When it comes to gut health, the combination of yogurt and honey has long been celebrated as a tasty way to support digestion. But what if this pairing is more than just a treat? New research from the University of Illinois reveals that clover honey, when added to yogurt, can significantly boost the survival of beneficial bacteria in our digestive systems. This means your next spoonful of honeyed yogurt could be much more than a snack—it could be a powerhouse of wellness benefits.
Yogurt is already known for its probiotic content, especially strains like Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis (B. animalis), which helps maintain a healthy gut. However, probiotics face many challenges on their journey through our digestive system. The acidic environment in the stomach and harsh conditions in the intestines can diminish the number of live probiotics reaching the gut, reducing their health benefits.
Here’s where clover honey comes in. Two studies published in The Journal of Nutrition explored how different types of honey affect the survival of B. animalis during digestion. The researchers found that clover honey, in particular, offers a protective effect, allowing more of these beneficial bacteria to survive the digestive journey. This means that adding clover honey to your yogurt doesn’t just make it sweeter—it makes it healthier.
Hannah Holscher, a research co-author, explains, “The enzymes in our mouth, stomach, and intestines help with digestion and nutrient absorption, but they can also break down the integrity of microbes. While this is good for pathogens, it’s not ideal for beneficial bacteria. We wanted to see if honey could help probiotics survive in the gut.”
The study’s findings suggest that pairing honey with yogurt does, in fact, support the survival of probiotics, confirming that the lab results translate into real-world health benefits.
Different types of honey vary based on the flowers from which bees collect nectar, each offering different levels of sugars, enzymes, and antioxidants. According to the research, clover honey stands out due to its unique chemical composition, which includes higher levels of certain sugars and phenolic compounds that appear to provide extra protection for probiotics.
These compounds work together to create a more favorable environment for probiotics as they travel through the stomach and intestines. For example, the sugars in clover honey may serve as a food source for the probiotics, helping them thrive. Meanwhile, the phenolic compounds—known for their antioxidant properties—help protect the probiotics from oxidative stress during digestion.
So, how can you take advantage of this research? The study suggests adding one to two tablespoons of clover honey to your yogurt to significantly boost probiotic survival. This amount strikes the perfect balance, providing enough beneficial compounds without overwhelming the yogurt’s natural properties.
“We found that one tablespoon of honey per serving of yogurt supports probiotic survival,” Holscher says. “However, it’s important to remember that honey is an added sugar, and many Americans need to be mindful of their sugar intake for healthy weight management. But adding a bit of honey to unsweetened yogurt is a great culinary choice to add to your menu.”
The researchers used an in vitro study to examine the impact of honey on probiotic survival, simulating the stages of human digestion. Yogurt samples, both with and without honey, underwent three phases: oral, gastric (stomach), and intestinal. At each stage, researchers measured the number of live B. animalis bacteria remaining.
This approach allowed scientists to directly observe how different types of honey affected probiotic survival. The results were clear: yogurt mixed with clover honey showed significantly higher survival rates for B. animalis compared to yogurt without honey or with other types of honey. After passing through the simulated digestive system, yogurt with clover honey had many more live bacteria, indicating that clover honey provides unique protective benefits.
Interestingly, the optimal concentration of clover honey was found to be between 10% to 20% of the yogurt’s weight—roughly one to two tablespoons per serving. At this concentration, the yogurt created the best environment for probiotics to survive digestion.
Although these findings are promising, it’s important to note that the study was conducted in a controlled laboratory setting, which might not fully replicate the complexities of human digestion. Further research, including clinical trials with human participants, is necessary to confirm these results in real-world settings.
Additionally, the research focused on only one type of probiotic and one type of honey. Future studies may explore how other probiotics and varieties of honey interact, potentially broadening the scope of these findings.
These discoveries highlight the potential of using natural food pairings to enhance the health benefits of probiotics. Clover honey, in particular, could be a simple and effective way to improve the efficacy of probiotic-rich foods like yogurt. As research into gut health continues to evolve, incorporating these findings into your daily diet could offer a straightforward, natural way to support digestive wellness.