There’s seemingly an endless amount of cheeses around the world, but only a handful are the most popular around the world. Among them is mozzarella, which originated in Italy back in the 12th century. Mozzarella cheese is known for its white color for the most part, although it can come in a yellow hue. The most common place you’ll see mozzarella cheese is on top of a pizza, as it’s the most common in that department.
Mozzarella cheese can have some different tastes as it’s prepared with the milk of a few different animals that include sheeps and goats. The most common, however, is buffalo milk, which is how almost all Italians prepare this cheese. Mozzarella cheese also has its benefits to your health when you eat the right amount (unless you’re lactose intolerant). To show you, let’s have a closer look at the nutritional value of mozzarella cheese and the great health benefits that you can get from eating it.
Nutrition of Mozzarella Cheese
Mozzarella cheese might not have the widest range of nutrition per serving, but it does have plenty of key ingredients. In each one ounce serving of mozzarella, there are only around 70 calories, with 14 percent of your daily protein recommendation and almost no carbohydrates. In terms of the vitamins, there are a few that come in at about five percent of your daily needs, with vitamin A, riboflavin and vitamin B12 leading the way.
The most abundant nutrient you’ll find in mozzarella cheese is calcium, with about one quarter daily value, while phosphorus is above 10 percent. Around five to 10 percent, you’ll get a decent amount of magnesium, zinc and selenium. Each serving of mozzarella has 4.5 grams of fat, and about six percent of your daily cholesterol totals with 38.4 milligrams of omega-3 fatty acids and 93.8 milligrams of omega-6 fatty acids.
Protein Packed
If you’re looking to build muscle and burn fat, you need to make sure that you’re cutting calories while still getting plenty of protein. Mozzarella is one of those foods that can really help you, as it contains a high amount of protein with just 70 calories per serving. There’s a little under five grams of fat in each serving, which is a bit surprising that you’re getting more protein than you are fat with mozzarella, as most cheese can’t say that.
Because of the saturated fat content, you’ll want to make sure that you’re not eating too much mozzarella at a time. While it’s a great source of protein without many of the calories, you’ll want to mix it up with other protein sources such as lean meat and nuts. As an ingredient with other foods that are high in protein and low in saturated fat, mozzarella is an amazing addition.
Stronger Bones
We’re taught at a very young age that if we want to grow big and strong with healthy bones, we have to get enough calcium. A lot of that calcium comes from milk, which is ever present in mozzarella cheese. There’s almost a quarter of your daily calcium in each serving, which is the building block to healthy bones. It doesn’t stop at calcium, however, as mozzarella contains plenty of other bone boosting nutrients.
Among these nutrients are magnesium and phosphorus. When you get enough phosphorus, your body has a better ability to absorb the calcium you consume to use in strengthening bones. People that eat more calcium rich dairy such as mozzarella reduce their chances of bone loss later in life, and don’t suffer from osteoporosis as commonly as those that don’t.
Weight Management
You may have noticed that healthier forms of pizza have become more popular over the past few years, with less of a focus on grease and more of a focus on healthy options. While mozzarella has always been the most common cheese on pizza, using a form that contains skim milk and enriched with more vitamins is the norm now.
In turn, you can control your weight by eating mozzarella as your cheese of choice, as it contains plenty of niacin in each serving. Niacin has the ability to turn fat into energy that you can easily burn off when exercising. Calcium and zinc also play a part in weight loss as they allow your glands to work more efficiently, and the increase of protein builds muscle to further burn more calories.
Energy Booster
Many of us struggle on a day to day basis with not having enough energy to make it through. If that’s the case, you might not be getting enough phosphorus in your diet. Mozzarella contains a significant amount of this mineral that can reduce weakness in your muscles and allow you to prevent fatigue. Phosphorus also boosts your brain’s cognitive ability to make you more alert and focused while preventing neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
If you don’t get enough phosphorus in your diet, it might not even matter how many vitamins you’re getting as your body still needs to absorb these vitamins. Phosphorus allows you to do just that as all of your organs will work more efficiently. Once again, protein plays a part in boosting your energy naturally to make those long work days a bit easier.
Low Pressure
Because of the saturated fat content, you’ll want to moderate the amount of mozzarella cheese that you’re eating. When you do eat it in moderation, you’re doing a favor to your heart by lowering your blood pressure. Mozzarella contains significant amounts of both niacin and potassium, which work to lower blood pressure by relieving stress in your arteries. If you’re eating the right amount, mozzarella can certainly be considered heart healthy.
Summing it Up
Mozzarella is a dairy food just like any other type of cheese, meaning that it might not be for everybody. With a large population of the world being lactose intolerant, mozzarella can be a dangerous food for many to eat. For those that don’t have a lactose intolerance, there are still some things that you’ll want to look out for, as you should eat cheese in moderation. For starters, mozzarella is fairly high in saturated fats, so eating too much could cause some heart issues.
Also, mozzarella can cause digestive problems if you eat too much in your diet, especially in younger people. There are concerns about the safety of cheese as it can be contaminated, but this isn’t really a problem if you’re getting your cheese from an established source at a place like a supermarket. Just be mindful of how much cheese you’re eating in your diet (the food pyramid suggests a maximum of three servings per day), and you should be more than fine, while enjoying the great health benefits from mozzarella!