Health Benefits of Kombucha Tea
Kombucha is a fermented, lightly effervescent, sweetened black or green tea drink commonly consumed for its purported health benefits. Sometimes the beverage is called kombucha tea to distinguish it from the culture of bacteria and yeast. Juice, spices, fruit or other flavorings are often added. Kombucha also contains antioxidants, can kill harmful bacteria and may help fight several diseases.
Advocates say it helps your digestion, rids your body of toxins, and boosts your energy. It's also said to boost your immune system, help you lose weight, ward off high blood pressure and heart disease, and prevent cancer.
1. Kombucha is a Potential Source of Probiotics
Kombucha is thought to originate in China or Japan. It’s made by adding specific strains of bacteria, yeast and sugar to black or green tea, then allowing it to ferment for a week or more.
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 gasses that make it carbonated.
A large amount of bacteria also grow in the mixture. Although there is still no evidence for the probiotic benefits of kombucha, it contains several species of lactic-acid bacteria which may have probiotic function. Probiotics provide your gut with healthy bacteria. These bacteria can improve many aspects of health, including digestion, inflammation and even weight loss.
Kombucha is a type of tea that has been fermented. This makes it a good source of probiotics, which have many health benefits.
2. Kombucha May Provide the Benefits of Green Tea
Green tea is one of the healthiest beverages on the planet. This is because green tea contains many bioactive 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. And also show that green tea drinkers have a reduced risk of prostate, breast and colon cancers.
Kombucha made from green tea may offer many of the same health benefits as green tea itself, such as weight loss and blood sugar control.
3. Kombucha Contains Antioxidants
Antioxidants are substances that fight free radicals, reactive molecules that can damage your cells. Many scientists believe that antioxidants from foods and beverages are better for your health than antioxidant supplements.
Kombucha, especially when made with green tea, appears to have antioxidant effects in your liver.
Kombucha is rich in antioxidants, and studies have shown that it protects rats’ liver from toxicity.
4. Kombucha May Reduce Heart Disease Risk
Heart disease is the world’s leading cause of death. Rat studies show that kombucha can greatly improve two markers of heart disease, “bad” LDL and “good” HDL cholesterol, in as few as 30 days.
Kombucha has been shown to improve “bad” LDL and “good” HDL cholesterol levels in rats. It may also protect against heart disease.
5. Kombucha Can Kill Bacteria
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 is rich in tea polyphenols and acetic acid, which have both been shown to suppress the growth of undesirable bacteria and yeasts.
6. Kombucha May Help Protect Against Cancer
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.
How the anti-cancer properties of tea polyphenols work is not well understood. However, it’s thought that the polyphenols block gene mutation and growth of cancer cells while also promoting cancer cell death. For this reason, it is not surprising that tea drinkers are much less likely to develop various types of cancer.
Test-tube studies show that kombucha may suppress the growth of cancer cells. It is unknown whether drinking kombucha has any effects on cancer risk in people.
7. Kombucha May Help Manage Type 2 Diabetes
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. 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.
Many people believe that kombucha helps treat all sorts of chronic health problems. However, human studies on the effects of kombucha are few and the evidence for its health effects limited.
In contrast, there is ample evidence for the benefits of tea and probiotics, both of which are found in kombucha. If you decide to try homemade kombucha, make sure it’s properly prepared. Contaminated kombucha may cause more harm than good.
Have enough courage to start and enough heart to finish.