Kombucha: I Am Officially On The Bandwagon!!

Look yummy. Never have it yet :).

What's the gist of this stuff? What is a Scoby?

BTW = I saw this on the Wiki - "There are several documented cases of serious adverse effects, including fatalities, related to kombucha drinking, possibly arising from contamination during home preparation"

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/expert-answers/kombucha-tea/faq-20058126

http://www.gaiaresearch.co.za/kombucha.html

The Scoby is the living organism that ferments the tea. So, you will have those who say zero benefits and those who say lifetime benefits. Yeah, there are risks in life. Eating at Chipotle is one of them.

I will stick with the mayo clinic but have fun.

I am too afraid....my migraine brain doesn't like fermented foods.

"KOMBUCHA TEA Side Effects & Safety. Kombucha tea is POSSIBLY UNSAFE for most adults when taken by mouth. It can cause side effects including stomach problems, yeast infections, allergic reactions, yellow skin (jaundice), nausea, vomiting, head and neck pain, and death." WebMD

Not for me...I have enough medical crap to deal with already.

That might goes well with the stinky tofu, Stinky tofu, is a form of fermented tofu that has a strong odor. It is been deep fired and sold at night markets or roadside stands as a snack in some Asian countries. The seller usually sell them from their bicycle wagon and the smell could reach mile away.

Joy - nothing medical about it.

We made homemade ginger beer last summer. That was easy and tasty. Made for some great Dark and Stormy cocktails.

All I say is consider the source. WebMD and Mayo clinic make big bucks off synthetic crap! Of course they don't want you taking anything natural. Its just as safe as making your own brew at home. I am sure if you use contaminated containers and/or equipment you could get sick, have side effects etc.
Here is a stat for you.

The U.S. health care system may contribute to poor health or death. According to Dr. Barbara Starfield of the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, 250,000 deaths per year are caused by medical errors, making this the third-largest cause of death in the U.S., following heart disease and cancer.

http://www.naturodoc.com/library/public_health/doctors_cause_death.htm

Luckily every Kombucha death is 100% preventable. You don't even have to believe in modern medicine to avoid it.

As with anything that makes claims of dramatic healing properties or being some health enhancing wonder treatment, do your research. One thing people didn't have in the past was easy access to reliable resources. We do now with the Internet. Keeping in mind that many people who promote this stuff have little or no understanding of human physiology and how the body processes food. They think if it works for me it'll work for everyone. In other words, know what you are getting into when doing self treatments. I'm not saying they are all bad, I'm saying don't just do something because somebody says it's a good thing to do.

Aside from regular exercise and a balanced diet, the short answer is that there isn't any one thing out there, even if proven effective, that is a "wonder treatment".

'Nuff said.

If it worked Martin Shkreli would have already cornered the market and be selling it for $1,000 a bottle.

...
At least it doesn't require the killing of any endangered animals.

The global market for kombucha has grown exponentially in the last few years. In terms of value, the market is projected to reach USD 1.8 Billion by 2020, at a CAGR of 25.0% from 2015 to 2020. North America is the largest market in the global kombucha market having accounted for a share of 39.4%. North America has witnessed the highest sale of kombucha beverages. The U.S. has copious manufacturers of kombucha that are continuously expanding their geographical reach in the kombucha market.

http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/kombucha-market-211406364.html

And yet today is the first I even heard of it. Sales reports are a far different thing than statistical and/or medical proof of benefits.

Ginseng has a huge market too and yet claims of it's health benefits are anecdotal at best.

" they don't want you taking anything natural"

Sorry if this is harsh, but that's a ridiculous thing to say. Of course they have advertisers, and they may give certain promotional benefits to them, but the idea that they'd actually be invested in preventing people from using non-synthetic supplements and foods is way off base.

There's plenty of home remedy/herbal/natural type stuff on WebMD. There's also plenty of warnings about synthetic meds and supplements.

See my photos, with the medical profession at #3 for deaths in the USA, although I never heard of this Kombucha, I would take my chances with Kombucha before following modern medical advice especially if it involves prescribed medications. Natural is always better, where modern medicine has a license to kill and to fleece all it's subjects, medicine is the dirtiest business there is, the buyer should beware and be aware of this fact. Placing complete faith in modern medicine could be deadly, science does not have all the answers, but many of the answers are in nature and natural products, there is a world of unexplored plants and herbs and other natural substances that are effective and yet unrecognized or little studied or not researched by "modern Science".

To each his own. Do whatever feel right to you!