Activia Yoghurt

I didnt know that. B12 effects nerves I think, maybe it would. Is activia a probiotic? I have read that lots of supermarket probiotics are money down the drain cus the good bugs do not reach the gut.

Well I know for sure it does help with bloating as does Yeo Valley live yoghurts. Just wanted to know if anyone could throw some light on the B12 issue?

Not sure why they put it one and not the other.
I am currently on B12 prescribed by my GP because I didn’t have any.
I don’t eat red meat, so I should have known better.

Some easy to understand info on B12 and it saves me typing. LOL

Vitamin B12 is a BIG vitamin. As a matter of fact, it is bigger and more complex than all the other vitamins. Vitamin B12 is the last "B" vitamin that has been discovered by us humans (guess which one was the 1st).
Vitamin B12 benefits are required for healthy red blood cells. Vitamin B12 is also required for the repair of your tissues and cells and also for DNA synthesis and proper functioning of your neurological system.
Your body has the ability to store 3 - 5 years of Vitamin B12 in your liver. That is why a

Vitamin B12 deficiency may take a couple of years to show up.
A deficiency of Vitamin B12 benefits can result in what's called macrocytic anemia. This is where your red blood cells are larger than normal but fewer than normal. This can cause us shortness of breath and make us get tired more easily.

A Vitamin B12 deficiency can also cause us problems with our nervous system and can even result in nerve damage. This can cause us problems such as numbness and tingling in our extremities. Also, a lack of Vitamin B12 benefits can cause us mental problems in our later years such as dementia and depression.
Vitamin B12 along with [url]Folic Acid[/url] ( Vitamin B9 ), has been shown to significantly reduce the incidence of a certain class of birth defects called neural tube defects. It is thought that the homocysteine lowering action of both of these vitamins is the mechanism responsible for this (our page on [url]Folic Acid[/url] goes into detail on how elevated homocysteine levels play a role in birth defects as well as cardiovascular disease).

Source:

I've always been a bit suspicious of some of the yoghurt based drinks that claim to sort out digestive disorders (activia, yakult, etc). While I'm no expert I have bumped into a few, and their view is that the sugar added to make it taste nice neutralises any positive probiotic effect they may have.

The previous poster is right though; B12 & Folic Acid do compliment each other very well.

I do think the yoghurt helps though - I certainly am not so bloated when eating Yeo Valley live yoghurts but it's just that a lot of people say Activia is best for constipation but I wanted to know why one had B12 in and the other didn't.

Ive had the Actimel yoghurt drinks on occasions and I think they can be beneficial.

In my case I take tablets every day (Lansoprazole) to control indigestion from Gastric Reflux. If I forget to take a tablet in the morning, then by mid afternoon I can start to feel indigestion coming on and thats what reminds me that I havent taken my tablet that day. Another bi-product of my condition is that I do suffer from bloating a lot - have done for years even when I was very much into fitness and weight training and was doing everything right (one day I would have abs, next day I would have a big gut ).

Anyway, I had been taking actimel for a week or so - and then one day at work started to feel the indigestion coming on a little. This reminded me that I hadn't taken my tablet, but when I thought on I didn't recall taking it for a few days. When I got home and checked I hadnt taken them for 4 days - the tablets are maked with the day so I could tell when I had last taken them. Also I had been trying to lose a bit of weight for a month or so in the gym to tone up, so increased the cardio and stuff and I hadnt really lost any weight apart from a pound or so. When I weighed myself after a week or so having the Actimels I had lost about half a stone. I put this down to water retention because I had lost a lot of the bloatedness too.

Now I know people will have different experiences because I have convinced a few people to try these in work, some with no benefits, some with a few. Any myself I dont take them all the time - mainly when there is an offer on at the supermarket (yes, I am cheap), but every so often and sometimes I feel the benefits and sometimes dont - but they taste nice. So do the Activia Yogurts (or Activity as my other half calls them). I even convinced my Dad who has always hated yoghurts to try Actimel and Activia and he swears by them now (he suffers from a few conditions and these help, especially when he has had anti-biotics).

Im going to stock up on these next time we do shopping cause I hadn't thought of these for a while

So what would you say about the B12 in them - any thoughts?

To be honest, not sure on the B12 content in Actimel which I had the greater results on with regard to bloating and water retention. Can't say I noticed much effects from the Activia yoghurts to be honest - but they taste nice, but certainly didnt notice any great changes from them.

I will certainly be getting some Activia and Actimel's when we next go shopping and will see if they have any positive effects on me because at the moment I am not feeling very great because of my ongoing back issue. Hopefully they will help me and get me back feeling good again - the B12 wont do me and harm

I tried Actimel and have to say I felt great when I took it but for me after about 5 days on it I got severe chills and muscle pains (this happens a lot with me when I take things so not sure whether they do a detox on me or what) and I lost loads of weight. But I had to stop taking because of the chills etc. that's just me not a side effect of the product but I'd recommend it.

Do you not find with the low fat kind the sweeteners in it spoil it - did you eat the low fat or full fat version of the yoghurt. And if it was full fat kind did you still see good results in weight loss etc.

Not sure on the actimel cause theres only one kind of that I think - its only a little drink after all. With the Activia - again not sure but we always get low fat yoghurts anyway and I think they said no or virtually no fat on the pot.

Its only once in a while that I will have a full fat yoghurt, but when I do my god are they thick and creamy

I use Yeo Valley natural live yoghurt at the moment and the strawberry and pineapple and mango are both nice (0% fat) but I must try the Activia because like I say people say they have a good reputation for curing constipation!

capsules better

i personally stay far away from yoghurt drinks. its true that less of the good bacteria actually reaches the gut, but furthermore they are packed with sugar! i read that Yakult for example, has 18grams of sugar per 100g, which is more than coca cola at 10g per 100g! Try out capsules instead, you can find ranges which cater for different needs eg. antibiotic support, probiotics for travelling etc.

I love Activia...I have mine as a pudding and it helps when I have bloating or no appatite. I thought it was a con until I tried it and it worked. I was due for an operation, I hadn't eaten for a few days cause of nerves, sickness etc. I saw the ad on telly and said could I try it...mum picked me up some and I had one pot...within an hour of eating it I asked for a sandwich. This allowed me to put a little weight back on and I was much more stable for my operation (I lost nearly a stone and a half before my operation, I weighed just over 8 stone) Thanks to the Activia I was able to eat again & put on a few pounds which I personally feel was needed before my operation.
Zen