Anyone who ignores French stinky cheeses should think twice. Roquefort eaters could actually live longer.
French cheeses have a worldwide reputation. For their quality, yes, but not only because of that. “The smell comes to you from afar,” summarized The New York Times agree together. Years ago, China decided to impose a French cheese blockade, out of fear of loose bacteria.
A British university once declared a cheese from Boulogne the worst smelling cheese in the world. “That winning cheese was so strong that it was described as farm smell mixed with poop, odorous from up to fifty meters away,” said Guinness World Records.
But there is light at the end of the stinking tunnel. People who eat smelly raw-milk French cheeses may live longer. And their motor skills are better, because their muscles remain in better condition.
This is evident from research by a team of scientists from, among others, the Clermont Auvergne University in Clermont-Ferrand. They noted that fermented foods are very fashionable these days because certain bacteria in food are said to be healthy. “But when we ask our students about fermented food, they mainly mention beer and yogurt. Raw milk cheeses contain an extraordinary wealth of microorganisms,” researcher Laurent Rios told the French press.
Happy worms
These microorganisms are said to be good for people’s health and longevity. To measure the effects, the scientists selected eight raw milk cheeses, such as roquefort, comté, brie and époisses: the real stinkers among French cheeses. Because the effects on people’s lifespan could only be determined after their death, a faster alternative was chosen.
The cheeses were fed to a select group of special worms, with a length of less than 1 millimeter. Their metabolism is partly comparable to that of humans, but they live a lot shorter: about twenty days. “This makes it easier to study the effect on old age. We have given thousands of worms nutritional supplements of our cheeses, comparable to a 20 gram portion of French cheese for a human.”
The effect was remarkable. The mini worms that ate stinky cheese lived significantly longer than the worms that did not eat cheese. Some even 77 percent longer. The microorganisms in the cheese block molecules in the body that are partly responsible for cardiovascular disease and disorders of the nervous system and joints.
Better motor skills
The tested worms not only lived longer, but also ‘happier’. “They can move better throughout their lives. Their mobility improved later in life. The muscles of the cheese-eating worms were better maintained.”
The best scores were achieved with two of the eight French raw milk cheeses: Saint-Nectaire and goat cheese. New research has been carried out, this time in the laboratory with human cartilage. And positive effects were measured there too. Less inflammation and fewer harmful enzymes were measured.
The scientists say that further research is needed to learn more about, for example, the differences in effects between different cheeses. But with such initial results, you’re a loser if you still pay attention to that ‘barnyard with poop’ smell. “Eating about 20 grams per day is enough,” says researcher Rios. “That is a modest amount that most cheese lovers will happily eat.”
Also kill by bacteria
Although: not everyone grows old thanks to raw milk cheese. Salmonella, listeria and E. coli bacteria were also found during inspections in raw milk French cheeses. Research by the French public broadcaster showed that in 2015 and 2016, around ten people died and almost eighty people became ill after eating raw milk cheese contaminated with dangerous bacteria.
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