Yesterday, I came across Dr. David Katz’s “The Case for Taste Bud Rehab,” and the first thing I thought of was an unpleasant taste experience I had a week ago.
It was the final day of FNCE, and rather than hunt for a proper meal during the short one-hour lunch break between educational sessions, I decided to push through and grab a snack from the Expo. When I saw the booth of a well-known Greek yogurt brand, I though, “Perfect!”
I perused the options in the case, hoping in vain to spot a carton of plain yogurt. Alas, they were all flavored and sweetened.* I picked up a cherry yogurt with “fruit on the bottom.” I though by eating the yogurt off the top I would get some of the flavor with minimal added sweetness. Nothing doing. Even the yogurt portion of the concoction tasted so sickeningly sweet that I tossed it in the nearest trash can after a few bites.
Plain Greek yogurt has about 1 gram of natural sugar per ounce. Kindly observe the amount of sugar in this 6-ounce yogurt. Yes, that’s 21 grams. Subtract an estimated 6 grams of natural sugar and you have 15 grams of added sugar. That’s almost 4 teaspoons…or as I like to call it, dessert. Just food for thought.
Now, I grew up eating flavored yogurt. I remember feeling adventurous and trying plain yogurt once during my early adult years and thinking, “This is gross…why would anyone eat this by choice?” How times have changed! Today, I like the taste of plain yogurt, although I do usually eat it with a bit of granola or fresh fruit (for breakfast) or with a tiny spoonful of Trader Joe’s Fig Butter or homemade berry jam mixed in. Both options provide just a bit of sweetness, but the delightful tartness of the yogurt still shines through.
I do have a bit of a sweet tooth, but I try whenever possible to keep added sugars out of my beverages, meals and snacks and save it for when I have dessert. And that’s how I rehabbed my tastebuds.
* I won’t name the brand (although they did recently have a recall, if that rings any bells), but I just went on their website and, based on their product page, they no longer make plain yogurt!