Yogurt

Studies in people

• Benefit

  Bowel growths and cancer²

  People who ate more yogurt were somewhat less likely to develop growths or cancer in the bowel.

• Open question

  Gut bacteria and health³

  Yogurt may change the mix of bacteria in your gut, but studies disagree and long-term human evidence is limited.

• Open question

  Gut inflammation and immune response⁴

  Probiotic yogurt may raise a gut acid and an immune signal more than regular yogurt, but scientists are not sure this matters.

• Open question

  Heart and blood sugar health⁵

  Yogurt may help with blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol, but studies in people so far disagree.

• No harm found

  Heart and overall death risk⁶

  People who ate the most yogurt were not less likely to die than those who ate the least.

• No harm found

  Breast cancer risk⁷

  In people, eating yogurt showed no clear link to breast cancer risk, though scientists say more studies are needed.

• Benefit

  Blood cholesterol levels⁸

  In people, eating a lot of yogurt was found to lower cholesterol, and the effect appears slowly and lasts after stopping.

Study type not stated

• Benefit

  Gut health and digestion¹⁰

  Greek yogurt's live bacteria may ease digestion and support a healthier gut, though most studies don't separate it from regular yogurt.

Single cases of misuse or overdose

One person or one incident, such as an accidental overdose or a mistake in a kitchen or factory. They are real, but a single case does not show what happens at normal amounts, so the signal does not count them.

• Liver abscess risk⁹

  In one healthy adult, a liver abscess was apparently linked to eating yoghurt with live Lactococcus lactis cultures.

How it’s made and used

• Gut survival of bacteria¹¹

  Yogurt's bacteria may not survive the trip through your stomach to reach your gut.

The signal at the top counts the findings in people and in animal and lab studies. A concern in studies of people outranks animal and lab studies, and “No concerns” needs at least one finding in people. When most findings in people point one way, the page leans that way (“Mostly”), and every finding is still shown. Findings whose study type is not stated are shown but not counted. This page is a reference, not medical advice. It describes what regulators and published research say. Talk to a doctor or dietitian about your own diet.