Overdone It? How To Speed Up Recovery After Exercise

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How To Speed Up Recovery After A Workout (According To Actual Science)

Has your enthusiasm ever been greater than your ability, when it comes to exercise?

Perhaps you leapt excitedly into a new kind of exercise, or maybe you made a reprise of something you used to do, and found out the hard way you’re not in the same condition you used to be?

If you’ve ever done an exercise session and then spent the next three days recovering, this one’s for you. And if you’ve never done that? Well, prevention is better than cure!

Post-exercise stretching probably won’t do much to help

If you like to stretch after a workout, great, don’t let us stop you. Stretching is, generally speaking, good.

But: don’t rely on it to hasten recovery. Here’s what scientists Afonso et al. had to say recently, after doing a big review of a lot of available data:

❝There wasn’t sufficient statistical evidence to reject the null hypothesis that stretching and passive recovery have equivalent influence on recovery.

Data is scarce, heterogeneous, and confidence in cumulative evidence is very low. Future research should address the limitations highlighted in our review, to allow for more informed recommendations.

For now, evidence-based recommendations on whether post-exercise stretching should be applied for the purposes of recovery should be avoided, as the (insufficient) data that is available does not support related claims.❞

Source: The Effectiveness of Post-exercise Stretching in Short-Term and Delayed Recovery of Strength, Range of Motion and Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

…and breath! What a title.

Hot and Cold

Contrast bath therapy (alternating hot and cold, which notwithstanding the name, can also be done in a shower) can help reduce muscle soreness after workout, because of how the change in temperature stimulates vasodilation and vasoconstriction, reducing inflammation while speeding up healing:

Contrast Water Therapy and Exercise Induced Muscle Damage: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

If doing this in the shower isn’t practical for you, and you (like most people) have only one bathtub, then cold is the way to go for the most evidence-based benefits:

Whole-Body Cryotherapy in Athletes: From Therapy to Stimulation. An Updated Review of the Literature

Eat protein whenever, carbs after

Eating protein before a workout can boost muscle protein synthesis. Be aware that even if you’re not bodybuilding, your body will still need to do cell replacement and repair, including in any muscle tissue that got damaged* during the workout

If you don’t like eating before a workout, eating protein after is fine too:

Pre- versus post-exercise protein intake has similar effects on muscular adaptations

*Note: muscle tissue is supposed to get damaged (slightly!) during many kinds of workout.

From lactic acid (that “burn” you feel when exercising) to microtears, the body’s post-workout job is to make the muscle stronger than before, and to do that, it needs you to have found the weak spots for it.

That’s what exercise-to-exhaustion does.

Eating carbs after a workout helps replace lost muscle glycogen.

For a lot more details on optimal nutrition timing in the context of exercise (carbs, proteins, micronutrients, different kinds of exercise, etc), check out this very clear guide:

International society of sports nutrition position stand: nutrient timing

Alcohol is not the post-workout carb you want

Shocking, right? But of course, it’s very common for casual sportspeople to hit the bar for a social drink after their activity of choice.

However, consuming alcohol after exercise doesn’t merely fail to help, it actively inhibits glycogen replacement and protein synthesis:

Alcohol Ingestion Impairs Maximal Post-Exercise Rates of Myofibrillar Protein Synthesis following a Single Bout of Concurrent Training

Also, if you’re tempted to take alcohol “to relax”, please be aware that alcohol only feels relaxing because of what it does to the brain; to the rest of the body, it is anything but, and also raises blood pressure and cortisol levels.

As to what to drink instead…

Hydrate, and consider creatine and tart cherry supplementation

Hydration is a no-brainer, but when you’re dehydrated, it’s easy to forget!

Creatine is a very well-studied supplement, that helps recovery from intense exercise:

International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine

Tart cherry juice has been found to reduce muscle damage, soreness, and inflammation after exercise:

Powdered tart cherry supplementation demonstrates benefit on markers of catabolism and muscle soreness following an acute bout of intense lower body resistance exercise

Wondering where you can get tart cherry powder? We don’t sell it (or anything else), but here’s an example product on Amazon.

And of course, actually rest

That includes good sleep, please. Otherwise…

Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Acute Skeletal Muscle Recovery after Exercise

Rest well!

