A type of fat found in milk and meat turns into another fat called conjugated linoleic acid in the body, and that second fat might be good for your health.

Man-made trans fats and natural trans fats in dairy and meat are made of different chemical parts, and these differences might affect your health in different ways.

Some studies suggest that the natural trans fats found in milk and meat might not raise heart disease risk the same way that artificial trans fats in fried and baked foods do.

People with more of a specific fat found in dairy products like butter and cheese in their blood have a lower chance of getting type 2 diabetes, even after accounting for how much dairy they eat.

A different type of fat found in dairy called c9t11-CLA is linked to a higher chance of getting type 2 diabetes, which is surprising because other dairy fats are usually thought to be harmless or even helpful.

One of the main types of trans fat in people’s blood — called vaccenic acid — dropped by more than half in just nine years, showing that people were eating less of these harmful fats overall.