We already knew that yoghurt is good for your bones, but now it seems it could be beneficial for heart health, too. According to new research, a yoghurt a day really can keep the doctor away – significantly slashing the risk of a potentially fatal heart attack or stroke.
Scientists have discovered that a daily dose of 'good' bacteria (also known as probiotics, which are abundant in most yoghurts) can boost microbes in the gut that protect against the effects of salty food – a known contributor to the development of heart problems.
The research team experimented on mice to assess the impact of a salty diet on the immune system. It was discovered that a high-salt diet reduced the levels of lactobacillus ('good') bacteria and increased the production of immune cells linked to high blood pressure and, in turn, heart disease. However, upon having their levels of this particular bacteria – commonly found in Greek and other plain yoghurts – the negative effects of salt were reversed.
Following this, a pilot study on human participants sowed similar results. Professor Eric Alm, who led the study at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said:
"I think certainly there's some promise in developing probiotics that could be targeted to possibly fixing some of the effects of a high-salt diet. But people shouldn't think they can eat fast food and then pop a probiotic and it will be cancelled out."
Scientists have known for a while that consuming lots of salt can lead to cardiovascular disease by accumulating in the bloodstream, 'stiffening' blood vessels and forcing them to work harder.
Adults in the UK currently eat about 8.1g of salt a day, which is well above the recommendation of no more than 6g. It is estimated that around 16 million Britons suffer from high blood pressure – the biggest risk factor for stroke and heart attacks – with over half unaware that they have the condition. Commenting on the findings, a spokeswoman for the British Heart Foundation said:
"Having high blood pressure puts you at greater risk of cardiovascular disease including heart attack and stroke, so it's vital we do all we can to keep our levels in check…There are a number of well-established lifestyle changes that we can make to keep our blood pressure healthy. Eating less salt, more fruit and vegetables and being physically active and maintaining a healthy body weight are all tried and tested ways to do this."
The study was published in the journal Nature.