl of chilli. However, when people talk about their fondness for cheese, it’s often in a guilty way, as in, “Cheese is my weakness.”
“Cheese is packed with nutrients like protein, calcium and phosphorus, and can serve a healthy purpose in the diet,” said Lisa Young, an adjunct professor of nutrition at New York University, according to The Washington Post.
As per the outlet, research shows that even full-fat cheese won’t necessarily make you gain weight or give you a heart attack. It seems that cheese doesn’t raise or reduce your risk for chronic diseases, such as heart disease and Type 2 diabetes, and some studies show it might even be protective.
Good bacteria, lower saturated fat risks
It’s easy to see why people might feel conflicted about cheese. For years, the US dietary guidelines have said eating low-fat dairy is best because whole-milk products, such as full-fat cheese, have saturated fat, which can raise LDL (bad) cholesterol levels, a known risk for heart disease. Cheese has also been blamed for weight gain and digestive issues such as bloating. It turns out, though, that cheese may have been misunderstood.
Yes, it’s high in calories: Some types have 100 calories or more per ounce. And it’s rich in saturated fat. So why is it okay for most people to eat it? “Cheese is more than its saturated fat content,” said Emma Feeney, an assistant professor at the Institute of Food and Health at University College Dublin who studies the effect cheese has on health.
Old-school thinking on nutrition has been focused on individual nutrients — such as fats or protein — that either promote or prevent disease. It’s not clear that this is the wrong approach, but nutrition experts are now putting more emphasis on the entire food and how its structure, nutrients, enzymes and other…
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