Yogurt is a popular food choice for breakfast and you can ramp up the health benefits it can provide by adding a spoonful of honey.
Two studies conducted at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign revealed that honey has a protective effect on the probiotic bacteria in yogurt. Many types of yogurt contain strains of probiotics such as Bifidobacterium animalis along with the standard yogurt starter cultures. Probiotics are beneficial for digestive health and can help promote regular bowel movements.
The problem with probiotics is they face the hostility of the enzymes in the mouth, stomach and intestines, which lessens the viability of the probiotics. Researchers wanted to determine if adding honey to yogurt would help support the viability of probiotics in the intestinal phase of digestion.
The results of the two studies showed that the addition of honey with yogurt supported the survival of the probiotic bacteria in the gut. Researchers did not find any changes in the intestinal transit time, or bowel frequency. Only 1 tablespoon of honey per serving of yogurt helped support the survival of the probiotic. Honey still counts as an added sugar so consumers need to be aware of that when adding it to yogurt, and especially yogurt that is already sweetened.
