If youve ever roamed through a health food shop or a fashionable cafe, youve most likely discovered bottles of kombucha lining the racks or a fresh batch brewing in glass jars. Kombucha has ended up being a popular drink in the last few years, touted for its prospective health benefits and special taste. But what exactly is kombucha, and is it helpful for you? Lets look into this ancient and interesting beverage.
Home-made kombucha. Image: Colorado State University
What is Kombucha?
Proponents of kombucha declare the brew has many health advantages, amongst them enhanced food digestion, appetite suppression, much better memory, high blood pressure management, brand-new hair growth, and more energy. Doubters, nevertheless, argue that a number of these advantages are in fact unverified by medical studies. Moreover, there are factors to believe that fermented tea can be unsafe if brewed at home.
Kombucha is a fermented tea made from a mix of sweetened green or black tea and a cooperative nest of germs and yeast, called SCOBY. The SCOBY, likewise called the “mom,” is a slimy, pancake-like culture that feeds upon sugar and converts it into organic acids, probiotics, and enzymes. The result is a tasty, slightly effervescent beverage with an unique vinegary flavor.
Kombuchas origin can be traced to Asia, where it has been used for centuries under the name “tea of immortality”. Its also called “mushroom tea” because of the germs and yeast that clump together throughout the developing procedure looking like a mushroom cap. Kombucha is not made by a mushroom though however by the SCOBY.
A Kombucha SCOBY mom. It ferments the tea to produce the brew. Image: Inhabitat
Kombuchas composition, taste, and texture
An eight-ounce serving has 30 calories, which is a lot less than most soft drinks.
Kombucha is somewhat effervescent, extremely acidic, and sweet thanks to its high sugar content. It contains sugars, B vitamins, and antioxidants, along with low concentrations of alcohol– a by-product of the fermentation procedure.
It likewise has drifting bacteria inside it, which may appear unappealing for some, but not all that different from the kind you find in red wine for example.
Kombucha history and myths
Image: Kombucha Home
There is a legend stating that in 414 AD. A doctor by the name of Kombu– allegedly from Korea– brought the fungi to Japan to deal with the Japanese emperor Inkio. The Emperor was recovered and from that time the brew was connected with the name Kombu-cha (Cha means tea) in honor of the physician.
The brew grew a reputation for performing wonders, for this reason its alternate names like “wonder fungi”, “wonderful fungi”, “elixir of life”, and “gout tea”. In each place and nation where it infected, local people associated their own label for kombucha, so we have Russian Fungus, Japanese sponge, the Divine Tsche, Mongolian wine, Indian white wine, Fungus Japonicus, Pichia fermentans, Cembuya, Orientalis, Combuchu, Tschambucco, Volga Spring, Mo Gu, Champignon de longue vie, Teekwass, Kwassan, pseudo lichen, Kargasok Tea, Scoby, and kochakinoko. They all indicate the same thing: kombucha
Its believed kombucha originates from China, with the first record of the brew dating from the Tsin dynasty in 212 B.C. The Chinese used to call it the “Tea of Immortality”. Through trade, the beverage very first spread to India and Russia, then much of Asia. Now, it is widely discovered throughout Europe and North America, having become a trendy brew among younger people.
Wherever this tea originated from it is now understood throughout the world. When rather odd and more known amongst brand-new age circles, kombucha can now be easily found in food stores like Whole Foods or business lunchrooms like those at Google or Facebook.
Is Kombucha great for you?
Kombucha is classified as a specialized procedure in the FDA Food Code, requiring any retail or foodservice operator preparing to sell kombucha to get a variance from their regulative authority and to submit a food security strategy to their regulatory authority as defined in the Food Code area 3-502.11. The FDA recommends using developing water over 165 ° F (74 ° C), keeping equipment sanitary and tidy, using a fresh commercially bought culture for the very first brew, and discarding kombucha with a pH listed below 2.5 or greater than 4.2, as well as disposing of any kombucha with signs of mold growth.
