The study recommended protein supplementation for those who are ageing, as it may also be able to help with walking speed and preventing unhealthy weight loss.

Increasing the consumption of low-fat yoghurt and milk may need further study to find its adverse effect on health, but the study said it had been shown to help reduce levels of frailty.

Dr Alberto Lana, of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of Oviedo in Spain, said that low-fat milk could also protect against a precursor of frailty in the elderly, such as cardio-metabolic events.

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He said: “The biological mechanisms of the association are not entirely clear, but it seems reasonable to hypothesise that milk consumers become less frail due to the effect of milk proteins and a certain minerals, which could improve muscle and bone quality.”

The study looked at the general population from the older cohort of the study on nutrition and cardiovascular risk in Spain.

Those researched for the study were 60 and older and free of frailty at the outset of the study. Initial measurements were taken between 2008 and 2010, with a follow-up in 2012.

Those who were consuming seven or more servings of low-fat milk or yoghurt each week had a reduced chance of frailty than those who were consuming less than one serving per week.

The study also found that participants who consumed seven or more servings of low-fat dairy per week had less risk of slow walking speed and weight loss.

Lana added that consumption of milk could prevent bone mass loss and has bioactive peptides that may work to decrease levels of blood pressure.