· Drinking Kombucha promotes good health and helps millions of people with its excellent detoxifying and immune-enhancing qualities. Its origins are lost in history, but in the earliest records two thousand years ago it was known as ‘the elixir of long life’.
· Kombucha is not just a health tonic; it is a complete therapy.
·
Kombucha has proved itself to be a quite remarkable therapeutic
drink, made from sweetened tea into which a Kombucha culture
(a symbiosis of bacteria and yeasts) is placed.
It can taste similar to apple cider or a refreshing light wine, depending on
the fermentation time and type of tea used.
· There are at least six million Kombucha brewers world-wide.
· Doctors, consultants, and practitioners are now recommending Kombucha to their patients.
The Western World is becoming
Malnourished!
It is well recognized that a high percentage of the Western
population is getting insufficient nourishment from modern diets and, as a
consequence, our health, and that of society as a whole, is suffering. Kombucha
is a food rich in vitamins and minerals which are essential to good health.
Many doctors believe that supplementary vitamins and minerals are unnecessary,
saying that we get sufficient of these in a balanced diet. While that may be
true in theory, who gets a really balanced diet now? Much of the food that we
purchase, even so-called fresh food, has been grown with chemicals -
herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers. After this, they are sprayed with even
more chemicals to preserve their colour and shelf life.
Many of the fast foods that we eat are processed to the
point where most of the beneficial nutrients have disappeared altogether,
leaving the meal virtually barren. The nitrogen fertilizers used in commercial
agriculture stimulate plant growth too rapidly for the uptake of the trace
elements and minerals essential for our bodies, resulting in the food lacking
nutritional value. British government studies show that our intake of essential
minerals and vitamins has fallen greatly since 1936, before the chemical
revolution. The truth is that in the Western world we are malnourished!
As Hazel Courteney tells: "Over 50,000 chemicals are
either being sprayed on fruits, vegetables and grains, or added to our food.
Many of these chemicals have now entered the food chain and we are reaping a
bitter harvest. Our fruits and vegetables contain substantially less vitamins
and minerals than they did 50 years ago, sperm counts are dropping, overuse of
antibiotics is causing new resistant strains of bacteria which trigger food
poisoning. What is happening today, with the tidal wave of illnesses from heart
disease, diabetes, candida and high blood pressure to asthma and arthritis, is
that our bodies are telling us they have had enough. It is imperative that we
wake up and educate ourselves and others in ways of protecting ourselves and
our planet."
Many people, including doctors and scientists, don't realize
how much our immune systems are vulnerable to the effects of sophisticated
forms of pollution. There are also the chemicals added to our food (both in
farming and in food processing) that are supposed to make us enjoy them more.
These are not friendly chemicals; they destroy the body's functioning, cause
allergic reactions, digestive disorders and pollute our blood - they are
poisoning us! In the worst cases, of the common prescribing of powerful drugs
like antibiotics, cortisone and steroids, the homeostatic balance of the body
is disrupted. Some people who were suffering from the side effects of these
drugs believe that Kombucha therapy was in great measure responsible for
restoring their metabolic balance and health.
Encouraging Self-Empowerment
Kombucha has helped with a wide variety of acute and
chronic conditions. Some of the most enthusiastic responses we have had to
Kombucha have come from those people with difficult long-term illnesses such as
arthritis, digestive disorders, high blood pressure, poor circulation, high
cholesterol and cancer, and from older people, many of whom doctors have been
unable to help. In addition, alarming numbers of young people are developing
illnesses resulting from poorly functioning immune systems, such as eczema,
acne, allergies, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME), etc.
When Kombucha was widely publicized by the media a few
years ago as a trendy new health craze, of the thousands who started to brew
many gave up because they were not getting their ‘quick fix’, were not able to
make a pleasant tasting drink, or because their culture failed. It is also very
helpful to know of the dozens of other applications of Kombucha. For example,
Kombucha tea is excellent applied topically, as a compress, or added to the
bath, and made into an effective cream that can help to heal leg ulcers and
fungal nail infections. Kombucha can also be used in food recipes, with
animals, in gardens & around the home.
Kombucha tea was known in the East, and found its way
across Russia
in the 1800s, becoming widely established as an effective folk medicine in many
rural communities. In the 1950s, it surfaced dramatically when Soviet doctors
discovered whole communities which had apparently been protected from dangerous
environmental pollution by a nutritious drink called ‘tea-kwass’ or Kombucha
tea.
