Drinking milk after exercise may help protect older adults from life-threatening fractures, a new scientific study suggests.
With the global population ageing, maintaining muscle mass and bone density has become a major health challenge. In the UK, over three million people live with osteoporosis, and the risk is even wider: up to 40% of people over 50 are thought to have osteopenia, the earliest stage of bone thinning.
Regular exercise, especially resistance exercise, has long been considered one of the most effective ways to combat musculoskeletal diseases. Now, Chinese scientists suggest that combining strength training with a glass of milk after a workout may help prevent bone loss.
Protein is closely linked to bone health, as it helps absorb calcium - a key element for their strength - reducing the risk of fractures from falls in old age.
What did the study show?
The study compared the effects of cow's milk and soy milk as simple sources of protein after exercise. It involved 82 healthy adults, 60 years of age and older, with no medical conditions that would affect protein intake.
All participants followed an eight-week exercise program, with three sessions per week that included strength and balance exercises. They were then divided into four groups:
Exercises only
Exercise + nutrition education
Exercise + nutrition education + cow's milk
Exercise + nutrition education + soy milk
The first two groups made no changes to their diet. Participants in the cow's milk group drank 240 ml of low-fat milk 30–60 minutes after exercise. Those who drank soy milk drank a slightly smaller amount, so that both groups got about 7–8 grams of protein per session. Both groups also consumed 60 grams of boiled sweet potatoes after each workout, to balance the protein with carbohydrates.
Weekly nutrition education sessions focused on healthy eating, adequate protein intake, oral health, and injury prevention.
Main results
After eight weeks, all groups showed significant improvements in walking speed, confirming that regular exercise improves mobility. Those who exercised without changing their diet also had improvements in handgrip strength and sit-to-stand transition, indicating increased neuromuscular function.
However, the greatest improvements were seen in participants who drank cow's milk after exercise and attended nutrition classes. They showed significant increases in hand strength, improvement in the chair rise and fall test (five times in a row), and greater walking speed over a distance of six meters.
According to the researchers, this indicates that combining exercise with milk is more beneficial for muscle function than combining it with soy milk. It is worth noting that nutrition education alone, without any real changes in diet, did not produce comparable results.
In conclusion, the researchers noted that combining resistance exercise with immediate post-exercise consumption of protein-rich foods — particularly milk — may improve bone health and physical function in community-dwelling older adults. They also acknowledged that the study has limitations, including its relatively short duration.
What is osteoporosis and how is it prevented?
Bone loss is diagnosed with a DEXA scan, which measures the amount of minerals in the bones (mainly calcium). A score of 0 is considered normal; -1 to -2.5 indicates osteopenia, while below -2.5 is classified as osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis develops slowly and is often only discovered after a fracture. Treatment includes medications to strengthen bones, but regular exercise, a healthy diet, vitamin D intake, quitting smoking, and limiting alcohol also play an important role in maintaining bone health. /GazetaExpress/
t7 live
