There has been series of questions by pregnant women about what is the best yogurt for pregnancy. This is because this group pregnant women crave yogurt during pregnancy but care to know which are best for them and the health of their baby.
Yogurt helps pregnant women manage the troubles of morning sickness, low calcium levels and hydration. The calcium content of yogurt supplies adequate calcium to the growing baby for the formation of bones and other vital developments.
Since yogurt is prepared from milk with the aid of yogurt cultures that are actually bacteria, pregnant women must be careful with the kind of yogurt they take. The best yogurt for pregnancy is one that is fresh, well-prepared and well-packaged.
Can You Eat Yogurt In Pregnancy?
The myth that says yogurts are not healthy for pregnant women is rooted in the belief that the preparation may not meet the critical health standards for pregnant women.
Yogurt is a very healthy food choice in pregnancy. It is generally healthy because it involves at least three to four heating procedures including pasteurization.
After the addition of the yogurt culture, it undergoes pasteurization where the liquid is boiled at over 100 degrees for 60 minutes twice. The liquid is allowed to cool in between each step.
The fear that commercially made yogurts would not meet health standards has almost no basis because all government approved products must meet certain microbiological safety requirements. At the end of the process, the yogurt will contain helpful amounts of protein and calcium.
It will also have low fat content and a little high potassium and sodium component. So long as the yogurt is made with pasteurized milk, it is healthy and safe for consumption in pregnancy.
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How Much Yogurt Should a Pregnant Woman Eat?
Yogurt is a healthy food and like normal foods, you can eat as much as your body needs. You cannot be constrained with rules on how much to eat. Find the healthy and suitable yogurts available and feel free to eat it daily.
While doing that, listen to your body. It would sound the alarm when it’s time to control or ration your consumption. However, if you go with products with low sugar and yogurts made from skimmed milk, you may never have to worry about rations.
The tastes and things you crave are very often what your body needs in the moment. It’s okay to eat yogurts everyday but your other meals should contain other food sources. You can also try eating mashed nuts with yogurts or any other healthy alternative. As long as you do not take yogurts on repeat, thrice a day, everyday, you do not need to worry.
How you chose to moderate and organize your meal timetable is up to you. It’s okay to eat it once a week, a few times a week, daily, as an in between meal snack or any other choice you decide to go with.
There’s no upper limit to how much yogurt you can eat as a pregnant woman. Two things most people watch out for are sugar amounts in the yogurt and preparation process along with the milk used. Little to no sugar yogurt made from well pasteurized, skimmed milk remains the healthiest choice.
Benefits Of Yogurt In Pregnancy
Yogurt is a heart friendly food that nourishes the body and satisfies cravings. There are many nutritional benefits you can get from consuming yogurt frequently. Some of them include:
1. Amino Acid Supply
Amino acids are important to help promote the strengthening of the baby’s bone. Yogurts contain a reasonable amount of amino acids that meet the body’s requirements when consumed in large amounts.
2. Low Sugar and Cholesterol
Most yogurts contain low sugar. The sugar component can only be high when a particular brand chooses to add above average amounts. You can buy yogurts from brands that add little to no sugar in production.
Yogurt is generally seen as a heart friendly food because of its low cholesterol. Some yogurts produced by certain brands have no cholesterol. There are many sugar free and cholesterol free yogurts brands you can patronize if this quality is important for you.
3. Helps With Hydration
A major component of most yogurts is water. Taking yogurts help with hydration and relieves constipation.
Also Read: Can I Have Calamari While Pregnant
4. Promotes Proper Digestion of Food
Yogurts help with bowel movement and aids digestion. This makes it a great snack to be taken along with main meals or in between meals.
5. Reduces The Pain That Comes With Pregnancy Induced Heartburn
Most pregnant women suffer from heartburn from the first trimester to the last. Yogurt helps to reduce or relieve the discomfort that this causes.
6. Strengthens The Immune System
Yogurt contains essential vitamins that help strengthen the immune system, making your body’s defense against diseases stronger. This helps to ensure that your health and the health of your baby is protected.
What is the Best Yogurt for pregnancy?- 10 Best Yogurt For Pregnancy
The difference between most yogurt brands lies in the process of preparation and ingredients used. As such, the quality of the yogurts varies. The following are the top 10 best yogurts you can patronize during pregnancy.
