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Is Curd Good For Weight Loss? Know Benefits & Tips To Consume
Curd offers several benefits besides just aiding in fat loss. It is packed with protein, calcium, and probiotics that help regulate digestion and metabolism. With few calories and a high amount of protein, it promotes satiety and is recommended by nutritionists for its benefits. Keep reading to learn more about curd, the benefits of curd for weight loss, how curd can help in weight loss and all the properties that make it a nutritious choice to improve your health and wellness.
Is Curd Good For Weight Loss?
We already know the answer to this. So, let us look at all the different characteristics of curd that offer several benefits, including promoting weight loss, so you can understand how to incorporate it into your daily meals and make the most of it.
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Low In Calories:
With its low-calorie content, curd is an excellent option for a snack or side dish. When you include this in your meals, your overall calorie consumption will reduce. Further, losing fat becomes easier when you do not stress or worry less about excess calorie intake.
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Rich In Calcium:
As you know, calcium is an important mineral in the body essential for bone and teeth health, muscle function, nerve transmission, blood clotting, and hormonal secretion. Regular, balanced intake of curd, rich in calcium can prevent the accumulation of fat cells, boost metabolism, regulate your hormones, and improve satiety, thus preventing you from overeating.
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Rich In Other Essential Minerals:
Curd also contains magnesium, potassium, and phosphorus, which promote muscle functioning and maintain the electrolyte balance in the body. This is essential for healthy weight loss.
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High In Protein:
Choosing low-fat curd or non-fat variants of curd, which has a higher protein content, helps with satiety, reduces cravings, boosts metabolism, and helps preserve lean muscle mass. All these aspects will aid your fat loss journey.
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Excellent For Digestion:
Curd is a probiotic food that contains useful bacteria that improve your gut health, ensuring easy and proper digestion. You don’t have to worry about bloating, indigestion, or constipation. Its cooling nature soothes the lining of the stomach reducing acidity and promoting easy nutrient absorption. This supportive digestive health thereby contributes to your fat loss efforts.
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Improves Metabolism, Supports Fat Loss:
When your gut microbiome is well balanced, it positively impacts your metabolism, the fat storage in your body, and your appetite. All these factors are crucial and have an impact on burning calories, which contributes to weight reduction.
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Lowers Cholesterol:
The probiotics in curd also help lower cholesterol levels, helping with better heart health— an added advantage to improve your health.
Types Of Curds
Curd has many varieties. By understanding the various types and their influence on your body, you can make the right choice when including curd for weight loss:
- Plain Curd: Plain curd is the healthiest variety for weight loss because it contains no added sugars or artificial ingredients. Rich in protein, calcium, and probiotics, it helps with digestion, satiety, and metabolism. You can make it at home or buy it at a store.
- Greek Yoghurt: This is the most-recommended type for people trying to lose excess weight due to its high protein content and low carbs. It keeps you full for longer, promotes digestion, is lactose friendly, helps in muscle repair and recovery and is rich in other nutrients.
- Lactose-Free Curd: This specially-made curd is for those individuals who cannot digest lactose, the natural sugar in milk. It is an excellent substitute for those who are sensitive yet wish to include curd in their meals. It provides the same essential nutrients, improving gut health and aids digestion.
- Low-Fat Curd: As the name suggests, it contains fewer calories and fat content, and still provides all the benefits of plain curd. Expert nutritionists recommend this for those on their fat-loss journey aiming to consume fewer calories.
- Full-Fat Curd: Though this is high in calories and fat content, you can still have it in moderation. It still fulfils its purpose of promoting satiety and reducing cravings and overeating.
- Flavoured Curd: Most flavoured curd types contain added sugar, artificial sweeteners, or other flavours that increase the calorie content in the curd. Therefore, it is not the best option when you are trying to lose excess weight. If you want to enhance the taste, you can add natural, fresh fruits to plain curd.
Best Ways of Incorporating Curd into Your Weight Loss Diet
Now that you understand the benefits of curd and the different types of curd let us now understand how to eat curd for weight loss:
- Snack: A bowl of plain curd with fruits, seeds, or nuts is a good protein and low-calorie snack that will keep you full between meals.
- Smoothies: Blend curd with fruits like berries, bananas, or spinach and enjoy the nutrient-packed smoothie. You can opt for Greek Yoghurt to make thick, protein-rich smoothies.
- Butter Milk/Chaas/Lassi: If you are from India, these are common in any household. You can have a glass of lightly prepared buttermilk any time of the day when you feel like snacking and it will satiate you, and provide additional health benefits.
- Raita: Add chopped vegetables like cucumber, tomatoes, ginger, green chillies, coriander, and onions to make a refreshing, low-calorie side dish. You can have this along with your meals as it helps digest them.
- Salad Dressing: Mix curd with herbs, spices, and a dash of lemon juice well and you will have a healthy, creamy salad dressing.
- Dips: Blend minced garlic, herbs, and spices to create a low-calorie dip you can pair with veggie sticks or whole grain crackers.
Takeaway
The benefits and many available variations prove that curd is good for weight loss. It offers several other health benefits, making it a versatile food option. However, remember that you need to consume everything in moderation; the same rule goes for curd too.
Make sure you consult an experienced nutritionist about how to eat curd for weight loss, so you can achieve your health goals with ease.
For a holistic and healthy weight loss plan, click here.
Frequently Asked Questions on Curd For Weight Loss
You can have curd as a snack, add it to your smoothie or prepare delicious raita, but always choose plain, low-fat, or Greek yoghurt for the best weight loss results.
Yes, you can include curd in moderation (1-2 cups) in your everyday meals as it offers several health benefits and aids healthy weight loss. But don’t overconsume it, as it can lead to several side effects.
Curd aids fat loss by improving digestion and metabolism, but it is not a direct fat burner. It is best to combine with wholesome, balanced meals for maximum benefits.
You can mix curd in chapati dough and make soft, tasty chapatis with added nutritional content, or eat curd as an accompaniment to rotis, as it offers many advantages.
While both offer great benefits, Greek Yoghurt is a better choice because it has more protein and less sugar.
Yes, it does. In fact, it is the safest option as it contains no additives or preservatives.
It is best to include curd in your daytime meals, as a snack or a smoothie, as it is easily digestible. When you have it for dinner, make sure that you don’t have it after a heavy meal, as it can hamper your weight loss plan. You can have one bowl of curd or a glass of buttermilk as dinner.
Curd does not directly burn fat at night, but it will support your weight loss goals. Opt for low-fat curd options and avoid eating it after a heavy meal.
If you are on a calorie deficit to lose weight, then it is best to avoid rice and have the curd alone. In case you are craving it, try to include more curd and less rice to keep the calories in check.
