The Study
The Association between the Consumption of Dairy Products and the Risk of Cardiovascular Disease: Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study
This study watched a group of people in Iran for over 10 years and recorded what they ate and whether they got heart problems. It didn’t change anyone’s diet—it just observed. So it can tell us if people who ate more dairy tended to get heart disease more often, but it can’t prove that dairy caused the heart disease.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
Scientists watched a group of Iranian adults for over 10 years to see if eating dairy like cheese, milk, or yogurt made them more likely to have heart attacks or strokes.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 559 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1This means if you're an adult in a similar population, eating moderate amounts of dairy probably won't raise your heart disease risk — even if it's full-fat.
- 2People who ate more dairy — even lots of cheese or full-fat milk — didn't have more heart problems than those who ate less.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Iranian Journal of Epidemiology
Year
2025
Authors
Z. Gaeini, Sevda Alvirdizadeh, P. Mirmiran, Fereidoun Azizi
Related Content
Claims (2)
Eating cheese in moderate amounts is linked to health benefits, but eating more than that does not lead to greater benefits.
Among Iranian adults followed for over 10 years, consuming dairy products including both high-fat and low-fat types was not linked to a change in the rate of cardiovascular disease events.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.