Kombucha is a tea that has been fermented by probiotics: bacteria and yeast.
The brewed tea is believed to improve digestion and fight overgrowth of candida, a type of dangerous yeast. It also reportedly correlates with mental clarity and mood stability, decreasing and even ceasing symptoms of fibromyalgia, depression, and anxiety,
according to Food Renegade.
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The sweetened beverage originates in China, where it is known as the “immortal health elixir,” Food Renegade reports. Though it has been around for over 2,000 years, not until the early 20th century did the West begin looking into health benefits of kombucha, and today it is mainstream.
“Depending on the store, kombucha now occupies about one-third of our refrigerated functional-beverage shelf space,” Whole Foods’ executive global grocery coordinator Errol Schweizer
told CNBC.
Its contents typically include tea, sugar, some fruit juices, and a SCOBY: a "symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast."
Nicknamed “mushroom-tea,” the tea brews, and the bacteria and yeast group together to form a mushroom-like cap.
The cap protects the liquid from unwanted outside bacteria and results from the SCOBY transforming sugar into carbon dioxide and ethanol — or alcohol,
News.Mic reported.
Additionally,
The Washington Post reports benefits such as stronger immune-system response are probably because of the large amount of healthy bacteria kombucha contains for the digestive system. Consumers should be aware, however, these bacteria — the probiotics — do not survive through the pasteurization process.
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Drinking kombucha not purified can risk safety. The newspaper reports side effects of the contaminated tea include an upset stomach, increased acidity in the body, allergic responses to mold, and even toxicity from heavy metals of ceramic pots. Alcohol content of the tea depends on how it is brewed.
On other fronts, the tea has been hailed for curing and preventing many diseases, including joint pain an even cancer, according to Food Renegade.
Others, however, tout kombucha as being a toxin, The Post added. No human studies, however, have yet been done on the tea, all research resting on results from animals.
Though sold in stores, kombucha can also be brewed at home, but the newspaper noted people should be wary of making sure they make it correctly before ingesting the beverage for safety reasons.
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