Yes! You read it here, cheese can be included in your weight loss diet. Many common myths about dairy products, especially cheese suggest that you can’t eat cheese if you want to lose fat or that reduced-fat cheese has a lower flavour than normal cheese. In reality, cheese can be enjoyed even when on a low-fat diet, it’s just a matter of how much you let yourself indulge in its legend-dairy taste, pun intended. If you still want to devour your favourite brand of cheese, all you need to know are the different types of cheese and their nutritional facts.
Cheese can definitely be included in a healthy everyday diet as stated by Sara Haas, R.D. “By balance I mean choosing cheeses with great flavour so that you’ll need less,” she told USA Today. “Balance also means not over-indulging and learning other ways to use cheese instead of sitting down with a hunk of it.”
Anything can be either good or bad it just depends on moderation. A balanced diet should not restrict your lifestyle, rather it should be built so that you can taste your favourite dishes with fewer consequences. Studies made by the University College Dublin in Ireland about eating cheese indicate that it actually helps you lose weight because the higher dairy intake was linked to lower body mass index, less body fat, lower blood pressure and waist size. According to a study conducted by Spence, Cifelli and Miller (2011), “A significant negative correlation existed between dairy product consumption and BMI with a 59% reduction in obesity risk associated with high dairy product consumption”.
Here are the five (5) best low-fat cheese that we recommend you to try in your daily regime.
MOZZARELLA
Mozzarella is a dairy product made originally from buffalos’ milk raised from specific regions of Italy, but today it is also made with cows’ milk. Regardless of what milk is used it is heated, poured into a cream separator, curled with the help of whey and matured. Fun fact: mozzarella came from the word ‘mozzarella which means ‘to cut off. Its taste is a soft, moist texture and is full of milk much like other fresh cheese, has a high liquid content which means low-fat and has a slightly acidic or lactic taste.
Nutritional Value Per ¼: 80 calories | 6 grams of fat | 7 grams of protein | 1 gram of carbs
FETA
Taken as a whole, these fresh cheeses, often referred to as white cheeses, offer salty and tangy profiles, accompanied by crumbly, slightly creamy textures. This dairy product is made originally in Greece from sheep’s milk or from a mixture of sheep and goat’s milk. Feta cheese is great with spinach and feta stuffed chicken, chicken and spinach pasta salad, warm feta cheese dip, Moroccan flatbreads, and feta-stuffed portobello mushrooms.
Nutritional Value Per Ounce: 75 calories | 6 grams of fat | 4 grams of protein | 1 gram of carbs
RICOTTA
This dairy product is a delicious favourite of the U.S. of A. and its’ homeland Italy. Ricotta is a fresh cheese from Italy with a soft and creamy taste. Fresh ricotta is made with whole milk so it’s slightly creamier compared to the traditional way in which ricotta cheesemakers use leftover liquid whey from other cheese that was being produced. Ricotta can be integrated with the following delicacies; Ricotta and mushroom tartine, ricotta morning oats, Italian-style stuffed eggplant and tomato pie.
Nutritional Value Per Half Cup: 171 calories | 10 grams of fat | 14 grams of protein | 6 grams of carbs
COTTAGE CHEESE
Cottage cheese is a soft white and creamy curd with a mild flavour. It is made not by pressing the cheese but by draining it, which allows some of the whey to stay which keeps the curds loose. It’s considered a fresh cheese, so this means it does not go through an aging or ripening process to develop flavour. This dairy product can help you
lose weight and gain muscle because it’s packed with nutritional gains. Cottage cheese is great with the following dishes; lasagna, french toast, Mutter Paneer, Breakfast banana split, and breakfast smoothie with coffee and milk.
Nutritional Value Per Cup: 183 calories | 5 grams of fat | 20 grams of protein | 11 grams of carbs
GOAT CHEESE
Creamy and distinct in flavour, comes from a wide variety of flavours and textures. This dairy product is made from goats’ milk and is enjoyed around the world. Goat cheese is made using the same process as cows’ milk is made into cheese, their difference lies in their digestive process and nutritional content, because goat cheese is hypoallergenic it can be used as an alternative for those who are allergic to cow’s milk. This banger of cheese is great with pizza, toast, salads or pasta dishes.
Nutritional Value Per Ounce: 75 calories | 6 grams of fat | 5 grams of protein | 0 grams of carbs