1. Gogo Squeez Yogurtz
Made with cane sugar, fruit pectin, strawberry puree concentrate, raspberry puree concentrate, blueberry puree concentrate, vitamin D2, natural flavors and tapioca.
2. Chobani Greek Yogurt
Made with cultured pasteurized nonfat milk, cane sugar, water, raspberry puree strawberries, water, natural flavors and lemon juice.
3. Evaxo Low Fat Yogurt
Made with corn syrup, strawberry and berry flavors. Its composition was obtained from natural sources.
4. Siggis
Contains little sugar, thick and creamy. It is very rich in proteins and is made with probiotic milk cultures.
5. Activia Probiotic Yogurt
Contains strawberry flavor. Made with strawberry, peach and blueberry.
6. Yoplait Yogurt
Contains natural ingredients like strawberry, banana and lots more. It is 99% fat free.
7. La Fermiere Vanilla Bean Yogurt
Creamy, whole milk yogurt. Made from milk infused with Madagascar’s vanilla bean pods.
8. Gerber Yogurt Blend
Made with nutritious whole milk yogurt and real fruits. Contains zero trans fat with low general fat constituents.
9. Liberte Organic Yogurt
Whole milk yogurt made with Madagascar’s vanilla beans. Low in fat and no artificial flavors were used. Other ingredients used include: pasteurized organic milk, natural flavors, live and active cultures.
10. Noosa Peach Yogurt
Made with pasteurized whole milk, live and active cultures and fruits like peaches, cane sugar, water, pectin. No artificial flavors were used.
Is Plain Yogurt Good For Pregnancy?
Plain Yogurt otherwise known as regular yogurt is one of the two forms of yogurts. The other being the greek yogurt. They differ from each other based on the process of preparation. For plain yogurt, the preparation does not include the removal of whey and other liquid components.
Plain Yogurt often comes with a partially sour taste unlike the Greek yogurt that comes with a sharp, clear taste. Greek yogurt, with the aid of machines tends to be more refined in taste and texture.
The answer to the question above is heavily hinged on the ingredients added. Plain Yogurt usually has little to no sugar and very low fat content. Greek yogurt on the other hand is often very sweet with a relatively high sugar and fat content. Although, plain yogurt has a lower protein content than Greek yogurt.
Both plain and Greek yogurts can be consumed in pregnancy. The frequency of consumption will however depend on the brand and the kinds of ingredients used in preparation.
Pregnant women looking for low sugar yogurts should go for plain yogurts or Greek yogurts with little sugar. The Greek yogurt can be used to supplement protein consumption and can be consumed by women looking to eat more protein.
Best Probiotic Yogurt For Pregnancy
Research has shown that the consumption of probiotic yogurt helps reduce the risk of pre-eclampsia. It also helps manage situations that may arise due to inflammations and infections. Probiotic yogurts are healthy and beneficial to both the mother and baby.
There are several bacteria strains used in the making of probiotic yogurts. Some of the safest are lactobacillus and bifidobacterium. It is necessary to check the starter culture used in the production of the yogurts.
While there are lots of amazing brands out there, some are going to come off as better and choices will differ. Activia is a highly recommended yogurt brand. You can check it out and feel free to check the others till you find your favorite. All you have to do is ensure you check the ingredients used.
Also, yogurts by brands like Siggi, Yoplait and Chobani often have great taste and combinations. Siggi’s yogurts are often thick, creamy and low in sugar. Yoplait is generally regarded as heart friendly as it often contains little to zero fat. Chobani also contains zero fat and almost no sugar.
Noosa is another great yogurt brand of Australian origin. It does contain sugar and fat within the healthy range and comes in varieties.
Conclusion
Deciding to add yogurt to your meal timetable is a great choice as yogurts remain wonderful snacks to be eaten during or before main meals. However, not all yogurts will be good for everyone. Some contain sugar and fat while others are gluten free.
The best yogurt for pregnancy is the healthy, heart friendly one. Thankfully, there are plenty of such products available. There are lots of healthy options listed above and you can try exploring the others till you find the brand that you are most comfortable with.