There are some over-sensational claims for Kombucha’s
benefits as a panacea for all ills, to is not. It is difficult, in a
symptom-based medical system, for people not to expect a cure for their
specific illness, rather than seek an understanding of the underlying causes of
that illness or imbalance. The human body constantly seeks health and balance, but
when it has been abused for many years, this balance is compromised. Once
brought back to strength through detoxification, improved functioning and an
enhanced immune system, the body can initiate its own natural mechanisms for
healing.
Kombucha - a Nutritious Food<big> </big>
The Kombucha beverage should be regarded principally as a
food unusually rich in nutritive properties, rather than just a health drink.
As in yogurt, the bacteria are a great source of nutrition, but in addition
Kombucha has a wide range of organic acids, vitamins and enzymes that give it
its extraordinary value. It contains the range of B vitamins, particularly B1,
B2, B6 and B12, that provide the body with energy, help to process fats and
proteins, and which are vital for the normal functioning of the nervous system.
There is also vitamin C which is a potent detoxifier, immune booster and
enhancer of vitality.
Tea and Sugar's Role in Kombucha
Tea (Camilla sinesis) is very nutritious, especially
in its unfermented green form. It is high in fluorides and has
anti-carcinogenic properties; it provides nitrogen, minerals, vitamins, and
other substances essential for nutrition, and promotes the growth of the
micro-organisms and the cellular construction of the Kombucha culture. Green
tea is also high in vitamin C.
Sugar plays an essential part in Kombucha's brewing
process, providing a nutrient solution for the culture, assisting in the
feeding and respiration of the micro-organisms, and activating the yeasts. It
also gets the fermentation process going. The yeast cells make certain organic
acids, vitamins and supplementary yeasts, while the bacteria produce
carbonation, ethanol and other organic acids. The bacteria break down the
sugars into acetic acid and carbon dioxide.
How Does Kombucha Work?
Kombucha is an effective metabolic balancer (helping
the various organs work together), probiotic (supporting the beneficial
bacteria), adaptogen (balancing processes that get out of kilter) and
detoxifier. The probiotic case for Kombucha is that it encourages healthier
intestinal flora by introducing lactic acid-producing bacteria. These work in a
similar way to acidophilus bacteria, the active ingredient in live yogurt. An
old saying, ‘healthy gut, healthy body,’ puts it simply. The acidity level of
the gut is all-important, as is the health of its microbial flora which play a
crucial role in the functioning of the whole body.
Bacteroides and Bifidobacteria
The bacteria in the intestines can be divided into two
main types;1 the less acid-forming bacteroides are responsible for the decaying
matter in the colon; elderly people tend to have more gastric disorders; these
stem from a low hydrochloric acid production in the stomach, creating more room
for fungi and parasites to take hold; bacteroides are encouraged by a diet high
in fats and proteins.
The more acidic ones, called bifidobacteria,
are more beneficial because they produce essential organic acids, such as
acetic, lactic and folic acids, which raise the acidity of the intestines,
preventing invading pathogens from taking hold. In addition, by keeping down
the bacteroides population, they discourage the putrefaction from becoming
toxic. The bifidobacteria are favoured by a diet high in carbohydrate, fiber
and lacto-vegetarian food and are more common in individuals who were
breast-fed as babies. They are also assisted by drinking Kombucha tea.
Kombucha – a Nutritious Food
Kombucha has a wide range of organic acids, vitamins
and enzymes that give it its extraordinary value. It contains the range of B
vitamins, particularly B1, B2, B6 and B12, that provide the body with energy,
help to process fats and proteins, and which are vital for the normal
functioning of the nervous system. There is also vitamin C which is a potent
detoxifier, immune booster and enhancer of vitality.
Probiotic Organic Acids
There are two organic acids produced by Kombucha which
encourage the activity of the resident bifidobacteria, thus restoring a healthy
balance with the bacteroides:
Lactic acid which is essential for
healthy digestive action (through its derivative lactobacilli) and for
energy production by the liver, and is not found in the
tissues of people with cancer.
Acetic acid which is an antiseptic and
inhibitor of pathogenic bacteria.
Kombucha’s Vital Organic Acids
Other valuable organic acids produced by the Kombucha
culture, some of which have a more direct effect on other organs include:
Glucuronic acid, normally produced by
a healthy liver, is a powerful detoxifier and can readily be converted into
glucosamines,
the foundations of our skeletal system.
Usnic acid has selective
antibiotic qualities which can partly deactivate viruses.
