Kombucha tea: Friend or foe?

Kombucha tea: Friend or foe?

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What do kombucha tea and sourdough bread have in widespread? They both are bred from a “mother,” a solid mass that is definitely a culture of yeast and bacteria often called a mushroom or SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast). The culture can appear virtually like a jellyfish - a brown-red disk of waxy slime, waving tendrils of yeast and bacteria within the liquid beneath it that form “babies,” which could be cut off to form new cultures. Sounds yucky, proper?

Yet, kombucha (come-BOO-shah) is a centuries-old fermented tea beverage that is promptly gaining recognition in the United States. Some believe it originated in Russia in the early 19th century. Planet Organic describes kombucha as “the elixir of life” that is definitely an authentic, delicious, handmade living tea originating in Ancient China.

Kombucha, the latest and hottest well being drink, is presumed to become super helpful to athletes with rewarding wellness benefits believed to strengthen wellness, power and common well-being. WebMD.com reports that regular drinkers of kombucha claim it aids digestion, sleep, weight loss and detoxification; stimulates the immune method, prevents cancer, stops hair loss, and improves liver function. On the other hand, you will find no clinical trials or sound scientific evidence to substantiate the a lot of claims.

Kombucha contains vital B vitamins, helping to extract much more energy and nutrients from ingesting other foods. The combination of B vitamins coupled with utilizing other foods aids to ease muscle soreness and assist in the body's potential to recover extra quickly immediately after exercising. It could strengthen the immune technique because it contains glucuronic acid, which aids to strengthen cells, helping to prevent some forms of cancer and also guarding joints from wear and tear. You will discover two sorts of kombucha - pasteurized and unpasteurized, the latter consists of probiotics that ward off bad bacteria and aid sustain very good bacteria. It is actually an antioxidant as it is produced from a base of either black or green tea. It's also believed that kombucha balances the body's pH and aids in growing blood circulation to detoxify the liver and kidneys, at the same time as helping to release impurities in the blood on account of the glucuronic acid.
Due to the fact the ‘90s when it 1st gained recognition as a cure-all for ailments for everything from cancer to graying hair, kombucha tea has continued to gain reputation regardless of minimal scientific validation and possible risks.

Now commercially available by way of a number of national and regional distributors, such as Whole Foods and Safeway, kombucha tea has grow to be a hit among the proponents for holistic medicine, but why? Is it just a fad or does kombucha essentially possess some sort of miraculous healing power?

Also known as Manchurian tea, kargasok tea, or tea fungus, kombucha is produced at household and commercially by fermenting a flat pancake-like culture in sweetened black tea. While the culture is basically created of a mixture of yeast and bacteria, it is actually frequently referred to because the kombucha mushroom, based on an American Cancer Society statement about kombucha tea.

In accordance with the Food and Drug Administration, the brewing approach can take as much as seven days and the nutritional profile and alcohol content material can vary from batch to batch. This really is specifically common in a home-brew scenario exactly where protocols will not be followed and you'll find differences in the initial tea concentration, the age with the mushroom and fermentation time, which can impact the final product.

Although there have already been reports of tea contamination that have resulted in hospital trips and even lead poisoning when painted ceramic pots were utilized to brew the tea, these dangers appear to become much more prevalent in house brews as an alternative to commercially accessible versions.

Based on a FDA announcement concerning tea contamination, “FDA studies have discovered no evidence of contamination in kombucha products fermented under sterile circumstances,” throughout inspections of a significant kombucha tea supplier’s California facility.

Ed Kasper, a retired acupuncturist, better identified for his on line persona because the “Happy Herbalist,” has been brewing and selling the tea out of his North Carolina dwelling considering that 1997. He compares brewing kombucha to cooking at household.

“The likelihood of acquiring sick from your personal cooking is overblown compared to consuming out at restaurants. You just have to use widespread sense and be careful to keep away from mold,” he stated.

Though Kasper was hesitant to say kombucha is a wonder drug, he mentioned that quite a few of his consumers use the drink in treating anything from intestinal disorders and fatigue to improving the high quality of life inside the chronically ill.

“I am not genuinely sick, so it did not actually cure something for me.