I read a couple studies that the benefits of yoghurt are overrated if one eats qa healthy balance of food anyway.
Personally, I can't stand the stuff. Sour milk isn't bad, but not rotten milk.
I used to hate yogurt too. With a passion. I used to refer to it as "chilled vomit." I started using it in cooking (the best thing I could find to take the edge of the hot chili in a stew or whatever - I tend go overboard on those)...started tasting it "straight" and then developed a taste for it. Now I have it every morning with psyillium, honey, and cinnamon. Yummy!
One theory on the benefits of yogurt is something like this...you have good bugs and bad bugs (bacteria) in the old digestive tract. In an ideal situation, there is a balance of these good and bad bugs. However, antibiotics kill both good and bad bugs, and then you have a problem (not digesting food right, not getting enough nutrients out of it) and your immune system can become weakened. That's a bad thing, as a strong immune system can fight off all kinds of diseases.
The problem - in addition to a lot of antibiotics being prescribed these days - is that some of our comes laced with antibiotics, and it's even been found in some drinking water sources. So, to avoid (unknowingly) weakening one's immune system, a regular shot of yogurt (with the good bugs in it...a.k.a. probiotics) should help the cause.
That's one take on it anyway...I'm sure there are more, both for and against...
PS - I have heard about the same benefits being applied to other fermented foods...really good for you. Things like sauerkraut, Japanese miso, Korean kimchee, and all that kind of stuff. The mainstream "Canadian & American diet" (if there is such a thing) is pretty devoid of all that stuff. Not sure if that's related to our rising rates of nasty diseases and obesity, but who knows?