Researchers have discovered that eating more yogurt is associated with lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease, a remarkable new finding that could help scientists figure out new ways to combat such a major health epidemic. Scientists found that yogurt had a tremendous impact on hypertensive men and women.

While previous studies have shown that dairy products may help with cardiovascular help, it is possible that yogurt works in a different way to combat cardiovascular disease. The study suggests that combining yogurt with a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains could be key in living a heart-healthy life, researchers say.

The findings, published in the American Journal of Hypertension, is based on data from more than 55,000 women between the ages of 30 and 55 and 18,000 men between the ages of 40 and 75. Women who ate yogurt had a 30 percent reduction in risk while men had a 19 percent reduction, the study found.

“We hypothesized that long-term yogurt intake might reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems since some previous small studies had shown beneficial effects of fermented dairy products,” said one of the paper’s authors, Justin Buendia. “Here, we had a very large cohort of hypertensive men and women, who were followed for up to 30 years. Our results provide important new evidence that yogurt may benefit heart health alone or as a consistent part of a diet rich in fiber-rich fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.”