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  • Level-Up Your Fiber Intake! (Without Difficulty Or Discomfort)

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Why You’re Probably Not Getting Enough Fiber (And How To Fix It)

    First things first… How much fiber should we be eating?

    *This one is also a great read to understand more about the “why” of fiber

    Meanwhile, the average American gets 16g of fiber per day.

    So, how to get more fiber, without piling on too many carbs?

    Foods that contain fiber generally contain carbs (there’s a limit to how much celery most people want to eat), so there are two key ideas here:

    • Getting a good carb:fiber ratio
    • Making substitutions that boost fiber without overdoing (or in some case, even changing) carbs

    Meat → Lentils

    Well-seasoned lentils can be used to replaced ground beef or similar. A cup of boiled lentils contains 18g of fiber, so you’re already outdoing the average American’s daily total.

    Meat → Beans

    Black beans are a top-tier option here (15g per cup, cooked weight), but many kinds of beans are great.

    Chicken/Fish → Chickpeas

    Yes, chicken/fish is already meat, but we’re making a case for chickpeas here. Cooked and seasoned appropriately, they do the job, and pack in 12g of fiber per cup. Also… Hummus!

    Bonus: Hummus, eaten with celery sticks.

    White pasta/bread → Wholewheat pasta/bread

    This is one where “moderation is key”, but if you’re going to eat pasta/bread, then wholewheat is the way to go. Fiber amounts vary, so read labels, but it will always have far more than white.

    Processed salty snacks → Almonds and other nuts

    Nuts in general are great, but almonds are top-tier for fiber, amongst other things. A 40g handful of almonds contains about 10g of fiber.

    Starchy vegetables → Non-starchy vegetables

    Potatoes, parsnips, and their friends have their place. But they cannot compete with broccoli, peas, cabbage, and other non-starchy vegetables for fiber content.

    Bonus: if you’re going to have starchy vegetables though, leave the skins on!

    Fruit juice → Fruit

    Fruit juice has had most, if not all, of its fiber removed. Eat an actual juicy fruit, instead. Apples and bananas are great options; berries such as blackberries and raspberries are even better (at around 8g per cup, compared to the 5g or so depending on the size of an apple/banana)

    Processed cereals → Oats

    5g fiber per cup. Enough said.

    Summary

    Far from being a Herculean task, getting >30g of fiber per day can be easily accomplished by a lentil ragù with wholewheat pasta.

    If your breakfast is overnight oats with fruit and some chopped almonds, you can make it to >20g already by the time you’ve finished your first meal of the day.

    Enjoy!

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  • Achieve optimal fitness after 40 with the support of a dedicated community of subscribers. Discover effective strategies, including incorporating 10 almonds into your daily routine, to enhance your overall health and well

    10almonds Subcribers Take The Wheel!

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    ❓ Q&A With 10almonds Subscribers!

    Q: What kind of salt is best for neti pots?

    A: Non-iodised salt is usually recommended, but really, any human-safe salt is fine. By this we mean for example:

    • Sodium chloride (like most kitchen salts),
    • Potassium chloride (as found in “reduced sodium” kitchen salts), or
    • Magnesium sulfate (also known as epsom salts).

    Q: You talked about spearmint as reducing testosterone levels, what about ginseng for increasing them?

    A: Hormones are complicated and often it’s not a simple matter of higher or lower levels! It can also be a matter of…

    • how your body converts one thing into another
    • how your body responds (or not) to something according to how the relevant hormone’s receptors are doing
    • …and whether there’s anything else blocking those receptors.

    All this to say: spearmint categorically is an anti-androgen, but the mechanism of action remains uncertain.

    Panax ginseng, meanwhile, is one of the most well-established mysteries in herbal medicine.

    Paradoxically, it seems to improve both male and female hormonal regulation, despite being more commonly associated with the former.

    But it also…

    Bottom line: Panax ginseng is popularly taken to improve natural hormone function, a task at which it appears to excel.

    Scientists are still working out exactly how it does the many things it appears to do.

    Progress has been made, and it clearly is science rather than witchcraft, but there are still far more unanswered questions than resolved ones!

    Q: I like that the quizzes (I’ve done two so far) give immediate results , with no “give us your email to get your results”. Thanks!

    A: You’re welcome! That’s one of the factors that influences what things we include here! Our mission statement is “to make health and productivity crazy simple”, and the unwritten part of that is making sure to save your time and energy wherever we reasonably can!

