Comparison of the Effects of Cows Milk, Fortified Soy Milk, and Calcium Supplement on Plasma Adipocytokines in Overweight and Obese Women

Obesity is an escalating public health problem. Adipose tissue synthesizes and secretes a variety of biological molecules, termed adipocytokines that may contribute to obesity-linked metabolic abnormalities, including cardiovascular diseases. We compared the effects of cow¢s milk, calcium fortified soy milk and calcium supplement on adipocytokines in premenopausal overweight and obese women.

In this clinical trial, 100 healthy overweight or obese premenopausal women were randomly allocated to one of the following dietary regimens for 8 weeks: 1) a control diet 2) a calcium- supplemented diet containing 800mg/d calcium carbonate 3) a high milk diet containing three servings of low fat milk or a 4) a soy milk diet containing three servings of calcium fortified soy milk (all of them providing a 500kcal/day deficit). At baseline and after 8 weeks, anthropometric indices and plasma leptin, adiponectin, TNFa, CRP, and IL-6 were measured.

Plasma CRP and leptin were significantly correlated with all anthropometric indices except for WHR, and plasma adiponectin had significant negative correlation with WHR at baseline. Although plasma leptin, CRP, and IL-6 decreased significantly in all groups (P<0. 01), except for CRP in the control group, there were no significant differences among four groups.

Results showed that a 500kcal/d deficit diet has beneficial effects on plasma adipocytokines, but calcium intake, either as calcium carbonate or as milk, causes no differences, and merits further research.