Cautions

Detoxifying too rapidly can cause discomfort if too much tea is drunk too soon in some people. Work up slowly week by week from a quarter of a glass (60ml) in divided doses. At 20ml 3 times daily any discomfort can be avoided. This can include headaches, stomach aches, nausea, fatigue, dizziness, mild diarrhoea, pimples, rashes and wind. These are temporary cleansing effects lasting from a day to a week or so in some normal apparently healthy people. Drink extra water to counteract them. People with disease conditions may experience a healing crisis if they drink too much too soon.

Pregnancy and lactation. In Germany the tea is not drunk during pregnancy because of the alcohol it contains (up to 1%). In Brazil it appears to be recommended in pregnancy to avoid poisons forming in the cells. Best avoided in the first trimester, especially if prone to miscarriage, due to anticoagulant effects. Seek professional advice for 2nd and 3rd trimesters. With lactation it would be sensible to take small amounts only and monitor the baby for colic.

Diabetes. In Europe, diabetics who can access them use Kombucha drops pressed from the fungus directly. Otherwise the tea can should be fermented longer to make it more sour and reduce the sugar content when the residual sugar is fructose. Saccharose splits to glucose and fructose at onset of fermentation, glucose fermenting quickly to glucuronic acid. Note that making the tea with less sugar (less than 50 grams per liter) will reduce the nitrients/energy needed for the formating of beneficial metabolic products making it ineffective and no point making.

Haemophilia. Kombucha has some anticoagulant qualities.

Candida. The tea's yeast will over-run other yeasts but need time to do so. Do not drink too much too soon, or too much thereafter.

Metabolic Acidosis? There was a case of someone in USA who died and presumably linked with drinking lots of Kombucha. This story made big news and is often quoted by those who for whatever reason are against drinking Kombucha. Some say the risks outweight the benefits. However, considering that thousands of people have been drinking Kombucha all their life and this has been going on for centuries, if it caused people to become sick or die, don't you think someone would have noticed by now? Thousands of people die from all sorts of things including medical treatments, or suffer the effects of toxic food additives or toxic materials in millions of potentially pharmaceutical companies, with much money at stake, will do anything they can to stop you drinking Kombucha? Huge influential drink producers might perceive home brewed Kombucha as a threat to their revenues also. I think we need to wake up to some painful facts, that we are living in a world of mass deception and with an insidiously corrupt sickness industry!

Benefits of Kombucha

Benefits of Kombucha

When people claim something can remedy a plethora of illnesses. I generally become suspicious. It just sounds too good to be true. "Dr. Q's Magic Potion can cure just about everything!" Hahaha!
Only after reading credible research proving that Kombucha does in fact contain glucuronic acid (a controversial fact) that i really started to take notice. The fact that Kombucha is a general detoxifier, a powerful probiotic which can restore gut health, and also contains a range of important nutrients, make it worthy of serious consideration as a general health tonic.


Kombucha, while not a panacea is said to help with :

• Increasing energy levels and stimulating the immune system
• Kidney problems
• Better functioning of liver and gall bladder
• Disorders of the bowel (by recolonisation with beneficial flora)
• Constipation
• Candida (by recolonisation with beneficial yeasts
• Inflamed large and small intestines
• Chronic Fatihue Syndrome
• Nervous stomachs, digestion, gastro-enteritis
• Chemical sensitivity and exposure to radiation
• Skin problems such as psoriasis, eczema, acne, tropical ulcers, rashes, boils, warts and fungal infections such as athlete's foot (with tea or creamed culture dabbed on skin)
• Normalising blood pressure and cholesterol levels
• Softening veins and artereis, improving circulation
• Cataracts and formations on the cornea
• Multiple sclerosis, arthritis and rheumatic pain
• General muscular aches and pains
• Bronchitis, coughs, asthma, sinusitis and phlegm
• Allergies
• Reduction of oedema and swollen feet/legs
• Moderation of fluctuating glucose levels in diabetes (with sourer tea)
• Weight loss (with sourer tea) by stimulating the metabolism - also however  normalizing the metabolism in the under-weight
• Food additives and harmful industrial by products-by detoxifying the body by ex-creting (after binding with) waste products such as mercury, lead, etc. from liver and tissues (as glucoronides in urine analysis), including after nicotine/drug use
• Migrasines
• Menstrual and menopausal problems
• Gout (uric acid excreted)
• Impotence
• Insomnia
• Sensitivity to winter cold and summer heat
• Anxiety and stress
• Preventing or alleviating cancer
• Softening wrinkles/scarring, increasing skin elasticity(it is also a skin humectant or moisture attractant)
• Better skin tone colour, Fading of brown spots on hands, Sunspot removal

How much to drink kombucha?

How much to Drink
It is generally recommended to start slow and increase later as your digestive system rebalances.
Initially around 120 ml(1/2 regular glass= 4 oz) is recommended or perhaps less if you have a particularly sensitive digestive system.

Recommended early phase consumption is 240 ml (0ne glass= 8 oz) 3 times per week.
There after a regular daily amount of 240 ml up tp a maximum of 360 ml per day is recommended.


Just as with other detoxification processes, such as fasting, it is quite common to get short term negative effects such as headache, stomach aches, nausea, fatigue, dizziness, mild diarrhoea, pimples, rashes, etc. This is normal consequence of stored toxins being released into the bloodstream and moving around before being excreted. You need to work out your own intake level and what works for you. Regulate your intake according to your body's responses.