    Q: Do you know if adrafanil is as good as modafinil? It seems to be a lot cheaper for the same result?

    A: Adrafinil is the pro-drug of modafinil. What this means is that if you take it, your own liver will use it to make modafinil inside you. So the end result is chemically the same drug.

    As to whether it’s as good, it depends what you need. It’s worth noting that anything that taxes liver function can be harmful if you take too much, and/or your liver is already strained for some reason.

    If in doubt, consult a doctor! And if it’s something that’s accessible to you, a recent lipids test (a kind of blood test that checks your liver health) is always a good thing to have.

    Q: Would love to see your take on polyphasic sleep!

    A: Watch this space

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  • Which Sugars Are Healthier, And Which Are Just The Same?

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    From Apples to Bees, and high-fructose C’s

    We asked you for your (health-related) policy on sugar. The trends were as follows:

    • About half of all respondents voted for “I try to limit sugar intake, but struggle because it’s in everything”
    • About a quarter of all respondents voted for “Refined sugar is terrible; natural sugars (e.g. honey, agave) are fine”
    • About a quarter of all respondents voted for “Sugar is sugar and sugar is bad; I avoid it entirely”
    • One (1) respondent voted for “Sugar is an important source of energy, so I consume plenty”

    Writer’s note: I always forget to vote in these, but I’d have voted for “I try to limit sugar intake, but struggle because it’s in everything”.

    Sometimes I would like to make my own [whatever] to not have the sugar, but it takes so much more time, and often money too.

    So while I make most things from scratch (and typically spend about an hour cooking each day), sometimes store-bought is the regretfully practical timesaver/moneysaver (especially when it comes to condiments).

    So, where does the science stand?

    There has, of course, been a lot of research into the health impact of sugar.

    Unfortunately, a lot of it has been funded by sugar companies, which has not helped. Conversely, there are also studies funded by other institutions with other agendas to push, and some of them will seek to make sugar out to be worse than it is.

    So for today’s mythbusting overview, we’ve done our best to quality-control studies for not having financial conflicts of interest. And of course, the usual considerations of favoring high quality studies where possible Large sample sizes, good method, human subjects, that sort of thing.

    Sugar is sugar and sugar is bad: True or False?

    False and True, respectively.

    • Sucrose is sucrose, and is generally bad.
    • Fructose is fructose, and is worse.

    Both ultimately get converted into glycogen (if not used immediately for energy), but for fructose, this happens mostly* in the liver, which a) taxes it b) goes very unregulated by the pancreas, causing potentially dangerous blood sugar spikes.

    This has several interesting effects:

    • Because fructose doesn’t directly affect insulin levels, it doesn’t cause insulin insensitivity (yay)
    • Because fructose doesn’t directly affect insulin levels, this leaves hyperglycemia untreated (oh dear)
    • Because fructose is metabolized by the liver and converted to glycogen which is stored there, it’s one of the main contributors to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (at this point, we’re retracting our “yay”)

    Read more: Fructose and sugar: a major mediator of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

    *”Mostly” in the liver being about 80% in the liver. The remaining 20%ish is processed by the kidneys, where it contributes to kidney stones instead. So, still not fabulous.

    Fructose is very bad, so we shouldn’t eat too much fruit: True or False?

    False! Fruit is really not the bad guy here. Fruit is good for you!

    Fruit does contain fructose yes, but not actually that much in the grand scheme of things, and moreover, fruit contains (unless you have done something unnatural to it) plenty of fiber, which mitigates the impact of the fructose.

    • A medium-sized apple (one of the most sugary fruits there is) might contain around 11g of fructose
    • A tablespoon of high-fructose corn syrup can have about 27g of fructose (plus about 3g glucose)

    Read more about it: Effects of high-fructose (90%) corn syrup on plasma glucose, insulin, and C-peptide in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and normal subjects

    However! The fiber content (in fruit) mitigates the impact of the fructose almost entirely anyway.

    And if you take fruits that are high in sugar and/but high in polyphenols, like berries, they now have a considerable net positive impact on glycemic health:

    You may be wondering: what was that about “unless you have done something unnatural to it”?

