Health Benefits of Kombucha

I am a Kombucha drinker. I buy it a lot and usually not just one company but the one that's on sale  It's not cheap, but I am finding out that eating clean is never cheap. So I have been thinking of making my own, a great project! Kind of like canning fresh vegetables but instead your bottling kombucha! I found this you tube video that shows how to do it as well as this book I found on amazon that tells how to ferment tea   and with recipes too.

Kombucha is a fermented tea that has been consumed for thousands of years, and its origin is either China or Japan.
 It's rich in beneficial probiotics and  contains antioxidants, that can kill harmful bacteria and helps fight several diseases.
It's made by adding specific strains of bacteria, called a scoby (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast), to sugar and black or green tea, then allowed to ferment for 7-10 days.

During this process, bacteria and yeast form a mushroom-like film on the surface of the liquid. This is why kombucha is also known as "mushroom tea."  This blob is a living symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast, or a SCOBY, and can be used to ferment new kombucha.
The fermentation process produces acetic acid (also found in vinegar) and several other acidic compounds, trace levels of alcohol and gases that make it carbonated    A large amount of probiotic bacteria is also produced during fermentation
Probiotics provide your gut with healthy bacteria. These bacteria can improve many aspects of health, including digestion, inflammation and even weight loss.  For this reason, adding probiotics foods like kombucha to your diet might improve your health in many ways. Green tea is one of the healthiest beverages on the planet.   This is because green tea contains many bio-active compounds, such as polyphenols, which function as powerful antioxidants in the body.
Kombucha made from green tea contains many of the same plant compounds and presumably boasts some of the same benefits Studies show that drinking green tea regularly can increase the number of calories you burn, reduce belly fat, improve cholesterol levels, help with blood sugar control and more.  Studies also show that green tea drinkers have a reduced risk of prostate, breast and colon cancers.
 Kombucha is rich in antioxidants, and studies have shown that it protects rats’ liver from toxicity.
One of the main substances produced during the fermentation of kombucha is acetic acid, which is also abundant in vinegar.
Like the polyphenols in tea, acetic acid is able to kill many potentially harmful microorganisms.
Kombucha made from black or green tea appears to have strong antibacterial properties, particularly against infection-causing bacteria and Candida yeasts.
These antimicrobial effects suppress the growth of undesirable bacteria and yeasts, but they do not affect the beneficial, probiotic bacteria and yeasts involved in kombucha fermentation.
Kombucha has been shown to improve “bad” LDL and “good” HDL cholesterol levels in rats. It may also protect against heart disease.
Type 2 diabetes affects over 300 million people worldwide. It is characterized by high blood sugar levels and insulin resistance.
A study in diabetic rats found that kombucha slowed down the digestion of carbs, which reduced blood sugar levels. It also improved liver and kidney function.
Kombucha made from green tea is likely to be even more beneficial, as green tea itself has been shown to reduce blood sugar levels.
In fact, a review study of almost 300,000 individuals found that green tea drinkers had an 18% lower risk of becoming diabetic (32).
Further human studies are needed to investigate the benefits of kombucha for blood sugar control. Kombucha improved several markers of diabetes in rats, including blood sugar levels.
Cancer is one of the world's leading causes of death. It is characterized by cell mutation and uncontrolled cell growth.
In test-tube studies, kombucha helped prevent the growth and spread of cancerous cells due to its high concentration of tea polyphenols and antioxidants.
Kombucha is expensive and making your own is fun and cost saving.

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