USA – A new study has found that the consumption of dairy products could help reduce bodyweight, especially around the waist, in adolescent girls.

The paper, written by Dr Rachel Novotny of the University of Hawaii, found that body fat and weight in nine to 14 year old girls was reduced in those who got most of their calcium from dairy products, compared to those that did not.

The report, published in the Journal of Nutrition, added that girls that had a greater intake of soft drinks also showed increased body fat and weight, and that the correlation between dairy products and lower body weight was particularly strong among Asian girls.