Kombucha is a sweetened black tea drink that’s been fermented with the use of a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast. This fermented drink’s origin can be traced back to Northeast China. Kombucha consumption then spread northwest to Russia in the early 1900s, and to Europe and the rest of the world from there. Known for its characteristic taste, kombucha is also touted for its manifold health benefits.
Read further and discover more about the benefits of kombucha and why the Superhuman Food Pyramid recommends you include this source of hydration to help in your quest to Become Superhuman.
Kombucha Benefits:
Kombucha is, first and foremost, a probiotic drink that contains beneficial microbes. Probiotics consumption during pregnancy, for instance, has been found to reduce certain allergies in infants. Taking in probiotic drinks may also help relieve the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, as well as reduce the incidence, severity, and duration of infectious diarrhea and antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Probiotics have been found to impair the growth of Helicobacter pylori that causes peptic ulcers and a risk factor for gastric cancer as well. Consuming probiotics may prove helpful in maintaining mental health, too.
Kombucha’s health benefits aren’t only limited to the ones already mentioned. In a 2012 Tunisian study, rats were administered with the compound alloxan to induce Alloxan Diabetes in these animals, characteristics of which resemble type 1 diabetes mellitus in humans. One group was subsequently orally supplied with unfermented black tea, while the other with kombucha, and those that were given the latter had improved liver and kidney markers after 30 days. It is crucial to note that diabetes often results in complications to these very two organs, and so kombucha may prove useful for the prevention and possibly even for the treatment of this rampant lifestyle disease. Said study has found kombucha is significantly more effective at suppressing blood glucose spikes than unfermented black tea as well.
In the same study, rats given kombucha had significantly increased levels of HDL-cholesterol, the beneficial kind of cholesterol, and delayed absorption of both triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol, the harmful type of cholesterol. Kombucha may then offer heart-protective properties as well as weight loss and weight management benefits.
Meanwhile, in a 2013 Indian study, findings further confirmed kombucha’s antidiabetic effects. As it turns out, its potent antioxidant content helped protect the liver, the pancreas, the heart, and the kidneys from oxidative stress in the alloxan-induced diabetic rats.
Kombucha Practical Uses:
Kombucha contains a variety of organic acids making it a suitable marinade for meats. In a glass bowl, soak your choice of meat like grass-fed beef, bison, buffalo, or lamb or pasture-raised organic pork along with your favorite herbs overnight in the fridge to make it tender.
Consuming kombucha sparingly by using it as an ingredient in salad dressing may be considered by those who want to gradually introduce their palates to this unique-tasting fermented product as well. To make a vinaigrette, blend 5 tablespoons of kombucha, 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar, half cup each of fresh lemon and fresh orange juice, and 2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard in a blender or food processor. Afterwards, slowly pour 1 cup of olive oil, and blend until thick. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste prior to serving with your favorite salad vegetables and greens.
In the next post, I’ll tell you the benefits of green drinks or powders and why you should drink them to help in your quest to Become Superhuman.
In the meantime, if you care to jump ahead, here is a complete listing of drinks to avoid as well as consume regularly and moderately on the Superhuman Food Pyramid:
Drink:
- Filtered Water
- Soda Water
- Coconut Water
- Kombucha
- Greens Drinks or Powders
Moderate:
- Non-Caffeinated Teas
- Coconut Milk
- Raw, Grass-Fed Cow or Goat’s Milk
- Kefir
- Sports Drinks
- Smoothies (With Natural Ingredients)
- Arabica Coffee Regular and Decaf
- Caffeinated Tea (includes Green Tea)
- Anti-Oxidant Drinks or Powders
- Rice Milk
Avoid:
- Almond Milk
- Red Wine
- Energy Drinks
- Flavored Waters
- Soda
- Soy Milk
- Regular Cow’s Milk
- Instant Coffee
- Blended Coffee
- Lattes
- Mochas
- Beer
- Mixed Drinks
- Hard Alcohol
If you have questions, comments or feedback about the benefits of kombucha, the Superhuman Food Pyramid, this website, or other aspects of Becoming Superhuman, then leave your thoughts below, as well as any tips you have on the benefits of kombucha.
Author Bio: Ben Greenfield
His credentials include:
Bachelor’s and master’s degrees from University of Idaho in sports science and exercise physiology
Personal training and strength and conditioning certifications from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA)
Sports nutrition certification from the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN)
Advanced bicycle fitting certification from Serotta, the “Harvard” of bicycle fitting schools
Over 10 years experience in coaching professional, collegiate, and recreational athletes from all sports
Ben hosts the highly popular fitness, nutrition and wellness website at http://www.bengreenfieldfitness.com, which features blogs, podcasts, and product reviews from Ben. He is a frequent contributor to Triathlete magazine and LAVA magazine, Endurance Planet (http://www.enduranceplanet.com), the outdoor sports magazine OutThere Monthly and has been featured in WebMD, the Spokesman-Review, Inlander magazine, In-Health magazine, Fit-Pro magazine, PTontheNet, Prevention magazine, Women’s Running magazine, and Inside Triathlon magazine.
As a public speaker on fitness, nutrition, and training, Ben hosts one of the top ranked fitness podcasts in iTunes, the Get-Fit Guy (http://www.GetFitGuy.com), and has been a keynote lecturer at the Hawaii Ironman World Championships Medical Conference, the Coeur D’ Alene Ironman Medical Conference, USAT Art & Science of Coaching Symposium, Can-Fit-Pro Conference, Pilgrim’s Wellness Center Education Series, Fleet Feet Sports Endurance Sports Clinic and REI Nutrition Clinic. He sits on the board of directors for Tri-Fusion triathlon team, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and is the official coach for the YoungTri. As a triathlon coach and competitor, Ben competes at Ironman and Half-Ironman World Championships, holds a ranking as of USAT’s top ranked age grouper triathletes, and competes in 15-20 triathlons each year, both nationally and internationally.
