Keep Your Gut In Check With Natures Probiotic – Yogurt!

Yogurt has long been cited as healthy, but many people don’t realize how valuable it can be for your health. Yogurt is helpful for boosting your immune system, relieving ulcers and helping to fight yeast infections. Yogurt has these great benefits because of the unique way it is made. Milk or cream is mixed with live active cultures of ‘good’ bacteria. These ‘good’ bacteria actually fight off the ‘bad’ bacteria that can make us sick and that cause yeast or urinary tract infections. We also need a balance of these bacteria to keep our immune system healthy and promote good digestion.

Antibiotics are one of the most harmful medicines when it comes to this perfect balance our bodies require. Lets compare taking antibiotics to clear cutting a forest. Clear cutting a forest is cutting down every tree and brush in a certain area. This basically leaves the land barren. Now apply this to our body. Antibiotics are the initial clear cutting of every organism in our digestive tract. The diarrhea that often occurs while taking antibiotics is like the erosion that happens after clear cutting the land. The Yeast infection is the quick undergrowth that occurs next. The tree farmer wants new tree growth but the quick growing undergrowth cuts back the amount of young saplings that survive because they don’t have the sunshine and other nutrients they need. So when you have to take antibiotics you should also take a probiotic to return your digestive track back to its healthy state full of live healthy bacteria. One form of probiotic is Yogurt.

When purchasing yogurt look for these qualities:

• A natural product. Organic is best.
• A yogurt that does not have added sugar, high fructose corn syrup, or trans fats.
• A yogurt that is not pasteurized after the cultures have been added as this will kill the cultures and you will not reap their benefits.
• Buy yogurt farthest from the sell by date. You want to eat fresh yogurt. The live ‘good bacteria are at their best and most active. Buying local yogurt instead of big commercial yogurts help to ensure they are the freshest.

Yogurt can be incorporated into your diet in a variety of ways. By adding fruit, berries, granola or nuts to your yogurt, you can turn it into a delicious replacement for your usual dessert.

One way to make sure the yogurt you are eating is fresh is to Make It Yourself! I use starter from Stonyfield as it is local and organic, plus it just makes great yogurt. It might take you a couple of tries to get it just right, but it is well worth it. Give it a try, and if you have any questions just let me know!

Nancy’s Recipe for the Freshest Yogurt Anywhere

¼ cup plain yogurt
4 cups milk

Heat milk in a double boiler until it reaches 180 degrees. You can use a regular pot but you will have to stir it constantly so it doesn’t scorch on the bottom. Let the milk then cool to 120 degrees. Using a whisk slowly add the yogurt into the milk and mix well. You do not want the mixture to foam up so mix slowly. It is essential that you use a thermometer to keep the yogurt at the right temperature. If the yogurt cultures go above 120 it will kill them but if they are below 100 they do not grow and multiply which thickens the yogurt.

After you have mixed the yogurt in with the cooled milk pour this into quart size glass jars and seal with lids. This mixture needs to be kept at 120 until it thickens. This time will vary depending on your yogurt culture. Remember the freshest is the best so try to buy a local organic brand. I use Stonyfield yogurt. You can keep the yogurt in your oven with just the oven light on but I like to use a small cooler. I place the jars in the cooler and fill up the cooler with warm water. The water and the cooler insulate the heat inside the box as the cultures do their thing. Check it after an hour. You are looking for yogurt that is just starting to gel or thicken. If you wait until it is solid the yogurt will have a sour flavor. (if this happens just use it for cooking or smoothies and make more for eating). When your yogurt is done just put it in the refrigerator. Let it cool and then eat.

Making yogurt takes time to master. Here are a few tips I have learned:

• Always use clean sterile equipment so only your yogurt culture is growing.
• Use a thermometer.
• Don’t get discouraged if your first batch isn’t exactly right, Practice makes perfect.
• Some whey will separate from your yogurt as it cools simple stir it back in or pour it off.
• If your yogurt is not as thick as you want leave it in the warmer for a longer time.
• Sweeten your yogurt as you use it instead of trying to add sugar to the milk culture.
• Use yogurt in recipes in place of milk, in smoothies, or top with your favorite fruit, nuts, or granola for a quick snack or breakfast.