What Yogurt Is Safe to Eat During Pregnancy?

Motherhood is an incredible thing. And as happy as you are to become a mother, the weight of worries that fall over you with pregnancy is huge. The responsibility of being a good mother becomes as soon as the fetus takes place in the womb, and since then, there has been no escape from it. And every mother accepts that responsibility as a privilege and does their best to fulfill every need of their child. The diet is one of a pregnant mothers’ most remarkable worries. What to eat, what not to eat, everything is constantly worrying them. Yogurt is a popular food among expecting mothers. But what yogurt is safe to eat during pregnancy?

Want to find the exact answer?

If so, it is time to read more!

Here, we are going to walk you through everything you need to know about eating yogurt during pregnancy.

Is yogurt good during pregnancy? – Before discussing what yogurt is safe to eat during pregnancy

A lot of expecting mothers try to eat everything that is good for their baby. During the time of pregnancy, it is essential for a woman to maintain the nutrition in her diet. Because the baby also absorbs the nutrition from the mother, there are certain nutrients like protein and calcium a mother needs to consume in increased amounts.

Yogurt is one of the most popular food items that are in the diet of pregnant mothers mainly because it is easy to consume and has many benefits. Since yogurt contains protein, folate, fiber, and calcium in high amounts, it is certainly a good food item to consume for expected mothers.

Yogurt is also one of the most delicious probiotics as well as it is easy to consume. Probiotics or the live culture contains healthy bacteria. We all know that the bones and the teeth get weaker with the pregnancy and the live culture helps protect teeth and bones. They also prevent digestive problems and help the digestion process so the mothers can absorb necessary nutrition easily.

What are the benefits of yogurt during pregnancy and What yogurt is safe to eat during pregnancy?

Yogurt gives many health benefits to the consumer. Many health benefits of yogurt are very important to expecting mothers.

• Probiotics boost the immune system.
• A research revealed that yogurt could protect pregnant mothers and children from the effects of heavy metal exposure.
• Great for mothers that cannot chew their food because of the pains in their teeth or gums.
• Calcium in yogurt is good for maintaining blood pressure at a normal level.
• Lactose intolerant people can also consume yogurt.

But the problem is there are hundreds of different types of products that have various amounts of different substances in them, and not all of them are good for a pregnant mother. The trick is to find the best thing for both mother and the baby because, as we mentioned earlier, the baby consumes what the mother consumes.

What are the types of yogurt I can purchase from the market?- Must know facts before digging up what yogurt is safe to eat during pregnancy

There are many types of different yogurt that you can purchase from the market. Before getting into what are the best yogurt products for a pregnant woman, let us get an idea about the choices you have.

Plain Yogurt

Plain yogurt, as the name suggests, is yogurt that does not contain any sweetener or other additives. The percentages of the yogurt can change, and it is mentioned on the label of the product. With different percentages, the nutrition may vary as well. Plain yogurt is considered the healthiest option, and the consumer can also add fruits, nuts, granola, sugar, honey, or anything they like to make the yogurt fit their taste.

Greek Yogurt

Greek yogurt is famous for containing 30% more satiating protein than traditional yogurt. The taste is a bit sour in Greek yogurt, and it feels a tart. The reason for the different consistency in Greek yogurt is the extra straining step it undergoes. When making yogurt out of milk, bacteria stand added for the yogurt to be fermented. Then the yogurt is strained with a cheesecloth, traditionally twice. But for Greek yogurt, an extra straining step is done to reduce the whey, lactose, calcium, sodium, and sugar. Greek yogurt only contains around 40 milligrams of sodium, which is half the amount of regular yogurts.

Goat’s Milk Yogurt

When considering goat’s milk, yogurt is popular worldwide and has a slightly sweet and salty flavor. Goat’s Milk Yogurt has lower calcium and higher amounts of fat than cow milk. Regardless of the fat, Goat’s Milk Yogurt is more digestible than other types of yogurt, including plant-based ones. Goat’s Milk Yogurt is also rich in essential nutrients like protein and calcium and contains many probiotics.

Sheep’s Milk Yogurt

Sheep’s Milk Yogurt has twice the amount of protein as the regular yogurts and is also rich in Vitamin B. The amount of fat in Sheep’s milk is high, but it is considered a healthy fat, much like in olives and nuts.

Soy Yogurt

Soy Yogurt can be enjoyed by both vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. It is low in cholesterol or saturated fat, therefore considered a good substitution for regular yogurt for people who are suffering from or have the risk of getting non-contagious diseases. Soy Yogurt is rich in calcium. It is good for decreasing blood sugar levels. It contains fewer calories than regular yogurts.

Icelandic Yogurt & Australian Yogurt

Each of these yogurt types provides different health benefits. But not all of them should be consumed by all the people, there are many attributes to be considered when choosing the type that suits your health the most. Especially when you are pregnant, you have to be more careful than ever. So let’s see what type of yogurt is best for mothers that are expecting.

Is plain yogurt good for pregnancy?