Citric acid is an
antiascorbic.
Oxalic acid encourages the
intercellular production of energy, and is a preservative.
Malic acid also helps the
liver to detoxify.
Gluconic acid is a sugar
product which can break down to caprylic acid to work symbiotically with —
Butyric acid (produced by
the yeast) protects human cellular membranes, and combined with Gluconic acid
which is produced by the bacteria,
strengthens the walls of the gut in order to combat
yeast infections such as candida.
Nucleic acids, like RNA and
DNA, transmit information to the cells on how to perform correctly and
regenerate.
A product of the oxidation process of glucose –
glucuronic acid – is one of the more significant constituents of Kombucha. As a
detoxifying agent, it has come into its own today in our highly polluted world.
It is one of the few agents that can cope with the pollutive products of the
petroleum industry, including all the plastics, herbicides, pesticides and
resins. It ‘kidnaps’ the phenols in the liver which are then eliminated easily
by the kidneys. Another byproduct of glucuronic acid are the glucosamines, the
structures associated with cartilage, collagen and the fluids which lubricate
the joints. Collagen reduces wrinkles, while arthritis sufferers have their
deficient cartilage and joint fluids replenished.
Amino acids, which are
constituents of proteins, produce important enzymes, such as glutathione a
powerful antioxidant which provides protection from alcohol and pollution, and
which is depleted by drug regimes.
Sugar, Yeast and Tea
When Kombucha tea is made correctly, all the sugars
are fully converted into organic acids during fermentation, enabling Kombucha
tea to be is safely drunk by diabetics and candida sufferers. Also the yeasts
found in the Kombucha culture do not stimulate the candida yeasts as they are
of a different type; candida sufferers have therefore often found considerable
relief in taking Kombucha. Black or green tea may be used as a nutrient for the
culture, but as green tea has anti-carcinogenic properties, is beneficial to
the heart and blood circulation and is particularly nutritious, it is
preferable to use.
Balancing the Body
Metabolic balancing is perhaps the most important
function of Kombucha. This is one reason why it is not symptom specific – why
it does not always help a specific immune-related illness, but rather seems to
go to a person’s own weakness or personal imbalance. Such a substance which has
no specific harmful effect is called an adaptogen. Kombucha’s adaptogen
effect is seen mostly through its influence on the liver, the blood and the
digestive system, where it normalizes the acidity or pH.
The Acidity Factor
Human metabolism depends on the acid-alkaline balance
which is constantly responding to the food that we eat, the air that we
breathe, and to our emotional state. The body has a remarkable balancing system
that maintains the different organs at the pH level each requires for health. A
cell’s pH balance is disturbed by toxins, which create more acidity. The body
gets rid of toxic acids by various means. One is through breathing – that is
why deep breathing is so therapeutic – it makes the blood more alkaline.
Another is by flushing out – one of Kombucha’s roles is to flush out the toxins
through the kidneys.
The Liver Filters Toxins
The liver is vital to life; it has the ability to
restore itself and has many functions – to assist digestion, to store important
vitamins and minerals, to metabolize proteins, fats and carbohydrates to
provide energy for the body, to recycle red blood cells, and remove toxins from
the body. Because of its role in pH regulation and of its detoxifying acids,
Kombucha is a valuable restorative of liver function.
Blood – Brings Life to the whole Body
When blood gets too alkaline calcium tends to
crystallize out of the blood solution.5 These crystals are deposited near the
joints, causing joint tenderness, arthritis, rheumatism and allergies. Older
people’s blood becomes more alkaline, which can affect their circulation, oxygenation
and energy. An acidic blood condition can lead to diabetes where fat and
protein wastes are not being discharged. Another acidic condition results in
adrenal depletion and general exhaustion.
Conventionally, blood is thought to be sterile. But
through his dark-field microscope research, Professor Gunther Enderlein has
shown that it is teeming with microbiological life. Normally these
micro-organisms are in a mutually beneficial symbiotic state of balance but,
for example, the lowering of the oxygen content of the blood, nutritional
deficiency and toxicity may lead to the development of pathogenic microbial
flora which can result in disease in other organs of the body. These
micro-organisms can travel freely between the blood plasma which surrounds the
blood cells, and the interstitial fluid which surrounds the fixed tissue cells
of the body.6 Kombucha is known to have a balancing effect of the pH of the
blood which is likely to make it less hospitable to pathogenic bacteria.
