Eating your way to a healthy body

If you’re a doctor, nutritionist or simply someone who is very conscious of their health, it comes as no surprise that the key to reducing and even preventing illnesses has to do a lot with what you eat.

According to specialists and experts in the field, what a person eats can help his or her immune system by being the energy or fuel to fight off sicknesses, infections, illnesses and diseases caused by bad bacteria and or viruses.

It’s ironic how people take lots of medicine when they are sick when the fact of the matter is, a lot of foods have the same building blocks or functional properties as that of medicine. What’s more, food that is natural like fruits and probiotic food stuffs, are not synthetically made, often cheaper than medicine and do more than one function as compared to medicine.

Going back on topic, diet is the key to staying healthy and even fighting off sicknesses. Diet is what provides the building blocks for the immune system to function.

For example, food like oranges, carrots, orange cantaloupe, sweet potatoes, and other “orange” colored food give the immune system much needed beta carotene and carotenoids.

Another example is our favorite friendly bacteria. According to Patti Milligan, a registered dietician, “immunity starts in the gut, and there’s always a war between the good, friendly bacteria and the bad bacteria. So eating yogurt, kefir and fermented food like sauerkraut and tofu help cultivate the army of friendly bacteria.”

Mushroom and nuts on the other hand have zinc and selenium that also build the immune system. While garlic is another often overlooked food that has been proven time and time again to be able to combat viruses and stimulate immune cells into action.

Another immune system booster is green tea. There’s a reason why the Chinese have been drinking this stuff for centuries and it’s because green tea is wicked high in antioxidants. It has flavonoids and polyphenols that keep the immune system nourished and functioning properly.

Other food stuffs that are good for the immune system and body in general are naturally Vitamin C, Zinc lozenges, chicken soup made with garlic and ginger, vitamin D and so forth.

In lasting, if you’ve been a regular reader of this blog, you must know that I am a true advocate of eating healthy food to become healthy. With this post, I simply would like to reiterate that and want to urge you to switch to a healthy food lifestyle instead of a junk food + medicine lifestyle.

With this I leave you with a word of advice from Shannon Parnett, who is a registered dietitian and clinical nutrition senior manager at Banner Boswell Medical Center at Sun City.

“In order to maintain a healthy immune system you must maintain a healthy lifestyle,” Parnett said. “Choose more nutrient rich foods, maintain a healthy weight, be physically active, minimize stress, use good hand hygiene and get plenty of rest.”

The biggest misconception when it comes to probiotics is thinking that all probiotics, like yogurt, kefir, kimchi, are the same and even interchangeable. They’re not.

The term probiotics is simply a term coined for thousands of different bacteria. In fact, the FAO/WHO defines probiotics as “Live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host.” That’s any health benefit, not some magic cure for all.

There are simply thousands and thousands of strains of bacteria and each one may offer a variety of health benefits. Some may colonize the gut, others may live in the stomach, others may even have an affinity for your nose and each one may improve your health substantially. Other bacteria that are still considered “live and active cultures” may absolutely do nothing and moreover, others may even harm you to a certain degree.

Take for example your yogurt. Yogurt is very similar to kefir and even looks pretty darn close to it. But the health benefits you get from kefir are different from yogurt. This is because of the strains of bacteria in yogurt and kefir. Both may have lactobacillus bacteria, but not the same strain. Heck, even kimchi has lactobacillus bacteria in it.

So where am i going with this?

I think probiotics is a very complex topic, but I feel that we need to clear the shroud of misunderstanding even bit by bit. The more we understand how the food we eat can ultimately affect our well being, the better we can be in control of our health and our life.

My take on all this is simple. It’s hard, impossible even, to compare one fermented food from another. The best thing to do is to eat a variety of fermented foods, which provides a wider variety of bacterial strains, which may likely offer a wider range of health benefits.

If you’re new to kefir and haven’t consumed homemade kefir, much less made kefir from kefir grains at home yourself, you’re probably wondering as to how safe kefir is for yourself, for your kids, for your family and for your friends.

Don’t worry, you’re not alone.

In general kefir is safe. Many people have and are still making and drinking homemade kefir. And there are little to none reported events regarding food borne illnesses and kefir.

