kombucha

[ephmeralgrl]

hopefully this is in the right spot.....

I recently tried kombucha and LOVED it!! It was purely by accident that I found it at the local natural food mart. I have been thinking about making some of my own, but I have heard some reports of illness and death from making a tainted batch. Is this just what the media picked up on, and like most things over played it until everyone is too scared to eat anything but packed, colored chemicals we call food? If it is ok to make my own, where do I get the start from? I presume that would be a crucial aspect, getting a healthy good start.
Also, recipes I have read call for using white sugar in the tea broth. Has anyone tried it with honey, or???
Thanks for your input.

[Punky]

hopefully this is in the right spot.....

I recently tried kombucha and LOVED it!! It was purely by accident that I found it at the local natural food mart. I have been thinking about making some of my own, but I have heard some reports of illness and death from making a tainted batch. Is this just what the media picked up on, and like most things over played it until everyone is too scared to eat anything but packed, colored chemicals we call food? If it is ok to make my own, where do I get the start from? I presume that would be a crucial aspect, getting a healthy good start.
Also, recipes I have read call for using white sugar in the tea broth. Has anyone tried it with honey, or???
Thanks for your input.

I love kombucha too! I often bought mine at Whole Foods in there
refrigerated section before I started making my own. I've been doing
it for a few months now and haven't gotten sick or died (yet) :eek:
Actually (knock on wood) I've been less sick than
I was last winter ....I haven't been sick at all this winter.
I got a starter skoobie from a friend; she's the expert though...I just
followed the directions. I will ask her if honey is acceptable.

[Arky]

You could do a lot worse than here:

http://www.HappyHerbalist.com/kombucha.htm

There's a fair bit of useful info on the HappyHerbalist site, in addition to the availability of the starter kits themselves.

Note that Günther Frank runs an excellent website on the subject, with a world-wide network of Kombucha start sharers. He's a really nice guy (answered my email very promptly and courteously) and offers a mine of information on his site:

http://www.kombu.de/


J.

[Punky]

You could do a lot worse than here:

http://www.HappyHerbalist.com/kombucha.htm

There's a fair bit of useful info on the HappyHerbalist site, in addition to the availability of the starter kits themselves.

Note that Günther Frank runs an excellent website on the subject, with a world-wide network of Kombucha start sharers. He's a really nice guy (answered my email very promptly and courteously) and offers a mine of information on his site:

http://www.kombu.de/


J.

Arky,
do you make Kombucha too?
If so have you tried it with honey?
just curious....

[langelbleu]

Arky,
do you make Kombucha too?
If so have you tried it with honey?
just curious....

While I am not Arky, I do make my own kombucha...
As I understand it honey is not advised because it has antibacterial properties which can alter the kombucha culture by killing off some of the strains of yeast and bacteria which makes it specifically kombucha.

Personally I use green (or white) tea and grade b maple syrup with great success.
I tried blackstrap and really didn't like that as it tasted too metalic.
I am currently making a batch using agave, as it is only in the first few days of fermenting I couldn't tell you how effective this will be.

Sandor Katz who wrote Wild Fermentation http://www.wildfermentation.com tells how he finds it a very versatile culture which a friend even fermented in Mountain Dew (not that I am suggesting that in any way lol)

[Purl]

how timely! My sis is supposed to bring me my starter today-if she remembers! :rolleyes:

My 2 yo had some the other day and LOOOOVED it. It was from WF in the soda case-and had lots and lots of ginger-she drank about 1/2 the bottle. She wanted more, but I had finished it off before she drank the whole thing and I didn't get any! LOL!

[Punky]

While I am not Arky, I do make my own kombucha...
As I understand it honey is not advised because it has antibacterial properties which can alter the kombucha culture by killing off some of the strains of yeast and bacteria which makes it specifically kombucha.

Personally I use green (or white) tea and grade b maple syrup with great success.
I tried blackstrap and really didn't like that as it tasted too metalic.
I am currently making a batch using agave, as it is only in the first few days of fermenting I couldn't tell you how effective this will be.