Pregnant mothers suffer from nausea and motion sickness often. Therefore, sometimes sweetened or flavored food items can be unlikable. This is why Plain yogurt is good during pregnancy. It is tasty but not so much that it tastes like something else entirely. You can also add different additives you like, like honey or sugar, depending on your taste, to improve the meal. Plain yogurt can be converted or combined with other food to serve your cravings. As an example, you can make a smoothie that is rich, healthy, and tasty.

Also, yogurt can be a great main meal, especially for breakfast. It is light but still full of nutrients. It can also be consumed within meals. These benefits, combined with all the health advantages of Plain yogurt, make Plain yogurt a great addition to a pregnant woman’s diet.

What yogurt is safe to eat during pregnancy? – Is Greek yogurt safe during pregnancy?

Many scientists agree that Greek Yogurt is the best type of yogurt to consume during pregnancy. There are many enhanced health benefits in Greek Yogurt than Plain yogurt that are especially important for expecting mothers. Greek Yogurt contains more protein than traditional yogurt. It also has a slightly sour taste, which pregnant ladies find pretty appealing. Yogurt is a pretty much easy-to-find source of calcium that strengthens bones and teeth, which get weaker during pregnancy. It also helps the baby in the womb to grow a healthy skeleton. B vitamins, probiotics, and phosphorus are some other important nutrients you can receive from consuming Greek Yogurt.

Greek yogurt can be dressed with other food like Berries and honey, and they taste great together. Greek Yogurt does not contain much whey, so it is solid and creamy. Some pregnant ladies struggle with eating plain yogurt because it is not solid; hence it makes them nauseous. With Greek yogurt, pregnant ladies do not have to face that problem.

During the pregnancy, especially the third trimester, it is common to have bloating problems. This happens due to indigestion and gastritis. Consuming Greek Yogurt during and within meals can help mothers digest other food items easily, reducing the bloating problem.

What are the ways I can consume yogurt during pregnancy?

As we mentioned earlier, you can add nuts, honey, or other things you like and consume them together. This will help you digest the other food items better as well.

Yogurt smoothies are a popular snack among pregnant mothers. It is cold and rich. However, you have to be careful of the additives that are loaded with sugar, so try natural sweeteners like berries when making the smoothie. Some other things you can add to the smoothie are Cocoa, Greens, Nut butter, and Avocado. Smoothies are easier to make and consume.

You can try using yogurt as a topping if you want to try something savory or different. Nachos, tacos, and many other snacks taste great with a yogurt topping. But always be careful of what you consume when you are pregnant, and see if the food is healthy for you and the baby both.

Just as a topping, you can also make yogurt into a dip. It is not untold that you need to eat more fruits during pregnancy, and dipping them in yogurt is always a good way to make the fruits sweeter and tastier. It will help you consume more fruits too.

You can also use unsweetened yogurt as a sour cream substitute during pregnancy. Both sour cream and yogurt are good during pregnancy but using yogurt will have more benefits.

So if you do not feel like eating yogurt out of the container, you can try these ways.

What should you consider when adding yogurt to your diet during pregnancy?

• Make sure the milk used to make yogurt is pasteurized. Unpasteurized milk can contain a harmful bacteria called Listeria, which can be fatal to the fetus. Further, the Listeria bacteria can cross the placentae. This research explains the harms of Listeria for the fetus and the pregnant mothers as well as ordinary human beings.
• Be careful about lactose intolerance. Naturally, yogurt can be consumed by people that are lactose intolerant. Most of the time, 66% of the lactose in yogurt can be digested by lactose-intolerant people than the lactose in milk. However, there are limits to this, just like anything. So, be careful when consuming yogurt if you have lactose intolerance.

There are more to consider!

• Always check the label. There are many sweeteners and additives added to yogurt, some of which may result in poor health for both mother and the baby. Therefore, always check the ingredients on the label.
• Also, check for expiration dates. The shelf life of yogurt is 7 – 14 days if properly stored. But during pregnancy, you should be further careful so try to buy yogurts as close to the manufactured date as possible.
• If you are suffering from asthma or similar conditions, let the yogurt that is taken out of the refrigerator. Make sure to wait for a few minutes before consumption. Try to avoid yogurt if you have a cold, or a sore throat because it can end up doing more harm than good.
• If you prefer eating full-fat yogurt, try to eat small amounts of that because fat can clog the arteries and have negative effects on heat and the bloodstream. Fat can also be bad for the digestive system, which is one of the most critical systems in your body during pregnancy. You need nutrients and a lot of them, so avoid doing anything that disturbs the digestion process.

Be careful, and All the best!

These are some of the facts you should be careful about when adding yogurt as an item to your diet during pregnancy. Since you want what is best for you and the baby, you must pay close attention to these details. As long as you are cautious, there is no harm in adding yogurt to your daily diet. Now you know what yogurt is safe to eat during pregnancy. We hope you enjoy the wonderful wonder that is about to be born healthy and happy because you are a great mother that takes care of the baby from day one. Good Luck!