But if you want a more detailed explanation, continue reading…

In the past, making fermented Kefir was actually a traditional way of preserving milk. This was of course before the invention of the mighty refrigerator. And it is this fermentation process that makes fermented foods safe for us to eat. But don’t take my word for it… take the NCHFP’s:

According to the National Center for Home Food Preservation:

Fermented foods are generally considered to be less likely to cause foodborne illness due to the fermentation process. The competitive activity and metabolites of the culture help to – partially or completely — kill or inhibit the growth of illness-causing microorganisms.

Scientific research has shown that properly fermented kefir at a pH less than 4.5 inhibits most pathogens. But not for Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp., and Yersinia enterocolitica.

Does this mean kefir is not safe? Yes and no. You can make kefir a lot safer by doing the following:

1. Use quality milk from a reputable source

There is a lot of debate going on right now on raw milk versus pasteurized milk, so I really won’t go into that. All I can say is, if you really really really want to be on the safe side, pasteurized milk is the way to go.

2. Use quality kefir grains from a reputable source

This is the second part of the kefir equation. Your kefir grains should be from someone who has had experience taking care of it.

Another way of making sure that your kefir is 100% SAFE, is by pasteurizing the kefir itself. Now, I don’t really recommend this because once you kill the “bad” bacteria that may be present in kefir, you’re most likely going to be killing the good ones as well. And i feel this just completely ruins the kefir. But if you’re happy with just the taste of the kefir and not the probiotic benefits, here are the steps for pasteurized kefir:

1. Strain and remove kefir grains from kefir
2. Place the jar (w/out lid) of kefir in hot water bath
3. Stir keifer while heating to161degF or 72degC (use thermometer)
4. Hold at this temperature while stirring for around 15 seconds
5. Remove kefir jar from hot water bath
6. Cool in cold water bath
7. Place in refrigerator (shelf-life of 7-10days)

Again, pasteurized kefir will not have the probiotic health benefits of unpasteurized kefir, but it will still have the taste. On a sidenote, this is also why commercial kefir is not as healthy as homemade kefir. Commercial kefir goes through pasteurization that kills all the probiotic kefir goodness.

Summing up, my suggestion is this…

If you’ve been drinking homemade kefir for a very long time and have nothing but awesome and wonderful benefits from drinking it, by all means continue doing so.

If however, it’s going to be your first time why not try a little first?

Lastly (promise this is the last),  it’s been said that because of the tiny risk of pathogen growth in home fermented kefir, it is not recommended for people with weak immune systems like, very young kids, the elderly, pregnant women, chronically ill, etc. etc. etc.

Is this true? Again, maybe… maybe not.

We’ve had readers and commentors and friends who were one of the above and have been loving kifer ever since. But again, don’t take my word for it. Everyone’s body system is different and ultimately how we react to kefir depends on it as well.

Similar to kefir, you will want to experiment with different recipes or ways of culturing it. The more you experiment, the better you will become when making kombucha tea.

Very limited studies have been conducted on Kefir. This is also true for Kombucha tea. They both have many claims for their health benefits but I would gladly tell anyone not to rely on these solely to cure their health problems. Taken with a healthy, nutritious, well balanced diet, Kefir and Kombucha will do you wonders.

The primary benefit of drinking kombucha tea is that it detoxifies your blood and starts cleansing your intestinal tract immediately. It helps restore your intestinal flora, restore balance to your immune system and makes your body heal itself. If you keep going to the bathroom within the next couple of weeks, stop taking kombucha.

So can you take both? I suggest that you don’t. Pick one ore the other, but from all of what I’ve heard over the years, sticking with Kefir is the better choice. Aside from the taste being more acceptable to people I surveyed, kefir boasts more health benefits and good bacteria strains compared to Kombucha.

I still highly recommend that you take a look at Kombucha vs. Kefir. Then you can decide for yourself.

Everybody knows about the fermented foods, but most don’t know they are. Some fermented foods are beer, wine, kimchi, yogurt and yes, Kefir from kefir grains.

Fermented foods enrich our diets with new and enticing aromas and different textures. It preserves food and enriches the food with protein, amino acids and vitamins. It also detoxifies your body naturally!

So enjoy fermented foods. Do not fear them because you have been drinking and eating them all along.