Sandor Katz who wrote Wild Fermentation http://www.wildfermentation.com tells how he finds it a very versatile culture which a friend even fermented in Mountain Dew (not that I am suggesting that in any way lol)


thanks for the reply!
Since I wrote that I read up and your right about the honey not being good for it. But you gave me some great ideas to try the maple syrup or agave!
Let me know how the agave turns out!

[Arky]

oops! This thread slipped under my radar, hence the lack of reply! :(

I did try kombucha but my ever-changing work shifts meant that I allowed the culture to die-off after only 10days or so because I could not be as attentive to it as it deserved. After such a short period, it would not be fair of me to draw any firm conclusions, so I'll refrain from passing judgment at the present time. I fully intend to revisit Kombucha some time in the near future, however :D

On a very closely-related topic, however, I should point out is that I have noticed toothache (specifically, beneath the gumline) after regular consumption of grapejuice kefir. It just so happens that some dental researchers have pointed out (without reference to fermented foods or drinks) that certain bacteria are strongly associated with periodontal disease (e.g. http://www.nih.go.jp/JJID/LEC-126.html) and, significantly, in my view, Kefir and Kombucha contain similar or associated bacteria. Therefore, although they may very well be beneficial to one's gut, and consequently one's overall health, I would urge anyone consuming probiotic foods or drinks to SERIOUSLY consider regularly using an oral irrigator, in order to flush these bacteria from beneath the gumline.


J.

[raeannasun]

Is this the stuff that had a big trend in the early-mid 90s? I remember my mom had several bowls with the little mushroom things growing on them and then would peel one off to start a new batch. It was all over the TV for a while with the benefits of anti-aging, i.e. age spots disapperaring, etc.

[Arky]

Is this the stuff that had a big trend in the early-mid 90s? I remember my mom had several bowls with the little mushroom things growing on them and then would peel one off to start a new batch. It was all over the TV for a while with the benefits of anti-aging, i.e. age spots disapperaring, etc.


Yes, it is.


J.

[Raw Jewelrylady]

oops! This thread slipped under my radar, hence the lack of reply! :(

I did try kombucha but my ever-changing work shifts meant that I allowed the culture to die-off after only 10days or so because I could not be as attentive to it as it deserved. After such a short period, it would not be fair of me to draw any firm conclusions, so I'll refrain from passing judgment at the present time. I fully intend to revisit Kombucha some time in the near future, however :D

On a very closely-related topic, however, I should point out is that I have noticed toothache (specifically, beneath the gumline) after regular consumption of grapejuice kefir. It just so happens that some dental researchers have pointed out (without reference to fermented foods or drinks) that certain bacteria are strongly associated with periodontal disease (e.g. http://www.nih.go.jp/JJID/LEC-126.html) and, significantly, in my view, Kefir and Kombucha contain similar or associated bacteria. Therefore, although they may very well be beneficial to one's gut, and consequently one's overall health, I would urge anyone consuming probiotic foods or drinks to SERIOUSLY consider regularly using an oral irrigator, in order to flush these bacteria from beneath the gumline.


J.


Just a thought..couldn't you just drink it through a straw??? I remember my dentist telling me to drink anything dark/coffee/tea/grape juice through a straw to prevent staining....this would work for the tea.. :cool:

Lana

I have to look into this further as I remember trying the packaged teas & about gagged at the taste...But I like the health benefits mentioned.

[Arky]

An interesting solution, and one which might work, to some extent, for staining and/or acidic substances, but in the case of bacteria, I fear not. The tongue is one of the primary harbours of bacteria in the mouth and a straw would not prevent the tongue from coming into contact with the ferment's bacterial content. Thereafter, it'd be an extremely short distance from the tongue to the gums.

Cool idea for acidic/staining stuff, though, thanks for the tip! :)


J.

[exurb]

Here's a link from the CDC (center for disease control) if you care to read it about kombucha tea -

Unexplained Severe Illness Possibly Associated with Consumption of Kombucha Tea

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00039742.htm


There's also this article in the journal Scientific Review of Alternative Medicine:

Identification of Cytotoxic Agent in Kombucha Herbal Medicine, by Susan DiGeorgio, PhD, RPh, and Jerry L. McLaughlin, PhD, RPh