Plain Greek Yogurt
Why plain Greek yogurt is anti-inflammatory
Plain Greek yogurt is anti-inflammatory, and the reason is the lactic acid bacteria that ferment it. They feed on the lactose in milk and turn it into acid, and that acid thickens the milk and makes it sour. Straining then drains off the watery whey. Plain means nothing goes back in: the ingredient list stops at milk and live cultures.
The effect on inflammation itself is small. Young men ate plain Greek yogurt every day for twelve weeks, against a group eating a carbohydrate pudding of the same calories. The yogurt group ended with one of the main inflammation signals in a blood test lower. They were all exercise training at the same time, so the yogurt was not the only thing working.
Fat is the one choice left in a plain pot. Taking the fat out of a flavoured pot usually lets sugar in to replace it. A plain pot has nothing to replace it with, so the 0% and whole milk versions differ in fat and calories and nothing else.
Pots sold as Greek style are often thickened with cream, milk powder or starch rather than strained. That leaves in the milk sugar that straining would have removed, and milk sugar is the part many adults digest poorly. Read the ingredients: if the list runs past milk and live cultures, it is not plain.
Heat kills the bacteria, so add it to a hot dish only after the pan comes off the heat. It also works in place of sour cream or mayonnaise. Add fruit at home if you want it sweet.
Plain Greek Yogurt on the AIP diet
The elimination phase of the Autoimmune Protocol takes out every dairy product, and buying it plain does not change that. What the protocol is avoiding is the milk protein, which fermenting and straining both leave intact. Coconut yogurt is the usual stand-in for the same spoonful. Strained dairy is a sensible one to test first when foods are reintroduced later, because most of the lactose has already gone.
Benefits
- Fermenting eats most of the lactose, so a pot sits easier than a glass of milk
- Eaten daily, it left an inflammation signal in the blood lower than an equal-calorie pudding
- Bought plain, it carries no added sugar at all
- The live cultures are still in the pot when you eat it
Watch out for
- Milk protein comes through fermentation intact and is a common trigger in autoimmune conditions
- Greek style pots are often thickened rather than strained, so they keep more milk sugar
- Sweetened Greek yogurts sit on the same shelf and behave like a dessert
- Heating it after fermentation kills the live cultures
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Frequently asked
Is plain Greek yogurt inflammatory?
No. Fermenting it leaves live bacteria and very little milk sugar behind, and buying it plain means no sugar is stirred back in. Sweetened Greek yogurts are a different product, and a fruit pot can carry as much sugar as a dessert.
Should I buy 0% or whole milk plain Greek yogurt?
Either one. With no sugar in the pot, the two differ in fat and calories and nothing else, so pick on how filling you find it. The fermentation and the live cultures are the same in both.
What is the difference between Greek yogurt and Greek style?
Greek yogurt is strained, so the watery whey and most of the milk sugar leave the pot. Greek style is usually thickened with cream, milk powder or starch instead. The ingredient list tells you which one you are holding.
Is plain Greek yogurt allowed on the AIP diet?
No. The elimination phase removes all dairy, and plain does not exempt it, because the milk protein is what the protocol is avoiding. Coconut yogurt fills the same slot until dairy is reintroduced later.
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