Is Greek yogurt good during pregnancy?

Pasteurized yogurt is on the US CDC list of safer dairy choices in pregnancy, and no trial has tested Greek yogurt on its own. The strongest evidence is for yogurt with added probiotic strains. A 2023 meta-analysis of 4 studies in 533 pregnant women linked probiotic yogurt with lower odds of gestational diabetes (odds ratio 0.35, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.62). The one trial that supplied Greek yogurt, as part of a high dairy protein diet in 241 Canadian women, raised protein intake by 15 g a day and left pregnancy and birth outcomes similar.

Unsettled. The gestational diabetes finding belongs to probiotic products, mostly in overweight women, and it rests on four studies and two trials. In the trial that compared probiotic yogurt with ordinary yogurt, the difference in gestational diabetes did not reach significance. Nobody has tested whether plain Greek yogurt from a supermarket does any of this.

What the trials found

Probiotic yogurt and blood sugar

The 2023 meta-analysis pooled 4 studies with no heterogeneity between them, and fasting glucose came out slightly lower too, with a standardized difference of -0.37 (95% CI -0.68 to -0.05). Those are odds, not risk, and the yogurts carried added probiotic strains.

A trial in 130 overweight or obese pregnant women gave everyone 3.5 oz (100 g) of yogurt a day from week 24 to delivery, probiotic for half and conventional for the other half. Fasting glucose was 4.0 mg/dL lower on the probiotic yogurt (95% CI 1.1 to 6.9). Gestational diabetes occurred in 6 women against 11 (odds ratio 0.5, 95% CI 0.2 to 1.5) and preterm delivery in 3 against 8, and neither difference reached significance. Because both groups ate yogurt, this trial tests the added strains rather than yogurt itself.

In a three-arm trial that enrolled 478 overweight or obese women early in pregnancy, a fermented milk drink with probiotics and added fiber was compared with standard care in the two groups shown below. Gestational diabetes developed in 18.42 percent of the women who drank it (21 of 114) and 33.33 percent of those on standard care (39 of 117).

Greek yogurt in a whole diet

The Canadian BHIP trial randomized 241 pregnant women at 12 to 17 weeks to usual care or to nutrition counseling, a walking goal and a high dairy protein diet supplied as Greek yogurt, cottage cheese and milk. By 26 to 28 weeks protein intake was 15.0 g a day higher (95% CI 8.1 to 21.9). Weight gain within the recommended range was not significantly more common (odds ratio 1.51, 95% CI 0.81 to 2.80), and pregnancy and birth outcomes were similar between groups. Greek yogurt was one of three foods and one part of a package, so its own effect cannot be separated.

Observational links

Among 965 pregnant women in Mexico, eating 5 or more cups of yogurt a week was not linked to preterm birth overall (adjusted odds ratio 0.94, 95% CI 0.51 to 1.72). In women who were not overweight the link was 0.24 (95% CI 0.07 to 0.89), a subgroup result with a wide interval. In a Chinese cohort of 2161 mothers and infants, mothers who ate yogurt at least 3 times and 600 g a week in late pregnancy had infants with a lower risk of diarrhea (adjusted relative risk 0.79, 95% CI 0.65 to 0.96). The type of yogurt was not given, and diet and income may explain part of it.

A Cochrane review of probiotics in pregnancy, which included oral fermented milk, found a relative risk of genital infection of 0.19 (95% CI 0.08 to 0.48) in 2 small trials, and its abstract gives no absolute numbers. It found too little data to say anything about preterm birth. Its search ended in 2006.

Who should be careful

Not for everyone. Listeria is the reason the word pasteurized matters. The US CDC lists yogurt made from raw, unpasteurised milk among foods to avoid for people at higher risk of listeriosis, pregnant women among them, and lists pasteurized milk, yogurt and ice cream as the safer choice. An umbrella review of 9 systematic reviews says prevention in pregnancy rests on rules such as avoiding unpasteurised dairy, and found 66 percent of infections in the third trimester against 3 percent in the first.

