Thanks to powerful new research, my enthusiasm for consuming yogurt as part of a healthy diet just received a big boost. In the largest and most authoritative review study to date, Harvard researchers found that people who consumed yogurt daily were less likely to develop type 2 diabetes. The study combined the results of 14 previously published studies and included 459,790 study subjects. The researchers found that individuals who consumed a single daily serving of yogurt lowered their risk of type two diabetes by 18 percent.

Yogurt is home to several nutrients that are known to guard metabolic health including probiotics, magnesium, calcium, and unique fatty acids. For best results, choose low-fat or non-fat plain yogurt. Here are my favorite ways to healthfully sweeten your plain yogurt. (BMC Medicine, 2014 12 (1):215)