Savvy Eating, 8/3/22: Love Cheese? Ayurveda Indian Medicine, Yogurts for T1Ds

Love cheese? Thank your ancestors. They were eating dairy thousands of years before they could digest it was posted by Jason Goodyer for ScienceFocus.com, 29 July 2022.

A study carried out by scientists from the University of Bristol and University College London, tracing human dairy consumption for more than 9,000 years, has found that it turns out that our love of dairy may be down to our ancestors’ exposure to famine and disease.

“To digest lactose we need to produce the enzyme lactase in our gut. Almost all babies produce lactase, but in the majority of people globally that production declines rapidly between weaning and adolescence,” said the study’s co-author Prof George Davey Smith, from the University of Bristol. “However, a genetic trait called lactase persistence has evolved multiple times over the last 10,000 years and spread in various milk-drinking populations in Europe, central and southern Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Today, around one-third of adults in the world are lactase persistent.”

By computer analyzing the pattern of milk and dairy consumption of humans over the last 9,000 years, based on ancient DNA studies, data from the UK Biobank, and archaeological data, the team was able to show that the lactase persistence genetic trait only emerged in around 1,000 BC.

“The lactase persistence genetic variant was pushed to high frequency by some sort of turbocharged natural selection. The problem is, such strong natural selection is hard to explain,” said co-author Prof Mark Thomas of University College London.

What traditional Indian medicine teaches about eating well with diabetes was written by Susan Weiner for Healio.com/endocrinology, 2 August 2022. Susan Weiner talks with Parul Kharod about the ancient medical knowledge system known as Ayurveda and what it can reveal about living with diabetes.

Ayurveda is an ancient medical system dating back more than 5,000 years. Ayur means “life,” and Veda means “knowledge.” Thus, Ayurveda is the knowledge of how to live a healthy, happy life. According to Ayurveda, health is not absence of disease. Ayurveda focuses on preservation of a healthy body and prevention of disease. The principles of Ayurveda focus on each person’s unique constitution and aim to bring balance of mind, body, and spirit in a personalized approach.

The principal tenet of Ayurveda is that all disease begins in the gut — and it’s likely Hippocrates learned that from Ayurveda. According to Ayurveda, all diseases occur due to dysfunction of agni, the digestive fire that helps with metabolism and digestion of food maintains the natural gut flora by killing foreign bacteria and toxins, and supports the growth of healthy bacteria.

Ayurveda categorizes three doshas as substances that flow or circulate within the body, bringing disease through excess or deficiency. The doshas exhibit the characteristics of the elements from which they are made. All diseases are caused by an imbalance of the doshas, and imbalance is caused by intake of improper diet and by leading an unhealthy lifestyle.

Food itself is the medicine. Our physical makeup is a combination of five essential elements present in the universe: ether, air, fire, water and earth. According to Ayurveda, six tastes originate from these five elements: sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent. We need each of these six tastes in our daily diet. Indian cuisine is richly flavored with these six tastes to aid in optimal digestion.

Ayurveda also categorizes foods as heating or cooling to the body. There are norms about combinations of foods and what foods should or should not be eaten at the same meal. Dietary goals change with the seasons and according to stages of the lifecycle. The aim is restoring the balance of natural energies; digesting food well; building strong cells and tissues, including our immune cells; having regular and complete elimination; keeping sharp senses; achieving peace of mind, and maintaining clear thinking.

Which Yogurt is best for People with Diabetes? was reported by Constance Brown-Riggs for diaTribe.org, 25 July 2022.

Have you walked down the dairy aisle recently? Yogurt seems to have taken over the shelves. There are French, Greek, Icelandic, Australian, and “free-from” yogurts – GMO-free, dairy-free, preservative-free, and additive-free. Then there’s yogurt in glass jars, drinkable yogurt in bottles, and squeezable yogurt. And somewhere, sandwiched in the middle, is gender-specific yogurt. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you are not alone.

What is yogurt? Simply put, yogurt is milk combined with bacteria. To make yogurt, milk is heated and cooled, then the bacteria cultures Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus are added.

The mixture is left to ferment for four to seven hours at a warm temperature. During the fermentation process, the bacteria convert the sugar in milk, called lactose, to lactic acid, which thickens the milk, producing yogurt. Yogurt manufacturers may use other bacteria cultures for taste, texture, or probiotic (gut health) properties.

You’ll find there’s more variety than ever in the yogurt aisle in all areas, including flavor, style, and format.