Pasteurized does not mean risk free. Across dairy outbreaks in Canada and the USA from 2007 to 2020, 12 outbreaks traced to pasteurized products caused 174 confirmed cases, 17 deaths and 7 fetal losses, with Listeria behind 10 of the 12. Those are outbreak counts and give no risk per serving, and most of the products were cheese rather than yogurt. Contamination after pasteurization is how they happen.

The gestational diabetes trials enrolled overweight and obese women, so their results may not apply to women of other weights. We found no trial or review on Greek yogurt with medicines in pregnancy.

What expert bodies say

The CDC position above is the one we could confirm, and it is about pasteurization and Listeria. It makes no claim that yogurt benefits pregnancy. We found no expert body that recommends Greek yogurt for a pregnancy outcome. Pages from the NHS and foodsafety.gov were outside the sources we accept, so they are not used here.

How we searched

What would change this answer

• A randomized trial of ordinary yogurt, without added strains, in pregnancy, measuring gestational diabetes, birth weight or preterm birth. None exists.
• A trial that gives Greek yogurt on its own, so that its effect can be told apart from counseling, exercise and other dairy foods.
• Gestational diabetes trials in women who are not overweight, and larger trials that confirm the pooled odds from four studies.
• Data on Listeria contamination of yogurt specifically, rather than of dairy outbreaks led by cheese.

What Greek yogurt contains and the rest of its evidence is on the Greek yogurt page.

Sources

1. ev-gypg-01 · Meta-analysis or systematic review · systematic review and meta-analysis (PRISMA) · n = 533
   There was a statistically significant association between probiotic yogurt and reduced risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (Pooled OR 0.35; 95% CI 0.19-0.62; I2 = 0.0%).
   
   Who: Pregnant women in 4 studies of probiotic yogurt
   Effect: gestational diabetes pooled OR 0.35 (95% CI 0.19 to 0.62), I2 0%; fasting plasma glucose Hedges g -0.37 (95% CI -0.68 to -0.05)
   Certainty: Only 4 studies; yogurts with added probiotic strains, not ordinary Greek yogurt; OR is odds, not risk.
   Diabetes Metab Syndr, 2023 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
2. ev-gypg-02 · Randomized controlled trial(s) · randomized controlled trial, probiotic vs conventional yogurt 100 g/day from 24 weeks to delivery · n = 130
   There were not statistically significant differences between the groups regarding the risk of gestational diabetes (6 vs 11; odds ratio 0.5; 0.2, 1.5), preterm delivery (3 vs 8; 0.3; 0.1, 1.2), and other maternal and infant outcomes.
   
   Who: Women with pre- or early-pregnancy BMI of 25 or more and fasting plasma glucose under 92 mg/dl at 22 weeks, 65 per group
   Effect: FPG -4.0 mg/dl (95% CI -6.9 to -1.1); 2-h OGTT -13.9 mg/dl (95% CI -22.8 to -5.0); gestational diabetes 6 vs 11, OR 0.5 (0.2 to 1.5)
   Certainty: Both arms ate yogurt, so the comparison isolates the added La5 and Bb12 strains, not yogurt itself.
   Eur J Nutr, 2020 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
3. ev-gypg-03 · Randomized controlled trial(s) · parallel randomized controlled trial, three arms (lifestyle, fermented milk, standard care) · n = 478
   PFM reduced GDM risk by 55% compared with SC (OR = 0.45, 95% CI: 0.25-0.83).
   
   Who: Women with prepregnancy BMI of 25 kg/m2 or more, enrolled at 6 to 12+6 weeks of gestation
   Effect: GDM 18.42% (21/114) with fermented milk vs 33.33% (39/117) standard care; OR 0.45 (95% CI 0.25 to 0.83)
   Certainty: A fortified fermented milk drink with added fiber, not Greek yogurt; open comparison with standard care.
   Diabetes Obes Metab, 2025 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
4. ev-gypg-04 · Randomized controlled trial(s) · randomized two-arm prospective superiority trial, nutrition counseling with high dairy protein diet plus walking program vs usual care · n = 241
   Pregnancy and infant birth outcomes were similar between groups.
   