    That’s mostly about juicing. Juicing removes much (or all) of the fiber, and if you do that, you’re basically back to shooting fructose into your veins:

    Natural sugars like honey, agave, and maple syrup, are healthier than refined sugars: True or False?

    TrueSometimes, and sometimes marginally.

    This is partly because of the glycemic index and glycemic load. The glycemic index scores tail off thus:

    • table sugar = 65
    • maple syrup = 54
    • honey = 46
    • agave syrup = 15

    So, that’s a big difference there between agave syrup and maple syrup, for example… But it might not matter if you’re using a very small amount, which means it may have a high glycemic index but a low glycemic load.

    Note, incidentally, that table sugar, sucrose, is a disaccharide, and is 50% glucose and 50% fructose.

    The other more marginal health benefits come from that fact that natural sugars are usually found in foods high in other nutrients. Maple syrup is very high in manganese, for example, and also a fair source of other minerals.

    But… Because of its GI, you really don’t want to be relying on it for your nutrients.

    Wait, why is sugar bad again?

    We’ve been covering mostly the more “mythbusting” aspects of different forms of sugar, rather than the less controversial harms it does, but let’s give at least a cursory nod to the health risks of sugar overall:

    That last one, by the way, was a huge systematic review of 37 large longitudinal cohort studies. Results varied depending on what, specifically, was being examined (e.g. total sugar, fructose content, sugary beverages, etc), and gave up to 200% increased cancer risk in some studies on sugary beverages, but 95% increased risk is a respectable example figure to cite here, pertaining to added sugars in foods.

    And finally…

    The 56 Most Common Names for Sugar (Some Are Tricky)

    How many did you know?

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  • The Sun Exposure Dilemma

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    The Sun Exposure Dilemma

    Yesterday, we asked you about your policy on sun exposure, and got the above-pictured, below-described, set of answers:

    • A little over a third of respondents chose “I recognize the risks, but I think the benefits outweigh them”
    • A quarter of respondentschose “I am a creature of the shadows and I avoid the sun at all costs‍♀️”
    • A little over a fifth of respondents chose “I recognize the benefits, but I think the risks outweigh them”
    • A little under a fifth of respondents chose “I’m a sun-lover! Give me that vitamin D and other benefits!”

    All in all, this is perhaps the most even spread of answers we’ve had for Friday mythbuster polls—though the sample size was smaller than it often is.

    Of those who added comments, common themes were to mention your local climate, and the importance of sunscreen and/or taking vitamin D supplements.

    One subscriber mentioned having lupus and living in Florida, which is a particularly unfortunate combination:

    Lupus Foundation | Lupus & UV exposure: What you need to know

    Another subscriber wrote:

    ❝Use a very good sunscreen with a high SPF all the time. Reapply after swimming or as needed! I also wear polarized sunglasses anytime I’m outside.❞

    …which are important things to note too, and a lot of people forget!

    See also: Who Screens The Sunscreens? (on fearing chemical dangers, vs the protection given)

    But, onto today’s science for the topic at hand…

    We need to get plenty of sun to get plenty of vitamin D: True or False?

    True or False, depending on so many factors—to the point that many people get it wildly wrong in either direction.

    Whether we are getting enough vitamin D depends on many circumstances, including:

    • The climate (and depending on latitude, time of year) where we live
    • Our genes, and especially (but not only) our skintone
    • The clothes we wear (or don’t)
    • Our diet (and not just “how much vitamin D do we consume”)
    • Chronic diseases that affect vitamin D metabolism and/or requirements and/or sensitivity to the sun

    For a rundown on these factors and more, check out:

    Should I be getting my vitamin D levels checked?

    Notably, on the topic of whether you should stay in the sun for longer to get more vitamin D…

    ❝The body can only produce a certain amount of vitamin D at the time, so staying in the sun any longer than needed (which could be just a few minutes, in a sunny climate) is not going to help increase your vitamin D levels, while it will increase your risk of skin cancer.❞

    Source: Dr. Elina Hypponen, professor of Nutritional Epidemiology, and director of the Australian Centre for Precision Health at the University of South Australia Cancer Research Institute.

    In contrast, she does also note:

    ❝During winter, catching enough sun can be difficult, especially if you spend your days confined indoors. Typically, the required exposure increases to two to three hours per week in winter. This is because sunlight exposure can only help produce vitamin D if the UVB rays reach us at the correct angle. So in winter we should regularly spend time outside in the middle of the day to get our dose of vitamin D.❞

    See also: Vitamin D & Calcium: Too Much Of A Good Thing?