” Proponents declare kombucha tea can promote the body immune system, avoid cancer, and improve digestion and liver function. Theres no scientific evidence to support these health claims,” concludes Brent A. Bauer, M.D. in a post for Mayo Clinic.
” There is really very little proof to support any sort of claims about kombucha tea. So we do not know if it does anything,” stated Andrea Giancoli, spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics for NPR in 2013.
All this talk of a miracle ale might get a great deal of people excited, so exists anything to it? It depends. I urge you all to be doubtful of anything thats promoted as an elixir drink sure to cure anything from arthritis and irregularity to cancer.
The brew requires to be kept in glass. If kept in ceramic pots, the acid will consume away the lining causing lead poisoning when consuming the brew.
One 2003 systematic study of Kombucha research studies found no study “associating with the effectiveness of this treatment.” Furthermore, the author keeps in mind “a number of case reports and case series raise doubts about the safety of kombucha. They consist of thought liver damage, metabolic acidosis, and cutaneous anthrax infections.
Some scientists have found anthrax bacteria in kombucha brewed in unhygienic conditions. Yeast species consist of Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Torulaspora delbrueckii and Zygosaccharomyces bailii. Yeast fungi species– which cause the most typical fungus infections– like C. albicans, C. kefyr, and C. krusei were also found in some batches.
Besides percentages of alcohol (normally under 0.5%), Kombucha contains substantial acetic acid (vinegar), ethyl acetate, glucuronic acid, and lactic acid. Caffeine is also found offered most makers use black or green tea for the brews service, which might likewise explain why some report enhanced energy.
Though incredibly popular, few to no reputable research studies have been made that may document the health benefits of Kombucha. Depending upon where you brew it, and the type of SCOBY used in the fermentation, the brew will include germs like Bacterium xylinum, Bacterium gluconium, Acetobacter hetogenum, Pichia fermentons, however likewise antibiotic-producing germs like Penicillium species.
The dangers of home-brewed kombucha.
These reports are from the usage of homebrewed kombucha. Bottled Kombucha, the kind you see offered in shops, is safe or should be. If you brew Kombucha in the house, however, please take care given that there are high opportunities of contamination.
Judging from its bacterial composition, Kombucha could show to be an excellent probiotic improving the microfauna inside the gut. And considering that kombucha is frequently made with black or green tea, it should share some of its homes, consisting of antioxidants such as polyphenols and vitamin C, which may help safeguard the body from oxidative tension and inflammation.
Kombucha is also extremely acidic, which can trigger intestinal pain or intensify heartburn in some people.
Kombucha: a nice soft drink however no superfood
Kombucha is a interesting and unique beverage with possible health benefits. While more research is required to totally comprehend its results on the body, integrating kombucha into a healthy diet might offer some benefits.
As an anecdote, I brewed my own batch for 6 months from a mom that I recycled constantly. The drink is tasty for my preference, though some may discover it too acidic. I stopped after a while after I neglected the mom and was too disgusted by what I found in my one-gallon jar to start fresh.
In conclusion, Kombucha isnt a superfood. There isnt proof yet that might suggest this, a minimum of. It wont eliminate you either, but it might trigger some illness if you brew your own or the bacteria engages in an unique way with your organism.
Kombucha is a fermented tea made from a mix of sweetened green or black tea and a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast, known as SCOBY. Proponents of kombucha claim the brew has many health advantages, amongst them improved food digestion, cravings suppression, better memory, high blood pressure management, new hair development, and more energy. In each place and country where it spread to, regional individuals attributed their own label for kombucha, so we have Russian Fungus, Japanese sponge, the Divine Tsche, Mongolian white wine, Indian red wine, Fungus Japonicus, Pichia fermentans, Cembuya, Orientalis, Combuchu, Tschambucco, Volga Spring, Mo Gu, Champignon de longue vie, Teekwass, Kwassan, pseudo lichen, Kargasok Tea, Scoby, and kochakinoko. Some researchers have found anthrax bacteria in kombucha brewed in unhygienic conditions. If you brew Kombucha at house, however, please be mindful since there are high opportunities of contamination.