Contamination and Toxicity
It is important to remember that Kombucha has a
home-brewing safety track record of two millennia. Contamination of the culture
by moulds is not a problem if normal standards of kitchen hygiene are observed
and if the ambient temperature of the fermentation is adequate. If it occurs,
the culture and brew are disposed of, just as one would a moldy tomato paste.
Kombucha tea has its own protection against pathogens, as it contains an
antibiotic and, containing acetic acid (vinegar) it is self-protecting. Those
who mention toxicity in connection with Kombucha misunderstand the nature of
what is called a ‘healing crisis’ – the discomfiture experienced with rapid
detoxification of the liver. Kombucha is a powerful detoxifier and we always
recommend anyone who begins taking Kombucha starts with a small amount to avoid
any discomfort, gradually building up to the normal dose of 150mls (one
wineglass) three times a day.
Research on Kombucha’s Benefits
There is an extensive literature (some 300 books and
research papers) dealing with the analysis of Kombucha Tea and its therapeutic
effects. The independent medical research has been conducted principally in Russia and in Germany over the whole
of the present century. Among early reports were those listing the benefits of
Kombucha for stomach, digestive and intestinal disorders. One of the most
famous of the later researchers was Dr. Rudolf Sklenar of Oberhessen who
recognized the detoxifying properties of glucuronic acid in Kombucha for
removing waste matter such as cholesterol and toxic deposits. He developed a
biological cancer therapy based on Kombucha, and it is his recipe which is
still generally used today and for the production of the commercially bottled
brew. He became a champion for the remedy, which he found helped invigorate the
entire glandular system and the metabolism. He successfully treated arthritis,
constipation, obesity, arteriosclerosis, impotence, kidney stones, rheumatism,
gout and significantly, cancer, especially in its early stages.
The Importance of Polysaccharides in Cancer and Digestive Disorders
Sugars also play a part as polysaccharides, which form
the fundamental connective tissue of all human organs. Their ability to cope
with metabolic waste products is a crucial part of a healthy body. The Japanese
have conducted interesting research with these substances within the area of
immune-therapeutics, very much the domain of Kombucha therapy. These tests
focus on the role of polysaccharides which are found in Kombucha and their
positive effect on macrophages and T-cells. One trial showed that the survival
rate in cancer sufferers given polysaccharides was twice that of patients
undergoing conventional treatment. A German naturopathic clinic in Gaggenau, Germany, did trials which
showed the curative effects of polysaccharides on gastro-intestinal ailments as
well as cancers.
<big>Important Notes</big>
Although Kombucha's effects are individual, the most commonly observed are:
· balancing the metabolism
· cleansing the blood and regulating the acid/alkaline levels in the body
· improving liver, gall bladder and digestive function
· detoxifying the body and enhancing the immune system
· raising energy levels
It is
recommended that one starts by drinking just a small amount of Kombucha tea per
day, one single dose of 150mls (one wineglass). Kombucha is a living
culture and is a powerful detoxifier. It is always recommend that anyone
who begins taking Kombucha starts with a small amount to avoid any discomfort
from the detoxifying effects and to see how the body will react to the
Kombucha. A single dose should be followed for the first three or four
days, then the amount of tea may be increased to 300ml (two wine glasses) per
day. After the first week, then the full amount of tea may be taken per
day, 450ml or three wine glasses. The tea may be taken any time during
the day but works best if it is spread throughout the day. It is also very
important to drink a lot of clean filtered water, no 'city water', when
drinking the Kombucha tea as this helps to flush out the toxins being released
from the body. It is now recommended that a person drink at least half
their body weight in ounces. So if you weight 150lbs you should drink at
least 75 oz of water per day. Again it is very important to drink a lot
of water!
Kombucha is very safe to drink when brewed correctly and is
used by millions of people around the world. However, as with any drug or
substance newly introduced into the body caution must always be used. If
there is any signs or symptoms of an allergic reaction from drinking Kombucha,
other than the detoxifying symptoms that may occur, stop
drinking the Kombucha immediately. If the detoxifying effects are causing
to much discomfort simple reduce the amount of tea taken per day until your
correct dosage is found. Again millions of people drink Kombucha daily,
with no adverse side effects, to promote good health and enhance the immune
system.
Good Health Kombucha Tea<small>® </small>is always brewed with only organic
ingredients, which includes unfermented organic green tea and organic raw cane
sugar. For ordering Kombuhca tea, cultures, and starter kits please visit our new web site Anahata Balance Phone: 231.409.1193
Chemically treated water is never used in the brewing process.