These women recently found out that choosing healthier low-fat dairy products, such as 1% milk or fat free yogurt, costs the same as full fat!

Hi! Meredith, Kim, Dimple, Kathryn and Anna here! We’re students at Virginia Tech who study Human Nutrition, Foods and Exercise and we want to share what we’ve learned about choosing healthier dairy options. With the help of the Family Nutrition Program and what we have learned in class, we all switched to low-fat and fat-free dairy. And we didn’t even taste the difference!

This why you TOO should make the switch… Dairy foods are important because they improve bone health. This is important for both adults and kids. Dairy foods that are full fat are high in saturated fats and cholesterol, which can have negative effects on heart health. So choosing low-fat dairy is a great way to keep your body healthy. Here are some of our tips:

Kathryn: I choose 1% chocolate milk instead of whole milk at the grocery store!

Anna: My favorite breakfast is non-fat Greek yogurt topped with seasonal berries.

Kim: Since I’m lactose intolerant, I choose lactose-free skim milk at the grocery store. I think it even tastes better than regular milk and I still get the calcium I need.

Dimple: Instead of ice cream for dessert, I have frozen Greek yogurt with fruit and nuts!

Meredith: I like snacking on reduced-fat mozzarella cheese sticks. They’re convenient for when I have busy days and are healthier than full fat cheese sticks!

Click here to learn more about small changes you can make to improve you and your family’s heart health. Interested in trying new, healthy recipes that use low-fat or fat-free dairy? Visit our recipe collection here. Be sure to try the Berry Purple Smoothie. Meredith makes it for breakfast before school and it’s healthy, filling and easy to make! There are many other healthy, easy to make recipes on the VCE FNP’s website your family will love.