Get the health benefits of daily yogurt

Yogurt is incredibly nutritious. It's high in calcium, contains probiotics, and features a host of other health benefits. We'll go over all the ways that yogurt is healthy and give you tips to add more into your diet.

• Yogurt is a calcium-rich bone builder. It provides the same 300 milligrams per 250 millilitres (eight ounces) as milk. It also counts as a dairy food in the famously healthy DASH diet, proven to help control high blood pressure.
• Yogurt contains "good" bacteria, the kind that offer numerous health benefits, including boosting the immune system, alleviating diarrhea caused by some infections or treatment with antibiotics, relieving constipation, and even reducing the risk of developing colon cancer.
• Some people like to eat yogurt when they're taking antibiotics to replace the beneficial bacteria in the gut that the drugs obliterate.
• As far as yogurt's immune benefits go, more than 70 percent of the body's natural immune defenses are located in the digestive tract. Building up the population of good bacteria there may help boost production of important immune system compounds, making you more resistant to viruses.
• There's also evidence that women who regularly eat yogurt with live Lactobacillus acidophilus cultures get fewer yeast infections.
• Only yogurts labelled "contains live, active cultures" have bacteria that are still active. (The exception is yogurts that are labelled "heat-treated after culturing.")

• Substitute yogurt for sour cream in baked goods.
• Make your favourite chip or vegetable dip using low-fat plain yogurt instead of sour cream.
• Replace half the mayonnaise in creamy salad dressings with yogurt.
• Use yogurt as a restaurant-worthy garnish for puréed vegetable soups, such as a squash or carrot soup. First, thin the yogurt with low-fat milk to make it the same consistency as the soup. Drop dollops of the mixture into the soup, then draw the tip of a knife or toothpick through it to create swirls.
• Use a dollop on chili instead of sour cream.
• Make cool, creamy fruit soup with low-fat plain yogurt, sliced peaches, strawberries, orange juice, and honey. Process in the blender, then garnish with fresh mint leaves.
• Serve a cucumber salad made with grated cucumbers and carrots, diced onion, chopped dill, low-fat plain yogurt, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Top sliced fruit with yogurt or create a beautiful breakfast parfait. In a tall, chilled parfait glass, layer low-fat plain yogurt with fresh blueberries and oat and nut granola.
• Dip Granny Smith apples into yogurt for a refreshing snack.
• Make a refreshing yogurt cooler (ayran, a traditional Turkish beverage) by combining equal parts yogurt and cold water and a pinch of salt in a blender. Serve over crushed ice.
• To make yogurt creamier and richer tasting, make yogurt "cheese." Spoon yogurt into a cheesecloth-lined sieve, set over a bowl, and refrigerate for at least six hours or overnight. Discard the liquid (whey) that has accumulated in the bowl. Use the "cheese" as a substitute for cream cheese or sour cream. Stir in chopped fresh herbs, scallions, and garlic to make a delicious low-fat herbed cheese spread.

Hopefully we've inspired you to increase your yogurt intake. It's good for you, and there are countless tasty ways to fit it into your existing diet. So go for it! Yogurt is a fantastic addition to your diet.