    We can skip the sun and get our vitamin D from diet/supplements: True or False?

    True! However, vitamin D is not the only health benefit of sun exposure.

    Not only is sunlight-induced serotonin production important for many things ranging from mood to circadian rhythm (which in turn affects many other aspects of health), but also…

    While too much sun can cause skin cancer, too little sun could cause other kinds of cancer:

    Benefits of Sunlight: A Bright Spot for Human Health

    Additionally, according to new research, the circadian rhythm benefits we mentioned above may also have an impact on type 2 diabetes:

    Can catching some rays help you fight off type 2 diabetes?

    Which way to jump?

    A lot of it depends on who you are, ranging from the factors we mentioned earlier, to even such things as “having many moles” or “having blonde hair”.

    This latter item, blonde hair, is a dual thing: it’s a matter of genetic factors that align with being prone to being more sensitive to the sun, as well as being a lesser physical barrier to the sun’s rays than dark hair (that can block some UV rays).

    So for example, if two people have comparably gray hair now, but one of them used to have dark hair and the other blonde, there will still be a difference in how they suffer damage, or don’t—and yes, even if their skin is visually of the same approximate skintone.

    You probably already know for yourself whether you are more likely to burn or tan in the sun, and the former group are less resistant to the sun’s damage… But the latter group are more likely to spend longer in the sun, and accumulate more damage that way.

    If you’d like a very comprehensive downloadable, here are the guidelines issued by the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence:

    NICE Guidelines | Sunlight exposure: risks and benefits

    …and skip to “At risk groups”, if you don’t want to read the whole thing; “Skin type” is also an important subsection.

    Writer’s note: genetics are complicated and not everyone will fall neatly into categories, which is why it’s important to know the individual factors.

    For example, I am light-skinned with slightly greying dark hair and blue-grey eyes, and/but also have an obscure Sámi gene that means my fair skin makes vitamin D easily, while simultaneously being unusually resistant to burning (I just tan).

    And yet! My hobbies include not getting skin cancer, so I tend to still be quite mindful of UV levels in different weathers and times of day, and make choices (schedule, clothing, sunscreen or not) accordingly.

    Bottom line:

    That big self-perpetuating nuclear explosion in the sky is responsible for many things, good and bad for our health, so be aware of your own risk factors, especially for vitamin D deficiency, and skin cancer.

    • If you have a predisposition to both, that’s unfortunate, but diet and supplementation at least can help with the vitamin D while getting modest amounts of sun at most.
    • Remember that you can only make so much vitamin D at once, so sunbathing for health benefits need only take a few minutes
    • Remember that sunlight is important for our circadian rhythm, which is important for many things.
    • That’s governed by specific photoreceptor cells, though, so we don’t need our skin to be exposed for that; we just need to be able to see sunlight.
    • If you’re going to be out in the sun, and not covered up, sunscreen is your friend, and yes, that goes for clear cold days under the winter sun too.
    • Most phone weather apps these days have a UV index score as part of the data they give. Get used to checking it as often as you’d check for rain.

    Stay safe, both ways around!

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    Learn to Age Gracefully

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  • The Seven-Day Sleep Prescription – by Dr. Aric Prather

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    You probably already know about sleep hygiene. So, what does this book have to offer?

    Dr. Aric Prather offers seven days’ worth of adjustments, practices to take up, from when you get up in the morning to when you lay your head down at night.

    Some you’ll surely be familiar with, like avoiding blue light and social media at night.

    Others, you might not be familiar with, like scheduling 15 minutes for worrying in the daytime. The rationale for this one is that when you find yourself inclined to worry at a time that will keep you awake, you’ll know that you can put off such thoughts to your scheduled “worrying time”. That they’ll be addressed then, and that you can thus sleep soundly meanwhile.

    Where the book really comes into its own is in such things as discussing how to not just manage sleep debt, but how to actually use it in your favour.

    Nor does Dr. Prather shy away from the truths of our world… That the world these days is not built for us to sleep well. That there are so many other priorities; to get our work done, to succeed and achieve, to pay bills, to support our kids and partners. That so many of these things make plenty of sense in the moment, but catch up with us eventually.

