By Setareh Kiumarsi
Should we eat yogurt with our meals or not?!
“Eating yogurt with food tastes so good…!”
“If there’s no yogurt with my meal, I can’t even swallow a bite…!”
You’ve either said sentences like these yourself… or at least heard them many times from those around you!
Yogurt is a highly nutritious food that’s made by fermenting milk with beneficial bacteria. It’s rich in calcium, various B vitamins, phosphorus, magnesium, and potassium. It contains a good amount of protein and, most importantly, it’s full of live bacteria (probiotics) that help digestion, absorption, and elimination in our intestines!
However, this very beneficial food has a sticky quality; produces a lot of moisture in the digestive tract; If it’s not consumed correctly or at the right time, it can fill your body with toxins and undigested phlegm?!
Yogurt with Animal Protein… Yes or No?
Imagine it’s lunchtime and you have kebab with rice or a stew like Gheimeh… You fill your plate and before sitting down, you grab a few spoons of cold yogurt from the fridge to go with it.
When yogurt is eaten with animal proteins (especially red meat, eggs, or seafood), it acts like glue around those proteins and makes them much harder to digest!
This combination turns the stomach environment acidic; causes the animal protein to ferment and turn toxic; and can lead to issues like acid reflux, heartburn, skin problems, weight gain, headaches, allergies, drowsiness, brain fog, laziness, and even depression….?!
So as a rule: never combine yogurt with meat, chicken, eggs, seafood, or cheese!
Yogurt with Vegetarian Meals…?!
If you really want to have yogurt with your lunch… make sure that meal doesn’t include any animal protein. Yogurt can safely be eaten alongside a purely vegetarian meal.
Also, ensure that your meal includes plenty of drying (catabolic) vegetables such as (carrots, leeks, celery, bell peppers, beets, or mung bean sprouts). Alternatively, add fresh herbs to your yogurt like( thyme, rosemary, spinach, parsley, basil, or dill )or even some beetroot. These act like sponges, soaking up the excess moisture of the yogurt and helping digestion!
So combinations like yogurt with spinach or yogurt with beets are great choices…!
Yogurt with mint or pennyroyal is also beneficial… but people who suffer from constipation should avoid this combo… as these herbs are astringent and can worsen the condition!
Fruit Yogurt.. Full of Health or Full of Harm?!
Did you know fruit yogurt is actually a wrong food combination?!
Fruit is light and meant to digest quickly, while yogurt is heavy and sticky, taking much longer to digest. When eaten together, both digest improperly, producing toxins in the process.
Fruit yogurts made with sour fruits (like strawberries, raspberries, or blueberries…) are even worse they greatly aggravate skin issues?!
As a rule, never mix yogurt with sour ingredients such as ( vinegar, lemon juice, or verjuice….)
Cold Yogurt or Frozen Yogurt?!
If you must have yogurt with your meal… don’t take it straight out of the fridge!
Cold yogurt becomes even heavier and stickier. Instead, take it out an hour or two before eating so it reaches room temperature, or warm it slightly by adding a bit of hot water.
Remember: eating cold yogurt or frozen yogurt is like committing a crime against your digestive system!
Yogurt and Cucumber…?!
Cucumber is extremely cold and moist. When combined with yogurt, it creates a phlegmatic, cooling, and fattening mixture.
Yogurt and cucumber is a great choice for the summer… it reduces internal heat and slows metabolism, which is why you crave it so much in hot weather! It’s also great for people who are thin and want to gain weight.
If you eat yogurt and cucumber… be sure to add plenty of spices like (thyme, turmeric, or dill) and avoid eating it during cold seasons.
Yogurt and Spices…!
Did you know that adding digestive spices to yogurt significantly improves its digestibility?
Add spices such as saffron, cardamom, cumin, fennel, thyme, rosemary, dried basil, black seed, turmeric, coriander seeds, or dried rose petals… to your yogurt.
For example:
* 1 part fennel + 1 part cumin + 1 part coriander seeds
* or 3 parts cardamom + 1 part dried rose
* or 3 parts turmeric + 1 part coriander seeds
Did you know the combination of yogurt and turmeric is actually considered a powerful *natural treatment for osteoporosis?!
Please make sure to mention the author, “Setareh Kiumarsi,” if you share or republish this article, which was written with hope for everyone’s health and love.