It is important to stay well hydrated by drinking plenty of water while detoxifying.
Maintaining proper hydration is important for good health anyway.

Cancer patients usually follow Dr. Sklenars presciption of 1 litre per day (1/2 to 3/4 litre for pre-cancer)
Up to 2 liters or more per day has been drunk for several weeks for specific reasons.

Amounts can be temporarily increased during illness, radiation, infection or exposure to environmental toxins. e.g. 2-3 glasses at the onset of a cold will help to fight the cold.

Like so many things, more does not equate to better. Moderation is recommended.

How long to drink it
In countries where kombucha is an old tradition (e.g. Russia, Siberia), it is normal for many people to drink about 300 ml every day of their lives.

Some westerners drink Kombucha for just a few weeks or months as a detox treatment and then do the same every year or whenever they fell the need. Some people prefer to have breaks of 3 weeks on, 1 week off, or 6 days on, 1 day off. Some drink tea daily. Do what is best for you in relation to why you are drinking the tea.

Time taken to get benefits
Most people feel better after 4-6 weeks of daily use, some much sooner. Increased energy, improved mental acuity, and better skin condition are commonly first noticed. Some disease conditions may take 4-6 months. Some dramatic differences in disease conditions are occasionally only seen after 1-2 years. Great variation is normal because of individual differences. Wight loss is usually slow and gradual after 1-3 months.

Children
The tea is fine for children in amounts adjusted to age or weight. It can be mixed with juice if necessary e.g. apple juice. Kombucha given undiluted in the evening may keep a child wide awake (and some adult too). The usual 0.5% alcohol in an average brew is not a problem, (Some bread and juices have small amounts also).

When to drink Kombucha
Anytime, but best during the day. Some properties in the tea benefit digestion when drunk with or after meals. The committed take some first thing in the morning. For weight loss, drink it 1/2 hour before meals.

About Kombucha

Kombucha is fermented tea. It has various names in other countries such as. Tea Kvass (meaning Tea Wine), Chayniy Grib, Karagasok Tea (Siberia), Manchurian Mushroom Tea, The Divine Tsche, Mo Gu, Cembuya Orientalis, Tschambucco, Kwassan, Pichia Fermentans, Volga-Spring, Brinuma-Ssene (Wonder-Mushroom), Hongo Chino (Spanish), Russian Mother, Champignon de Longue Vie (France), etc.

Kombucha is a powerful detoxifier and pro-biotic health tonic. It is made from sweet tea which is fermented with a special Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeasts (a SCOBY). The metabolic by-product of the fermentation process, via tea and sugar, include gluconic and glucuronic acids, the L-lactic acid(+), acetic acid, carbonic acid and vitamin B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, Folic acid and various enzymes.

Glucuronic acid detoxifies the body by reacting with toxins and pollutants making them water soluble and facilitating elimination either through the urine or bile, This process called "glucuronidation" is one of the body's most important natural detoxification pathways. The liver produces glucuronic acid for this purpose and the toxic material normally passes out through the intestine. But many undesirable bacteria commonly growing in the intestine produce an enzyme called beta glucuronidase. This enzyme breaks the bond with the toxins (reversing the material causes the liver to process them again and this whole cycle repeats. This can lead to toxic overload and a wide range of possible symptoms, from as mild as having lower than normal energy to severe debilitating ilnesses.

Kombucha helps the body detoxify itself and helps prevent toxic overloads in at least 2 ways:

• Kombucha contains substantial quantities of glucuronic acid (typically from 2 to 4 g/liter)
• Kombucha contains good bacteria and yeast which regulate gut flora. This in turn reduces beta glucuronidase production which helps the toxins go through the intestine without being reabsorbed.

Although the powerful detox and probiotic functions of kombucha are probably the most important aspects, the numerous nutrients and enzymes which it contains could also play a role in maintaining health and vitality as well. The virtamin B12 produced could be useful for vegetarians.

Analysis of the Fungus and Tea
The fungus is a  jely-like membrane form of a Symbiosis Of Yeasts and Bacteria.
The principal yeasts is Schizosaccharomyces Pombe; others varyingly include Saccharomyces Ludwigii, torula spp, and apiculatus types, Pichia Fermentants and Mycoderma. Principal bacteria varyingly include Acetobacter katogenum, aceti/ pasteurianum. The acetic acid bacteria produced are strongly antagonistic to streptococci, flexner and shigella rods.

The metabolic by-products of the process, via tea and sugar, include gluconic and glucuronic acids, the L-lactic acid (+), acetic acid, carbonic acid and vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, folic acid and various enzymes.
0.5% to 1% alcohol is produced as well.

Glucuronic acid, apart from its detoxifying ability, builds important polysaccharides such as: Hyaluronic acid needed for connective tissues: used in maintaining good skin health and joints. Chondroitin sulfate, the basic substance in cartilage, also good for  skin health.
Mukoitin sulfate for the vitreous of the eye.

What is Kombucha?

Kombucha tea is a living probiotic super beverage brewed from tea leaves, sugar, water and culture. It reminds many people of app;e cider. Because it's raw, a living food, the taste can change/mellow/mature day per day.
 The culture is a cellulose structure that floats on top of the tea fermenting it. It does this by consuming the tea and sugar transposing these to beneficial nutrients. The culture commonly known as the SCOBY (Symbiotic CUlture Of Bacterias & Yeasts ) - is a living prebotic superfood