Buzz
Though yogurt contains 'live active cultures,' which might sound like a good source of probiotics, there’s no assurance that it holds enough of those beneficial bacteria to truly benefit your health.
While probiotics are important for health, scientists are still trying to understand which ones are effective and how well they work. If you’re interested in trying probiotics, it’s better to go for supplements, like pills, rather than relying on yogurt for the necessary dose. Melinda Wenner-Moyer elaborates on this point at Slate:
If your response to all of this is,
'I’ll just feed my kids yogurt,'
keep in mind that pediatric gastroenterologist Sonia Michail, from Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, mentioned that while yogurt can be healthy, it’s 'not a consistent or reliable source for probiotics.' Even if yogurt is full of bacteria when it’s made, the low pH of the mixture can kill them off. A
2010 study
discovered that 70% of probiotics in various yogurt types were dead after being in the fridge for 10 days. Many yogurt brands claim to contain 'live active cultures,' but they rarely specify how many are present, and
research indicates
that foods must contain between 10
6
to 10
8
live cultures per gram to be truly beneficial.
Supplements that have shown positive results in studies include Culturelle and Florastor, which help combat diarrhea caused by stomach bugs. A more comprehensive list of bacteria that have proven effective for various illnesses can be found in Table 1 of this paper from the Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology. For more information on probiotics, including whether they are good for healthy children, check out the link below.
Image credit: Indi Samarajiva
