The other day my kids and I had smoothies while staying with relatives. Later in the day, we were all in terrible pain with horrible stomach aches. I asked if I could peek at the yogurt she'd used in the smoothie. And, sure enough, it was Stonyfield Farms brand yogurt.
About a year ago, my whole family started suffering from terrible tummy aches several days a week. I couldn't figure out what was happening. We weren't sick or eating any strange foods. It didn't occur to me that yogurt could cause these problems--yogurt is good for tummy aches, after all. But, one day we happened to have nothing but big bowls of yogurt for a snack and were in pain a couple hours later. So, I checked the label and saw, to my surprise, that the yogurt contained fiber.
So, I called the Stonyfield Farms consumer info line. The fiber in their yogurt comes from something called "inulin" which is listed on the ingredients list. It's made from chicory root fibers and is added for the fiber, and fiber increases calcium absorption among other healthy benefits. The inulin is also a "prebiotic" food for the yogurt cultures, though it's very possible to make yogurt with non-fibrous prebiotics. The person I talked to wouldn't comment on the stomach-ache issue.
But Stonyfield is not alone. Other brands are jumping on the fiber bandwagon. For example, Horizon brand organic yogurt contains something called "NutraFlora®" which also seems to cause tummy aches in kids. It's benefits are similar to the inulin, but I couldn't find out what it's made out of...that's proprietary!
I get that most people need more fiber in their diets. But, I'd bet that most people who eat organic nonfat yogurts are the types of healthy-conscious people who get plenty of fiber from fruits, veggies, whole grains and nuts. These artificial fiber additions to yogurt are totally unnecessary for a healthy diet!
Of course, these fibrous yogurts may not bother everyone. But, if you or your family members are suffering from mysterious stomach aches... take a look at your yogurt.
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4 comments:
Thank you for your comments on fiber in yogurt. I have had some very bad stomach pains lately along with frequent trips to the bathroom. It was really starting to worry me. Now I know im not the only one. I am throwing out my Horizon yogurt. This should not scare people from taking supplmental fiber or having fiber in their diet. I take supplmental fiber and it doesnt cause any discomfort.
Good insight into the fiber, I always noticed it there, but didn't think that could be the cause of my stomach discomfort. To my surprise if you check the labels now there conveniently is no fiber in stony field any more, or in trader joe's organic yogurt for that matter either. Strange, maybe they heard your calls...
Yes! I recently bought Fiber One Yogurt and about an hour or two after I ate it- my stomach cramped and it is still cramping a day after! I will not be eating it again!
I’ve had the worst stomach ache for about 3 or 4 days now and at first I thought I had food poisoning…my stomach has been churning and the gas and cramping has been terrible. The thing is I’ve had food poisoning before but it always goes away after about 24hrs so after thinking about it I wondered if it could be related to these NEW Fiber One bars from General Mills I bought last week (the peanut butter flavor)? So I googled “fiber bars stomach ache” and it brought me here. The rest of the box is going in the trash. Oh, yeah…I to eat a fair amount of fiber regularly so I doubt it has to do with fiber shock to my system. There must be something in these treats that are making my body say “NOOOOO….TOXIC….No more please!!!”
Matt
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