- Traditional Yogurt: Traditional American-style yogurt is unstrained and made from whole, low-fat, or non-fat milk. Because it’s unstrained, registered dietitian nutritionist Rahaf Al Bochi, owner of Olive Tree Nutrition and media spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, says it’s lower in protein compared with strained varieties such as Greek yogurt. Traditional yogurt has a smooth and creamy texture.
  - Popular brands: Yoplait, Stonyfield, and Dannon.
  - Nutrition information: One 3/4 cup (6 ounces) of Dannon plain yogurt contains 80 kcal; 0 g fat; 0 g sat fat; 13 g carbohydrate; 10 g sugars; 0 g added sugars; and 8 g protein.
  - Common Ingredients: (Dannon) Cultured Grade A non-fat milk, food starch, and active yogurt cultures, including L.Acidophilus.
- Greek Yogurt: Greek yogurt is a thick, creamy yogurt. Registered dietitian nutritionist Russender Powell, owner of The Nutrition Lady, says Greek yogurt is thicker and higher in protein because it is strained to remove the liquid and whey. As a result, most Greek yogurts have twice the protein of regular low-fat yogurt. You’ll find full-fat, low-fat, and fat-free varieties in the dairy aisle.
  - Popular brands: Chobani, FAGE, and Dannon Oikos.
  - Nutrition information: One 3/4 cup (6 ounces) of plain Dannon Oikos yogurt contains 100 kcal; 0 g fat; 0 g sat fat; 7 g carbohydrate; 7 g sugars; 0 g added sugars; and 18 g protein.
  - Common Ingredients: (Dannon Oikos) Cultured Grade A milk and active yogurt cultures.
- Icelandic Yogurt: Icelandic yogurt, also known as skyr, is a strained yogurt that’s creamier and thicker than Greek yogurt. In fact, it takes almost four cups of milk to make one cup of Icelandic yogurt, which is why it contains more protein than regular yogurts.
  - Popular brands: Smári, Ísey Skyr, and siggi’s.
  - Nutrition information: One ¾ (5.3-oz) cup of Siggi’s plain skyr yogurt contains 100 kcal; 0 g fat; 0 g sat fat; 7 g carbs; 5 g sugars; 0 g added sugars; and 19 g protein.
  - Common Ingredients: (Siggi’s) Pasteurized skim milk, live and active cultures (S. thermophilus, L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus, B. lactis, L. acidophilus, L. delbrueckii subsp. Lactis).
- Australian Yogurt: “Australian yogurt is unstrained. It’s made with whole milk and typically sweetened with honey. It has a velvety, creamy texture and has been described as in between Greek-style and traditional-style yogurts. It’s lower in protein than Greek yogurt but higher than traditional yogurt,” Al Bochi says.
  - Popular brands: Noosa and Wallaby.
  - Nutrition information: One ¾ (5.3-oz) cup of Wallaby plain yogurt contains 160 kcal; 8 g fat; 5 g sat fat; 8 g carbohydrate; 5 g sugars; 0 g added sugars; and 15 g protein.
  - Common Ingredients: (Wallaby) Cultured Pasteurized whole organic milk, live active cultures (L. acidophilus, L. bulgaricus, S. thermophilus, Bifidus, and L. Paracasei).
- French Yogurt: “Similar to Australian, French-style yogurt is unstrained full fat yogurt which makes it just as creamy as Greek or Icelandic options,” says Powell. However, French yogurt has less protein than Greek and sometimes contains more sugar. Each serving of French-style yogurt is individually made in the same container or glass jar it is sold in. Typically, yogurt is produced in large vats and then divided into containers.
  - Popular brands: Oui by Yoplait, la fermière, and St. Benoit.
  - Nutrition information: One 5.6-oz (160 g) container of La Fermière plain yogurt contains 160 kcal; 13 g total fat; 8 g sat fat; 7 g carbohydrate; 7 g sugars; 0 g added sugars; and 5 g protein.
  - Common Ingredients: (la fermière) Grade A Pasteurized Whole Milk. Grade A Pasteurized Cream, Live Active Cultures (S. Thermophilus, L. Bulgaricus).
- Plant-Based Yogurt Alternatives: Plant-based yogurts are made from soy, almond, cashew, hemp, flax, or coconut milk.
  - Popular brands: Silk, Stonyfield O’Soy, and Kite Hill.
  - Nutrition information: One ¾ cup (170 g) of Silk plain soy yogurt contains 110 kcal, 4 g fat; 0.5 g sat fat; 10 g carbohydrate; 5 g sugars; 4 g added sugars; and 9 g protein.
  - The nutrient profiles of plant-based yogurts vary widely because companies have different fortification processes and they’re made from different foods. For example, “Almond and coconut milk-based yogurts have less protein whereas soy-based products have similar protein amounts as dairy,” Powell says.
  - Common Ingredients: (Silk plain soy) Soymilk (filtered water, soybeans), cane sugar, 2% or less of live and active cultures, corn starch, natural flavor, pectin, tricalcium phosphate, citric acid, dipotassium phosphate, sea salt, mixed tocopherols (to protect flavor), vitamin C ester, vitamin D2.
- Kefir: Al Bochi describes kefir as a fermented milk drink. “It is produced when milk and kefir grains (cultures of bacteria and yeast) interact,” she says, adding that it has a tart, tangy taste. Strained kefir, available in spoonable cups, has a creamy texture similar to Greek yogurt with up to twice as many probiotics. Al Bochi says kefir can be found in full-fat or non-fat and plain or flavored varieties.
  - Popular brands: Lifeway, The Greek Gods, and Ludwig Dairy.
  - Nutrition information: One cup (8 oz) of Lifeway plain kefir contains 110 kcal; 2 g fat; 1.5 g sat fat; 9 g carbohydrate; 9 g sugars; 0 g added sugars; and 13 g protein.
  - Common Ingredients: (Lifeway) pasteurized low-fat milk, non-fat milk, pectin, vitamin a palmitate, vitamin D3, cultures.