A large-scale survey by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare found that people who consume more calcium from dairy products like milk and cheese have a stroke incidence rate about 31% lower than those who consume almost no dairy calcium.
According to the survey, consuming about 130 ml of milk daily or 1 to 1.5 slices of sliced cheese can help prevent stroke.
Researchers studied approximately 40,000 residents aged 40 to 59 in Iwate, Akita, Nagano, and Okinawa Prefectures continuously for 12 years starting from 1990.
The data showed that the group of participants who consumed an average of 116 mg of dairy calcium daily had a 31% lower chance of stroke compared to the group that consumed almost no dairy calcium. The relevant data also indicated that calcium intake from foods other than dairy products, such as vegetables, fish, and soy products, had no significant effect on preventing stroke.
Professor Hiro Yasu from the Department of Public Health, Osaka University, who participated in the research, explained that increased calcium intake can lower blood pressure, which may be the reason calcium prevents stroke. Dairy products are more effective than other foods in preventing stroke because the human body absorbs calcium from dairy products more easily.