After bariatric weight loss surgery, you’ll probably be unsure of what you can and can’t eat. And while you should discuss your dietary plans with your physician, certain foods may fit in quite nicely with your new lifestyle. And as one recent study shows, one of your best mealtime options may be that of yogurt.

Specifically, one key ingredient, the “good” bacteria known as probiotics, may provide benefits for healthy weight management. These benefits may be effective for not only bariatric patients, but anyone interested in losing and maintaining weight loss!

The original goal of the researchers was not actually weight loss, but rather improving gastrointestinal (GI) health for adults who had undergone gastric bypass surgery. “Some patients [after bypass surgery] have a small amount of bacterial overgrowth [in the intestines],” says Dr. John M. Morton, lead researcher, and associate professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Morton went on to explain that the presence of the bacteria may influence patients’ gastrointestinal function and quality of life.

The 42 participants in the study, all of whom had undergone bariatric surgery, were divided, with half receiving daily probiotics supplements containing 2.4 billion colonies of Lactobacillus bacteria. Meanwhile, the other half were not given any medication. The researchers monitored the participants’ GI health and weight before and after surgery, as well as at three and six months later. Not only did those given probiotics score better results in terms of health, but they also lost more weight; 70% of excess weight, as compared to 66% for the group not receiving probiotics.

While these results were promising, the researchers cautioned that probiotics may not result in definite weight loss. In fact, the researchers suggest that bacteria may even be associated with some weight gain. And it should be noted that yogurt does not provide the 2.4 billion Lactobacillus colonies (a huge amount) provided by the supplements. But they advise that gastric bypass patients, and obese people in general, can safely consume yogurt.