   Who: Pregnant women in southern Ontario randomized at 12 to 17 weeks, intervention n = 119, control n = 122
   Effect: protein +15.0 g/day (95% CI 8.1 to 21.9) at 26-28 weeks; GWG within recommendations OR 1.51 (95% CI 0.81 to 2.80); pregnancy and birth outcomes similar
   Certainty: Greek yogurt was one of three foods supplied, together with counseling and a walking goal; its own effect cannot be separated.
   Nutrients, 2022 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
5. ev-gypg-05 · Observational data · secondary observational analysis within a randomized trial cohort · n = 965
   In this population, there was no overall association between prenatal yogurt consumption and preterm delivery.
   
   Who: Women enrolled at midpregnancy into a prenatal DHA trial in Mexico
   Effect: >=5 vs <2 cups/week aOR 0.94 (95% CI 0.51 to 1.72); non-overweight women aOR 0.24 (95% CI 0.07 to 0.89)
   Certainty: Yogurt intake was not randomized; subgroup finding with a wide CI.
   Matern Child Nutr, 2018 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
6. ev-gypg-06 · Observational data · prospective cohort, food frequency questionnaire · n = 2161
   Compared with non-consumers, regular high consumers (≥3 times/week and ≥600 g/week had a significantly lower risk of infantile diarrhoea (aRR: 0.79, 95% CI: 0.65, 0.96).
   
   Who: Mother-infant pairs in the Tongji Maternal and Child Health Cohort
   Effect: regular high consumers vs non-consumers aRR 0.79 (95% CI 0.65 to 0.96); per 100 g/week aRR 0.98 (0.96 to 0.99)
   Certainty: Observational; yogurt type not given; residual confounding by diet and income possible.
   Int J Food Sci Nutr, 2026 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
7. ev-gypg-07 · Meta-analysis or systematic review · Cochrane systematic review of randomized controlled trials · n = 2 trials
   Although the use of probiotics appears to treat vaginal infections in pregnancy, there are currently insufficient data from trials to assess impact on preterm birth and its complications.
   
   Who: Pregnant women in randomized trials of probiotics for urogenital infection
   Effect: genital infection RR 0.19 (95% CI 0.08 to 0.48); preterm birth not assessable
   Certainty: Search June 2006; two small trials only; old.
   Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2007 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
8. ev-gypg-08 · Position of an expert body · agency web page · n = —
   Pasteurized milk, yogurt, and ice cream
   
   Who: people at higher risk of listeriosis, including women who are pregnant
   Effect: choose pasteurized yogurt; avoid yogurt made from raw milk
   Certainty: T2, E. curl to cdc.gov blocked (405 bytes); two independent WebFetch requests confirmed the exact string and its place in the Choose these instead column.
   US CDC, Preventing Listeria Infection · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the section
9. ev-gypg-09 · Observational data · systematic review of outbreak reports · n = 32 outbreaks
   Twelve outbreaks involving pasteurized products resulted in 174 confirmed cases of illness, 134 hospitalizations, 17 deaths, and seven fetal losses.
   
   Who: Dairy-associated disease outbreaks in Canada and the USA, 2007 to 2020
   Effect: pasteurized products: 12 outbreaks, 174 cases, 134 hospitalizations, 17 deaths, 7 fetal losses; Listeria in 10 of 12
   Certainty: Outbreak counts, not risk per serving; mostly cheese, not yogurt. Pasteurization lowers risk but post-processing contamination remains.
   Can J Public Health, 2022 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract
10. ev-gypg-10 · Observational data · umbrella review of systematic reviews (AMSTAR-2) · n = 487
    Prevention in pregnant women was based on adherence to strict dietary recommendations, such as reheating leftovers until steamed and avoiding unpasteurised dairy products.
    
    Who: Pregnant women and newborns in 9 systematic reviews (330 studies, 487 patients)
    Effect: 66% of infections in the third trimester vs 3% in the first
    Certainty: Synthesis of case series and reviews, so C; no yogurt-specific figure.
    BJOG, 2022 · checked 2026-10-07 · we read the abstract