Yogurt Research Highlights Point to Role in Disease Prevention and Maintaining Good Health

NEW YORK, June 14 /PRNewswire/ --   A panel of experts met today to address the health and lifestyle attributes of live and active culture (LAC) yogurt. Included among the group, convened by The National Yogurt Association (NYA), was parenting and family nutrition expert Dr. William Sears, who emphasized the role yogurt can play in helping to shape healthful eating habits among children.

"Parents are under the impression that they need to provide their children with a low-fat and low-sugar diet. That's a nutritional myth," said Dr. Sears. "The key is to offer your children a steady diet of nutrient-dense 'grow' foods, like live and active culture yogurt, which deliver needed nutrients and appeal to young taste buds."

Robert Garfield, Senior Vice President of Regulatory and Technical Affairs at the NYA, provided an overview of scientific research on the health potential of live and active culture yogurt. Among the health attributes discussed were the following:

• Yogurt is an excellent source of calcium, which is critical for bone growth, development and maintenance at every stage of life, especially for children. It plays a significant role in the prevention of osteoporosis, which afflicts one out of two women and one out of eight men.
• Yogurt is a good source of protein. In fact, an average eight-ounce serving provides approximately 20 percent of the Daily Value for protein.
• A report from Tufts University researcher Simin Meydani, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, points to even broader potential health benefits associated with eating live and active culture yogurt, including potential benefit to the immune system. Given the right circumstances, yogurt may help protect the intestinal tract.
• For people who are lactose intolerant, studies have shown that the live and active cultures found in yogurt permit the more than one quarter of American adults who cannot tolerate other dairy products to enjoy yogurt.
• Vaginal yeast infections affect nearly 12 million women each year. Research suggests that when eaten regularly, yogurt that contains l. Acidophilus may decrease yeast growth and infection in certain individuals by as much as three-fold.
• As many as 50 million Americans suffer from high blood pressure, or hypertension, which increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease. Yogurt delivers calcium, potassium and magnesium -- three nutrients that have been shown to reduce hypertension. Studies also show that a calcium-rich diet helps regulate blood pressure in women during and after pregnancy.

Garfield also announced that the NYA is in the initial stages of commissioning a new scientific research review concerning the nutrient digestibility of yogurt.

Making the case that women's nutrition was largely a matter of personal choice was Dr. Michele Cyr, Director of the Division of General Internal Medicine, Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education and Associate Professor of Medicine at Brown University School of Medicine. Dr. Cyr is co-author of The Complete Book of Menopause -- Every Woman's Guide to Good Health.

Dr. Cyr singled out osteoporosis as one of the greatest health risks for women, especially as women's life expectancy increases. She said the earlier a woman begins a nutritional plan to prevent osteoporosis, the better.

"One of the easiest ways to help prevent this debilitating disease is by making yogurt part of your daily diet. An eight-ounce serving provides approximately 400 mg of calcium. The recommended daily calcium intake is 1000 mg for pre-menopausal women and 1500 mg for post-menopausal women," said Dr. Cyr.

The NYA is the national non-profit trade organization representing manufacturers and marketers of live and active culture yogurt products, as well as suppliers to the industry. Its purpose is to sponsor research about the health attributes of yogurt with live and active cultures and serve as an information source to the trade and consumers.

SOURCE The National Yogurt Association

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