Dairy in your diet can make a real difference. Not only may consuming dairy products reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes, but it may also help reduce your risk of osteoporosis and hypertension, help you maintain a healthy body weight and play a beneficial role in cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome.

With all of these potential health benefits it’s recommended to have 3-4 servings of dairy each day.

Melissa Joy Dobbins, registered dietitian at NorthShore, shares ways she serves up dairy with her family to ensure everyone gets the recommended 3-4 daily servings.

Milk

• Choose milk as your mealtime beverage.
• Low-fat chocolate milk is another good option to help mix it up.
• Use a milk frother to make your own fat-free lattes at home.

Reduced Fat Cheese

• Don’t feel like meat? Eat cheese, you’ll get your protein plus calcium.   
• Shredded cheese is a great addition to salads, soups and casseroles.
• Cheese and whole grain crackers are a convenient and nutrient-rich snack.   

 Yogurt

• Make your own “frozen yogurt.” Place the cup or tube in the freezer and enjoy.
• You can make chocolate yogurt by mixing 1-2 packets of hot chocolate mix with a quart of plain fat-free yogurt.

 Whey

•  Make a whey protein smoothie after your workout.  Simply add a scoop of whey protein powder to your favorite smoothie recipe.

Are you getting the daily dairy you should? What tips do you have to reach the recommended servings?