Useful properties and harm of sour cream

A lot of traditional Russian proverbs and sayings are devoted to this product, which indicates its Slavic origin. Traditional Slavic dishes such as soup, borscht or pancakes are unthinkable without sour cream.

Sour cream is a natural product based on cream from cow's milk, before they were simply left in a cool place for a few days to thicken. The appearance of the separator has allowed to speed up the process. On an industrial scale, the product is prepared from pasteurized cow's milk and sourdough. In some cases, added preservatives, prolonging the shelf life of the product. Negligent manufacturers often expand the composition by the introduction of additives, thickeners, stabilizers.

Depending on the raw material and method of preparation, there are two types of product:

• smooth (the basis of the product is the top layer of acidified milk of high fat content);
• separator (based on cream, which are separated from fat milk with a separator).

Usually found the second type of sour cream. After separation, the cream is cooled, and then pasteurized, added to them sourdough. The latter is represented by streptococci (cream or milk) and bacteria. After several days, sour cream appears directly - a thick white mass formed during the crystallization of animal fats and protein swelling.

Caloric content of the product depends on the concentration of fat in it. Depending on the content of the latter, it is common to allocate sour cream of the following types:

• classical (indicators of fat content are in the range of 20-34%);
• fat (usually homemade sour cream with a fat content of from 50 to 58%);
• low-fat (contains 15-19% fat);
• non-greasy (this product is also called fat-free, the indicators of fat content are equal to 10-14%).

Sour cream contains vitamins A, C, E, as well as B vitamins and provitamin beta-carotene. Mild acidity due to the presence of organic acids. Available in sour cream, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, zinc.

High content of proteins, which contain essential and non-essential amino acids, carbohydrate composition is mainly represented by sugars and complex carbohydrates.

For each type of sour cream, depending on the fat content, there are different caloric and BJU balance values. So, the non-greasy product (10%) contains 119 kcal per 100 g, while the same amount of sour cream with a fat content of 30% pulls already by 293 kcal. The lower the calorie content, the higher the protein content and the lower the percentage of fat.

Sour cream has an enveloping, softening and healing effect, promotes the spread of beneficial intestinal flora and inhibition of pathogens. In this regard, the product is included in the medical menu for ulcers, gastritis.

The presence of organic acids in the composition helps to improve the absorption and digestion of food, activation of metabolic and lipid processes.

The positive effect on the digestive tract organs, as well as the high content of easily digestible protein and the body's essential fatty acids, vitamins, micro- and macroelements, make it possible to take sour cream both to combat body mass deficit and its excess. The main thing - to choose a product with a suitable fat content.

People who are actively involved in sports, muscle building, as well as experiencing increased physical activity, should include sour cream in your diet. Nutritious and nourishing, it will provide the body with energy and help improve performance. This product contains easily digestible protein - the main building material for muscles, as well as a component necessary for the health of teeth, nails and hair.

In this case, the protein is saturated with amino acids necessary for all life processes.Athletes protein allows you to quickly build muscle, provides increased endurance and speeds up the process of muscle relaxation. In addition, sour cream has zinc and B vitamins, which is important for men who want to build muscle. They provide the production of the main hormone of the male body - testosterone.

The obvious benefits of the product for women. The combination of vitamins A and E has a beneficial effect on the state of the reproductive system, contributes to the development of the required amount of hormones.

Vitamin E in combination with vitamins of group B has a positive effect on the condition of the skin, nails and hair. The first, having an antioxidant effect, also slows down age-related changes in cells, including skin cells.

Rich in vitamins and microelements, sour cream helps strengthen the immune system. It is important that it contains ascorbic acid, which has a pronounced cough and immunostimulating action. High-fat, high-fat foods are especially helpful during the cold season.

Vitamins B strengthen and calm the nervous system, help to cope with sleep disorders. Together with phosphorus, they are also necessary for the brain. They provide improved cerebral circulation, prevent the aging of brain cells, help to "reboot" with active intellectual activity.

Like all dairy products, sour cream is rich in calcium, and here it is almost completely absorbed, unlike the calcium contained in milk. It is known that calcium is best absorbed in combination with vitamin C, which is just present in the composition of sour cream.

Contraindications to the use of the product are liver problems, hypertension. Sour cream rich in fats can cause an increase in cholesterol, which is undesirable for people suffering from cardiovascular diseases. High calorie and, again, a large amount of fat is forced to abandon it for obesity.

It is harmful to use sour cream, which contains foreign chemical components. Absolute contraindication to consumption is considered an individual intolerance to the product, an allergy to milk, lactose. It is also recommended to refuse it in the period of exacerbation of gastritis, peptic ulcer.

Like any product, sour cream does not tolerate excessive consumption. The daily dosage for an adult in the absence of contraindications is an average of 20 g. At that, one should take into account the peculiarities of the menu as a whole, the lifestyle of a person. In the child's diet, the product can be entered from 1-1.5 years.

In cooking, sour cream without sacrificing taste can be replaced by yogurt, whipped cream of high fat content. Sour cream will be more useful than mayonnaise as a salad dressing, a base for a sauce, a composition for marinating meat.

There is an opinion that filling salads with butter is more useful than sour cream. However, in its caloric content, vegetable oil (sunflower, olive or flax) usually exceeds sour cream. In the absence of butter and the desire to give the dish a more delicate creamy sound, vegetable oils are not forbidden to be replaced with sour cream.

If we compare sour cream by its properties with other milk and dairy products, then a certain similarity can be seen with Greek yogurt, kefir, and ryazhenka. Fatty homemade sour cream in its consistency and taste is similar to butter.This is not surprising, since with a significant increase in the fat content of sour cream (at least 70%) and whipping it turns out oil.

As already mentioned, you can compare sour cream with Greek yogurt, but the latter has a higher protein content and less fat (maximum - 10%). Another difference - yogurt contains less lactose, so in some cases it is suitable for use by people with low absorption of this protein.

Sour cream has foreign "fellow". Thus, kaymak is widely known among the peoples of Asia. It is produced from cream, which is kept in a clay vessel for several days. In France and Belgium, there is a fresh cream, externally and in composition, very similar to sour cream. Fresh cream is well whipped, and when the temperature rises it does not form a paste, which allows using it for preparing mousses, desserts, sauces.

It is impossible not to notice the similarity of the composition and structure between cream and sour cream. This is logical, because the former are the basis of sour cream. The product has a certain similarity with yogurt and ryazhenka.

See the following video for the benefits and dangers of sour cream.