Kombucha
I had never heard of Kombucha until Maya from A Recipe For Wellness recommended it to me. Always interested in trying new things (but not yet ready to try to make my own), I picked up a bottle of GT’s Original 100% Raw, 100% Organic Kombucha at Whole Foods.
This effervescent drink is cultured for 30 days, and like yogurt (or sauerkraut) is fermented and “alive” with active enzymes. People have been making and drinking Kombucha since the B.C. years, and there are some phenomenal health claims surrounding it. Nobel Prize winner Alexandr Solzhenitsyn wrote that drinking Kombucha helped him survive the Siberian slave camps and the maker of GT’s Kombucha was inspired to share it after he and his mother believe it helped prevent the spread of her breast cancer.
In addition to these amazing stories, Kombucha is also claims to help regulate digestion, metabolism, immune system, liver function, cell integrity and healthy skin and hair. Although, they do include an asterisk on the label that does clarify that these statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. (However, that doesn’t mean that these health benefits don’t exist.) As usual, it is always best to do your research, and consult your doctor or nutritionist if you want to try the natural healing powers of something like Kombucha.
Personally speaking, I will continue to drink it because I love the taste! (I think it tastes a bit like carbonated apple cider.) I loved the original flavor, and am excited to try the Multi-Green which actually has algae in it. Liz gets her Kombucha at the Co-op, and recommends Strawberry and Grape.
This stuff may not be unalloyedly wonderful — see the CDC’s write-up “Unexplained Severe Illness Possibly Associated with Consumption of Kombucha Tea — Iowa, 1995″ at http://www.cdc.gov/MMWR/preview/mmwrhtml/00039742.htm
Comment by Steve P in Bethesda, Md — March 3, 2008
Steve,
Thanks for pointing this out. I, too, saw that article from 1995. Both women were making their own tea, derived from the same parent mushroom. For this reason, it is best to make sure you are very educated on the process of making your own tea before attempting to do so.
Rhaya
Comment by Rhaya — March 3, 2008
Thanks for the link over and yes! GT’s Multigreen is delicious, not altogether an acquired taste — but definitely different. Keep doin’ what you guys do! Love your site and very excited to have found it quite by chance.
Yours,
Matty
Green Eggs and Planet
Comment by Green Eggs Matty — March 4, 2008
I understand Steve’s reticence about kombucha tea, but the patients involved, it looked to me, were on heavy duty pharmaceuticals when they drank the tea. wouldn’t this have anything to do with the deaths?
Comment by JUDIE — March 22, 2008
I found out about GT’s Kombucha tea last week. I tried the mango flavor but didn’t like it… it had a bit of an alcohol taste to it as well, then I looked on the back and read it may be traced with 0.5% alcohol due to fermentation. :S Strawberry tastes good, looking forward to trying the other flavors.
Comment by Casey — July 15, 2008