Don’t be afraid to try new ones like kefir!

People from the Caucasus Mountains generally had longer lifespans compared to others so he attributed this to the consumption of kefir. Nowadays, extensive research is being done to kefir.

The Kefir Culture
Kefir has two types. Water Kefir and Milk Kefir. Water kefir is more transparent and made from water with sugar and milk kefir is from, you guessed right, Milk.

As the kefir culture ferments longer with the milk, it creates new grains and can then be used again and again. Kefir is a living culture, a complex symbiosis of more than 30 microflora that form into cauliflower looking grains.

Some of the friendly bacteria are lactic acid bacteria, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, Streptococcus thermophilus, Lb delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus, Lb helveticus, Lb casei subsp, Kluyveromyces, Torulopsis, and Saccharomyces.

Kefir also contains vitamins, minerals, enzymes. Included are calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, B2 and B12, vitamin K, vitamin A and vitamin D.

Visit this page to read about Kefir Health Benefits

As a summary I’ve listed below some of my posts that are relevant to making kefir.

Kombucha detoxifies your body. It cleanses your blood and intestinal tract. Like kefir, it helps you heal naturally. It also has bacteria that restores your intestinal flora to a proper balance.

For more information about Kombucha, check out the following pages.

Wiki on Kombucha

How to Make Kombucha Mushroom Tea

People from way back mainly use goat’s milk or even milk from sheep.

Here are some Kefir Milk combinations:

• Cow’s Milk
• Goat’s Milk
• Sheep’s Milk
• Buffalo’s Milk
• Coconut Milk (yes even coconut milk)

Check out each so you can see which kefir milk your body would  like.

The wonders of kefir just won’t cease to amaze you. Try it now and see for yourself.

If this is your first time hearing about kefir or kefir grains or are just curious about kefir and kefir grains, then let me explain…

Kefir, first and foremost, is a refreshing cultured or fermented beverage made from adding real kefir grains to milk. The origins of kefir traces back thousands of years to the native population of the Caucasus Mountains. But the origin of the first kefir grains or how the caucasus people got hold of kefir grains is largely unkown. Some have boldly said that the Prophet Mohammed himself bestowed kefir grains as a gift to this people. While still others, believe kefir grains and kefir are a sort of manna describe in the ancient bible.

No matter what mystery shrouds the origins of kefir grains however, the miraculous health benefits that come from kefir grains and kefir are clear. Just some of the health benefits of kefir are:

1. Improves digestion
2. Treats lactose intolerance, constipation, diarrhea, colon cancer and inflammatory bowel syndrome
3. Treatment for ulcer
4. Regulates the blood pressure and blood sugar
5. Regulates cholesterol
6. Effective treatment for various respiratory conditions
7. Effective treatment for eczema, various skin disorders
8. Effective treatment for acne
9. Fortifies the body’s immune system
10. Improves the body’s defenses and resistance to diseases
11. Has anti aging or anti oxidant properties

and this is not the whole list. Scientific research on kefir and kefir grains is continuously being conducted and the news just keeps getting better and better.

How does kefir do it? Well it starts with ofcourse the live kefir grains. Inside the kefir grains are billions and billions of live good bacteria. Add this with milk and let it sit for a while you get even more good bacteria. These bacteria, when inside your body, literally cleans your body of bad bacteria and other stuff that shouldn’t be there. That’s why after eating kefir, you always feel fresh and relaxed. Some people even go to the extent of eating the kefir grains itself!

Kefir is really very similar to yogurt, but it is simply way way better. If you look at kefir and yogurt in a probiotics perspective, kefir has 5 times more friendly bacteria in it than yogurt. And it’s not just the population, it’s the diversity of beneficial bacteria that lives in kefir grains that make kefir do what it does.

And did I mention eating kefir is the single cheapest most affordable way to living a balanced and healthy lifestyle? Since kefir grains are literally forever, you buy one batch and make as much kefir as you want!

And with so much kefir recipes out there, you won’t get tired of eating it. You can make kefir smoothies, kefir juice, kefir ice cream, kefir cheese, kefir breads, kefir soups and all kinds of other stuff with kefir.

As you see, there really isn’t any other food that you can compare kefir to. So if kefir isn’t part of your diet yet, what are you waiting for?