What kind do you buy? Seems they are all laden with sugar, even the "organic" ones. I don't see the value of sugar even if it is "organic." Does anyone know of a brand that's organic but made with fruit juice instead? DD doesn't like plain or the texture of real fruit in it.
I use Fage greek yogurt. It isn't sweetened but perhaps you could take some fruit and a little juice and blend it into the yogurt to make flavored yogurt. I think it is going to be much healthier to do that than buy an off the shelf brand. Plus you can customize to her desired flavors. Good luck!
When I have the time I make my own.
Dairy has natural sugars in it, even the plain kind. Add flavorings and it skyrockets.
If you start with plain and then add in a little jam or jelly, a bit of honey, or little bit of vanilla and some stevia or a touch of sugar/simple syrup, you'll at least have some control over the amount of sugar. You can buy it in the large containers and flavor it all at once so all your kids have to do it portion it out (or you can do that for them in the 1-cup gladware or something).
Fage is wonderful Greek yogurt, and if you're okay with honey, it makes for a simple and yummy snack. Otherwise, the rest of the moms here are right--fruit added to Greek yogurt is fantastic! It's even good with tomatoes, and now my DH says we never need to buy sour cream again. YAY for Greek yogurt, especially Fage fat-free. Good luck!
Could you sweeten it yourself? You could blend fruit and plain yogurt in the blender in about a minute. I drink yogurt smoothies several times a week. I use plain Greek yogurt, a small banana and 1/2 cup frozen organic berries. I add a handful of ice and a little water to thin it out a tad and drink. Yummy. You can skip the ice and water and have flavored yogurt with no added sugar.
Nancy's Plain Yoghurt, Trader Joe's European Style Plain, pretty much any plain yogurt that only lists Milk (and maybe powdered milk and vit D) as ingredients.
Then I buy a bag of frozen Berries (in the summer I use fresh) run them through the fruit processor, sweeten to taste (not necessary when in season) and voila - that way I can control how sweet it is and what is in it.
It is super easy and DD loves it.
I buy either Fage or Kirkland (Costco brand) plain Greek yogurt. I will also buy Stonyfield Farms plain. Plain doesn't have added sugar. The flavored ones all have either added sugar, HFCS or aspartame. Not for me or my son. I add chopped fresh fruit. Of DS will dip apple slices into the yogurt. You could puree the fresh fruit if the texture is an issue. I despise the 'blended' flavored yogurts so I am much happier with real fruit.
I also only buy plain yogurt for my son. I always add fruit to it and my son doesn't mind the texture of the fruit, but we also sometimes add apple sauce of jelly that doesn't have sugar added. You could also puree frozen fruit in your blender and add that to the yogurt.
Yes, Greek yogurt or the Pro Activ lite, depending on whether you're using for the probiotic benefit or enjoyment. Maybe a bit of honey or vanilla to tempt her?
I'm not trying to dishearten you, but fruit juice is basically just water and sugar. Fructose, the naturally occurring sugar in fruit juice, is handled exactly the same way as glucose, commonly found in the form of granulated sugar, corn syrup, and honey.
We buy greek yogurt (Dannon "Oikos" brand or Chobani), which is high in protein and low in sugar. Be aware that some greek yogurt is high in fat (both of the brands listed have 0% fat).
I don't unfortunately know of any organic greek brands, but I bet if you visited a Whole Foods or maybe even a Trader Joe's, you could find some.
A suggestion that might work is to buy low-sugar organic brand (maybe Stoneyfields? That's the only one I see at our story that is organic). Then, add no-sugar added applesauce for sweetener or some pureed baby food fruit to flavor it. Since it's fruit you're adding, you getting the extra fiber, vitamins & nutrients in the fruit itself, plus the yogurt. We buy Motts and Muscleman no-sugar added applesauce cups--they are yummy, come in a variety of flavors (peach/mango, blueberry, strawberry, pomegranate, etc.). The flavors are light, because the other fruit is generally secondary to the primary ingredient of apples.
You can make your own organic yogurt really easily:
http://ourlifesimplified.com/kitchen/all-recipes/homemade...
Just buy an organic starter (ie, 1 cup of organic yogurt from the store), plus the organic milk of your choice.
I buy myself Fage or Chobani greek plain non fat yogurt. My kids like Stonyfield farms, I usually get them vanilla or plain and add some fruit and honey to it.
my health coach suggested activia i think - but still only certain kinds. she said she spent almost an hour one day reading yogurt nutrition labels at the grocery stores - and only 1 or 2 had just a few grams of sugar - most were in the 30-40 range which is TOO MUCH, i agree. even the "plain" kinds can have a ton of sugar. if you can't find the activia i would invest some time in looking at the labels, there are a couple out there, sorry i can't remember which ones she said. also maybe google it, might be a little quicker. good luck!
I suggest you go online and find a simple syrup with a fruit of your dd's choice to add to plain greek yogurt so you can control the contents - I am sure it's out there. We just eat the yogurt as is and watch the sugar in other things, I think my son would loose his mind if I said "no more" yogurt, and I do not care to mix it myself - something is "off" to me, but many people like it that way!
