Fat
Nutritionists usually suggest choosing nonfat yogurt. Do that and you’ll find both regular and Greek yogurts with less than 1 gram, as they’re made with skim milk. But if you go full fat, regular yogurt has fewer fat grams. A 100-gram serving of full-fat Greek yogurt has 5 grams of fat, half of it being saturated. Conversely, the same portion of regular yogurt made from whole milk contains 3 grams of fat, with 2 grams of saturated fat.
“A little disclaimer that goes along with promoting dairy products is that we usually suggest that people get a lower fat version of it,” Lendway says. U.S. dietary guidelines recommend that adults eat three servings of dairy a day and that saturated fat be limited to less than 10 percent of your daily calories.
However, some studies suggestfull-fat dairy may be betterfor weight loss and heart disease, despite its high calorie count as long as there is a focus on fermented dairy products and limiting butter and cream.
Calcium
Regular yogurt has more calcium than Greek yogurt because the straining of Greek yogurt removes some of the original calcium. However, in both instances, yogurt is an easy way to get calcium, because you don’t have to eat as much of it compared to green vegetables.
“I’m all for eating green vegetables, but sometimes it’s a little bit hard to get your calcium and iron from these vegetable sources. You just have to eat more of it,” Lendway says.
For example, even though cooked kale boasts 150 mg of calcium, it falls short of the 183 mg found in an equivalent serving of low-fat regular yogurt. Opting for full-fat yogurt doesn’t provide any additional calcium compared to its low-fat counterpart either.
Probiotics
“When it comes to the best bang for the buck, yogurt is one of our best dairy sources. And one of the biggest pros in that is having those probiotics,” Lendway says.
Probiotics play a crucial role in digestion, supporting the immune system and absorbing essential vitamins. Certain medications like antibiotics can kill a lot of those essential bacteria. Lendway recommends repopulating what’s lost by having multiple servings of yogurt (or other fermented foods), especially after a round of antibiotics.
Lactose
Thanks to its straining process, Greek yogurt has less lactose than regular yogurt. But even regular yogurt has less lactose than milk due to the fermentation process that eats away at the naturally occurring sugar. Therefore, some people with an intolerance to other dairy products might be able to eat yogurt without complications and may eventually begin to better tolerate lactose in general.
How to incorporate yogurt into cooking
Plain yogurt can act as a blank canvas in recipes, as it is capable of transforming into both sweet and savory creations. Whether it’s eaten straight from the container or incorporated into various dishes, it’s a protein-rich option that requires neither knife nor fork, making it particularly well-suited for individuals with hand mobility issues or dysphagia, where swallowing poses a challenge.
“It’s an ancient food that delivers on modern 21st century wellness needs,” Coffield says.
Baking: Make pizza crust, pancakes and cheesecakes with yogurt as a healthier alternative in baking. Doing so makes traditional baked goods more nutritious.
Marinade: Use yogurt as a marinade for meat to enhance tenderness.
Appetizers: Create diverse appetizers, such as ranch dip and homemade yogurt cheese (labneh).
Substitution in recipes: Swap out mayonnaise with yogurt in dishes such as potato salad, dips, macaroni salad or coleslaw for a healthier twist. You can also use yogurt to replace cream in foods like soup by adding it to the dish during the final stages of cooking.
Aaron Kassraie writes about issues important to military veterans and their families for AARP. He also serves as a general assignment reporter. Kassraie previously covered U.S. foreign policy as a correspondent for the Kuwait News Agency’s Washington bureau and worked in news gathering forUSA Todayand Al Jazeera English.
