10 reasons YOGURT is a top health food...

Yogurt....Hmm! A creamy drink one can't get enough of.  I love the feel against my tongue..I'm sure you do too..

For those who have never savored this feeling..I'm here to give you reasons why you should indulge in this delight..Asides from it's health benefits, it can also prolong your lifespan....

Here are some things you may not know about this Yogurt...

1. Yogurt is easier to digest than milk...
People who cannot tolerate milk either because they are lactose intolerant or because of a protein allergy can enjoy yogurt. The culturing process makes yogurt more digestible than milk. In pediatric practice, children who cannot tolerate milk can often take yogurt without any intestinal upset. While the amount varies among brands of yogurt,in general, yogurt has less lactose than milk. The culturing process has already broken down the milk sugar lactose into glucose and galactose , two sugars that are easily digested by lactose-intolerant people.

2. Yogurt contributes to colon health...
There's a medical truism that states ''You're only as healthy as your colon'' . When eating yogurt, you are caring for your colon in two ways.. First yogurt contains lactobacteria, intestines-friendly bacterial cultures that foster a healthy colon and even lower the risk of colon cancer. Lactobacteria especially Acidophilus promotes the growth of healthy bacteria in the colon and reduces the conversion of bile into carcinogenic bile acids. The more of these intestines-friendly bacteria that are present in your colon, the lower the chance of colon diseases.

Secondly, yogurt is a good source of calcium- a mineral that contributes to colon health and decreases the risk of colon cancer. Calcium discourages excessive growth of the cells lining the colon, which can place a person at high risk of colon cancer. Calcium also binds cancer-producing bile acids and keeps them from irritating the colon wall.

3. Yogurt improves the bio-availability of other nutrients...
Culturing of yogurt increases the absorption of calcium and B-vitamins. The lactic acid in the yogurt aids in the digestion of the milk calcium, making it easier to absorb.

4. Yogurt can boost your immunity...
Researchers who studied 68 people who ate two cups of live-culture yogurt daily for three months found that these persons produced higher levels of immunity boosting nterferon. The bacterial cultures in yogurt have also been shown to stimulate infection-fighting white blood cells in the blood streams. Some studies have shown yogurt cultures to contain a factor that has anti-tumor effect in experimental animals.

5.Yogurt aids healing after an intestinal infection...
Some viral and allergic gastrointestinal disorders injure the lining of the intestines especially the cells that produce lactase. This results in temporary malabsorbtion problems. This is why some children often cannot tolerate milk for a month or two after an intestinal infection. Yogurt however because it contains less lactose and more lactase is usually well tolerated by healing intestines and is a popular ''healing food'' for diarrhea. Most pediatricians recommend yogurt for children suffering from  various forms of in-digestions. Children recover faster from diarrhea when fed with yogurt. It is also advisable to take yogurt when on antibiotics as it will help minimize the effect of the antibiotics on the friendly bacteria in the intestines.

6. Yogurts can decrease yeast infections...
Research have shown that eating eight ounces of yogurt that contains live and active cultures daily reduces the amount of yeast colonies in the vagina and decreases the incidence of vaginal yeast infections.

7. Yogurt is a rich source of calcium...
An 8-ounce serving of most yogurt provides 450 mg of calcium, one-half of a child's RDA and 30 to 40 percent of an adults RDA for calcium. Because the live-active cultures in yogurts increase the absorption of calcium, an 8-ounce serving of yogurt gets more calcium into your body than the same quantity of milk.

8. Yogurt is an excellent source of protein...
Plain yogurt contains around ten to  fourteen grams of protein per eight ounces which amounts to twenty percent  of the daily protein requirement for most persons. In fact eight ounces of yogurt that contain live and active cultures, contains 20 percent more protein than the same volume of milk (10 grams versus 8 grams). Besides being a rich source of  protein, the culturing of the milk protein during fermentation makes these proteins easier to digest. For this reason, the proteins in yogurt are often called ''predigested.''

9. Yogurt can lower cholesterol...
There are a few studies that have shown that yogurt can reduce the blood cholesterol. This may be because the live cultures in yogurt can assimilate  the cholesterol or because yogurt binds bile acids, (which has also been shown to lower cholesterol), or both.

10. Yogurt is a ''grow food''...
Two nutritional properties of yogurt may help children with intestinal absorption problems grow: the easier digestibility of the proteins and the fact that the lactic acid in yogurt increases the absorption  of mineral. And even most picky-eaters will eat yogurt in dips and smoothies and as a topping.

Hey friends, lets take a health tip about yogurt cultures from regions around the world who consume a lot of yogurt, such as the Bulgarians who are noted for their longer lifespan and remain in good health well into old age..

Replace those frizzy drinks in your fridges with bottles of yogurt and lets grow old together.....*winks*

Living Healthy...