Kombucha Tea.
The
Kombucha organism is a symbiotic colony of yeast's and bacteria that
form a strong membrane that covers the liquid/air interface of the
vessel it grows in. Most people who grow it do so in their own homes,
under less than sterile conditions, yet Kombucha rarely becomes
contaminated with rogue varieties of moulds and bacteria. To grow it,
you take a batch of weak to moderately-strong black tea, sweetened with
white sugar, that has been cooled to room temperature, and float the
membrane in it. Within a week to 10 days, the Kombucha organism converts
the tea into a fluid that is drunk several times daily by the patient.
Since the Kombucha is a form of life called a vinegar mother, the
organism that converts, say, apple cider into apple cider vinegar, the
brew becomes more acidic as it ages. After the brewing period is
complete, the liquid is strained, refrigerated and drunk. The organism
is then put into a new batch of tea (with a bit of the old liquid as a
"starter"); often a second membrane will appear, and they can be
separated to start another batch.
The
working of the organism in the liquid reduces greatly the sugar and
caffeine content of the tea, and produces large amounts of B vitamins,
minerals, substances that are reported to act as anti-bacterial and
anti-viral agents, and various acids, as well as unknown substances. It
produces a very tiny amount of alcohol as well, perhaps as much as 0.5%,
making it like non-alcoholic brews. The flavour takes some getting used
to, but is not unpleasant, a bit fruity and vinegary. The organism
itself is not consumed, only the tea.
Cautions:
the
greatest danger is inadvertently consuming a bad batch of tea that has
been contaminated with outside, disease-producing fungi or bacteria. At
least one disease-producing bacteria has been found in a batch of tea
and this has been linked with fatalities. People with hepatitis don't
need the added strain of an induced illness. Fortunately, it is easy to
detect a contaminated batch. Other concerns are that the unnecessary
consumption of antibiotic and antiviral substances could encourage the
mutation of existing pathogens into more resistant strains. I encourage
people who are not chronically ill to avoid taking kombucha as a dietary
supplement for this reason. Kombucha seems to have a slight laxative
effect on some people.
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