DAIRY: The matrix matters

The Consumer Education Project (CEP) of Milk SA communicates dairy's health and nutritional benefits to consumers, reaching the public and health professionals. Messages range from reinforcing well-known and long-established information to sharing the latest scientific findings on the goodness of dairy. The CEP is well-positioned to share the most recent evidence-based research on dairy and its role in health and nutrition with health professionals in South Africa. The nutrients contained in dairy are essential for helping to meet dietary reference intakes of the population, and specifically providing the gap nutrients identified in South African diets. The nutrients in milk and other dairy may also contribute to lowering the risk of non-communicable diseases. Diets do, however, not consist of nutrients in isolation. Because whole foods are consumed, South Africa has adopted its food-based dietary guidelines in 2013, including the dairy-related one: "Have milk, maas or yoghurt every day". This is supported by nutrition science that has shifted focus from single nutrients to researching how whole foods affect our health. The role of dairy in health and nutrition extends beyond its nutrient content. This is likely due to the dairy matrix effect which refers to the sum of the nutrients and other components within the physical–chemical structure of the dairy products and how they affect health outcomes.  Foods consist of many different nutrients and components (bioactive compounds and non-nutritive elements) that sit within complex physical structures – a fluid (e.g. milk) and semi-gel or spoonable structure (e.g. yoghurt) or a solid (e.g. cheese). The 'food matrix' describes food in terms of its physical form, nutrient content and how these interact. It is especially true for dairy foods like milk, cheese and yoghurt. Research recognises that dairy foods' health effects surpass their nutrient benefits. Dairy, as a whole food, is greater than the sum of its parts and the unique interaction of the nutrients within the diary, referred to as the Dairy matrix, is responsible for its many health benefits. The CEP works closely with the International Dairy Federation (IDF), and the literature on the dairy matrix accessed through the IDF was used to develop communication material on the dairy matrix. This review expands on the concept of the dairy matrix and how it impacts the health benefits of milk.