Yogurt is a delicious, healthy food. It’s great as a snack on it’s own, mixed with fruit, granola or muesli. It’s also a fabulous extra to add in smoothies or even on rice.

It is offered as a health food today. Eating one or two cups on most days is very beneficial for your health. When its important components, namely live cultures (probiotics), protein, calcium and B vitamins, work together, they are responsible to help mitigate the following conditions:

1. Lactose Intolerance: Many people can’t digest milk, but eating yogurt daily can help them get the calcium they need. You see, the probiotics in the yogurt have already digested the lactose in the milk allowing those who are lactose intolerant to enjoy this food that is high in calcium!

2. Allergies: Since probiotics affect the entire skin surface, which includes every area that has contact with the outside world, we can safely say that what can improve the digestive system can improve our nasal passages. Studies have shown that babies who eat yogurt and take in probiotics from as young as 3 months of age, have a better chance to avoid many allergies, especially eczema.

3. Cancer: The probiotics in the yogurt help neutralize mutagens that cause cancer, so eating yogurt is helpful in reducing the chance of colon cancer as well as breast cancer. Probiotics encourage the growth of the good bacteria in our digestive system and it limits the growth of the bad bacteria that doesn’t allow us to digest food properly. They also encourage the growth of microflora that promotes the development of cancer. Yogurt may not take away the cancer if you already have it, but it does reduce the chance of you getting it.

4. Cholesterol Reduction: Yogurt helps reduce bile acids, which in turn decreases the absorption of cholesterol form the gastrointestinal tract. In this way, it helps you regulate your cholesterol levels.

5. Diarrhea: Since the probiotics stimulate the immune system by limiting the growth of bad bacteria, and stimulating the growth of good bacteria, yogurt can also help alleviate the symptoms of diarrhea.

6. Vaginal Infections and Urinary Tract Infections: Once again, this is possible because of the live cultures/probiotics that are found in yogurt.

As we can see, the probiotics in yogurt really enhance our health! It promotes the growth of good bacteria in our digestive system and reduces the growth of the bad bacteria thus helping to alleviate lactose intolerance, allergies, cancer, diarrhea, vaginal infections and urinary tract infections.

Probiotics are not the only beneficial ingredient of the yogurt, though. Don’t forget that it is also high in calcium and in protein. The calcium helps us reduce the chance of osteoporosis and helps us have strong teeth. The protein helps our muscles to get stronger. Without muscles we aren’t able to function, to do the activities we do everyday.

You can make delicious ice cream at home, as good as any premium store brand, if you choose a good ice cream maker and follow a few tips. Ice cream makers can range in price from under $100 to over $500. The more expensive models contain built in freezing compressors. The less expensive models are perfectly suited for use in the home and come in two basic types. There is the type that uses rock salt and ice to cool the ice cream mixture and the type that has a canister that is placed in the freezer. Each of these is equipped with an electric crank or a manual crank. Your particular needs will determine which is right for you.

If you want to make a large quantity of ice cream, you will need to purchase a model that uses rock salt and ice. The canister models will only make up to 1.5 quarts at a time. If you would like to turn ice cream making into a family activity, you can choose the hand-crank model, which will also use rock salt and ice. The crank must be turned manually for a fairly long period of time, thus allowing each family member a turn. An electric crank is quite a bit easier than the manual crank models. You will also get more consistent results due to the bowl turning at a constant speed. Most electric crank ice cream makers will have an automatic cut off feature that will stop the motor when the ice cream reaches the desired consistency. The consistency is judged by the amount of resistance while the bowl is turning.