    Bottom line: what this book aims to give is a genuinely sustainable approach to sleeping—controlling what we can, and working with what we can’t. If you’d like to have a better relationship with sleep, this book is an excellent choice.

    Click here to check out the Seven-Day Sleep Prescription, and improve yours!

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  • Is Dairy Scary?

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    Is Dairy Scary?

    Milk and milk products are popularly enjoyed as a good source of calcium and vitamin D.

    In contrast, critics of dairy products (for medical reasons, rather than ethical, which is another matter entirely and beyond the scope of this article) point to risks of cancer, heart disease, and—counterintuitively—osteoporosis. We’ll focus more on the former, but touch on the latter two before closing.

    Dairy & Cancer

    Evidence is highly conflicting. There are so many studies with so many different results. This is partially explicable by noting that not only is cancer a many-headed beast that comes in more than a hundred different forms and all or any of them may be affected one way or another by a given dietary element, but also… Not all milk is created equal, either!

    Joanna Lampe, of the Public Health Sciences division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, writes:

    ❝Dairy products are a complex group of foods and composition varies by region, which makes evaluation of their association with disease risk difficult. For most cancers, associations between cancer risk and intake of milk and dairy products have been examined only in a small number of cohort studies, and data are inconsistent or lacking❞

    In her systematic review of studies, she noted, for example, that:

    • Milk and dairy products contain micronutrients and several bioactive constituents that may influence cancer risk and progression
    • There’s probable association between milk intake and lower risk of colorectal cancer
    • There’s a probable association between diets high in calcium and increased risk of prostate cancer
    • Some studies show an inverse association between intake of cultured dairy products and bladder cancer (i.e., if you eat yogurt you’re less likely to get bladder cancer)

    Since that systemic review was undertaken, more research has been conducted, and the results are… Not conclusive, but converging towards a conclusion:

    • Dairy products can increase or decrease cancer risk
    • The increase in cancer risk seems strongest when milk is consumed in quantities that result in too much calcium. When it comes to calcium, you can absolutely have too much of a good thing—just ask your arteries!
    • The decrease in cancer seems to be mostly, if not exclusively, from fermented dairy products. This usually means yogurts. The benefit here is not from the milk itself, but rather from the gut-friendly bacteria.

    You may be wondering: “Hardened arteries, gut microbiome health? I thought we were talking about cancer?” and yes we are. No part of your health is an island unrelated to other parts of your health. One thing can lead to another. Sometimes we know how and why, sometimes we don’t, but it’s best to not ignore the data.

    The bottom line on dairy products and cancer is:

    • Consuming dairy products in general is probably fine
    • Yogurt, specifically, is probably beneficial

    Dairy and Heart Disease

    The reason for the concern is clear enough: it’s largely assumed to be a matter of saturated fat intake.

    The best combination of “large” and “recent” that we found was a three-cohort longitudinal study in 2019, which pretty much confirms what was found in smaller or less recent studies:

    • There is some evidence to suggest that consumption of dairy can increase all-cause mortality in general, and death from (cancer and) cardiovascular disease in particular
    • The evidence is not, however, overwhelming. It is marginal.

    Dairy and Osteoporosis

    Does dairy cause osteoporosis? Research here tends to fall into one of two categories when it comes to conclusions, so we’ll give an example of each:

    1. “Results are conflicting, saying yes/no/maybe, and basically we just don’t know”
    2. “Results are conflicting, but look: cross-sectional and case-control studies say yes; cohort studies say maybe or no; we prefer the cohort studies”

    See them for yourself:

    1. Osteoporosis: Is milk a kindness or a curse?
    2. Consumption of milk and dairy products and risk of osteoporosis and hip fracture

    Conclusion: really, the jury is very much still out on this one

    Summary:

    • Moderate consumption of dairy products is almost certainly fine
    • More specifically: it probably has some (small) pros and some (small) cons
    • Yogurt is almost certainly healthier than other dairy products, and is almost universally considered a healthy food (assuming not being full of added sugar etc, of course)
    • If you’re going to have non-dairy alternatives to milk, choose wisely!

    That’s all we have time for today, but perhaps in a future edition we’ll do a run-down of the pros and cons of various dairy alternatives!

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