Aa
Kombucha anyone
my wife wanted to start growing our own Kombucha, anyone know if it is liver friendly? had hep c for 34 yrs or so did TX and failed waiting on the new drugs
The only time I have heard that Kombucha is dangerous is when someone grows the Kombucha with no understanding of how to do it safely. There is a definite protocol that must be followed. Many times a person grows the Kombucha in a ceramic pot (a definite no-no), then they give away the baby Kombucha's, and the next person will grow infected Kombucha. The problem is not with the Kombucha it is with the grower.
Why risk it? There are a number of sources saying that Kombucha may be liver toxic, Is a slimy fungus drink so important that you want to risk damage to your liver - especially if your liver is already at risk due to some disease? BTW - the other poster needs to chill out. Rockerforlife has always been a wonderful resource on this board - no need to spout insults - this is a community of supportive folks. It actually dilutes your point to speak so negatively. I found the following about Kombucha - which I copy and paste here for people to decide for themselves:
Liver Damage and Potential Death
Kombucha and kombucha tea-related deaths have been reported. According to an article by Dr. W. Gifford-Jones, published in "Epoch Times" in 2007, kombucha intake may cause severe liver damage and potentially lead to death. Gifford-Jones suggests that consumers increasingly reach for herbal remedies, such as kombucha, without knowledge of their safety, effectiveness or potentially serious side effects. Until its safety is proven, he advises against kombucha consumption. If a person who regularly consumes kombucha products develops jaundice (yellowing of the skin), he is advised to stop consumption, as jaundice may indicate kombucha-related liver damage, according to the ACS.
Liver Damage and Potential Death
Kombucha and kombucha tea-related deaths have been reported. According to an article by Dr. W. Gifford-Jones, published in "Epoch Times" in 2007, kombucha intake may cause severe liver damage and potentially lead to death. Gifford-Jones suggests that consumers increasingly reach for herbal remedies, such as kombucha, without knowledge of their safety, effectiveness or potentially serious side effects. Until its safety is proven, he advises against kombucha consumption. If a person who regularly consumes kombucha products develops jaundice (yellowing of the skin), he is advised to stop consumption, as jaundice may indicate kombucha-related liver damage, according to the ACS.
The first post asked;
"anyone know if it is liver friendly?
I just felt an obligation to bring up the alcohol connection.
Since the amount of alcohol varies.... and the amount that one might drink could vary the amount of exposure to alcohol could also vary, particularly over years and especially if people were unaware the tea contained alcohol.
I am aware of some people who have a meld score....awaiting a liver transplant.....
if alcohol showed up in their panel it could get them bounced from the TP list.
That could cost them a liver and their life.
Someone else could drink it and have no negative effects at all.
Your mileage may vary as they say. I just wanted to get the info out there and have no opinion as to whether anyone should or shouldn't drink kombucha..
best,
Willy
"anyone know if it is liver friendly?
I just felt an obligation to bring up the alcohol connection.
Since the amount of alcohol varies.... and the amount that one might drink could vary the amount of exposure to alcohol could also vary, particularly over years and especially if people were unaware the tea contained alcohol.
I am aware of some people who have a meld score....awaiting a liver transplant.....
if alcohol showed up in their panel it could get them bounced from the TP list.
That could cost them a liver and their life.
Someone else could drink it and have no negative effects at all.
Your mileage may vary as they say. I just wanted to get the info out there and have no opinion as to whether anyone should or shouldn't drink kombucha..
best,
Willy
was not worried in the least bit about the very minor amount of alcohol that could be in Kombucha
I'll repeat that essentially you are making a dilute beer. I don't know what the alcohol content will be since it depends on various things, but generally speaking there will be alcohol present.
Depending upon how much alcohol content the batch has, and how much you drink your actual amount that you imbibe will vary. Seems like a well known celebrity w/ an alcohol monitoring bracelet had an issue when Kambucha triggered the alarm and her subsequent abuse.
One a hepper started a thread and asked if it was OK to drink wine if water was added...... this is along those lines except that many heppers might not know that they were drinking alcohol.
I think the stuff is probably fine for many people but those of us with HCV and/ or liver disease may need to watch alcohol intake more than some other groups.
best,
Willy
Depending upon how much alcohol content the batch has, and how much you drink your actual amount that you imbibe will vary. Seems like a well known celebrity w/ an alcohol monitoring bracelet had an issue when Kambucha triggered the alarm and her subsequent abuse.
One a hepper started a thread and asked if it was OK to drink wine if water was added...... this is along those lines except that many heppers might not know that they were drinking alcohol.
I think the stuff is probably fine for many people but those of us with HCV and/ or liver disease may need to watch alcohol intake more than some other groups.
best,
Willy
tried making it once and was not very good it was a couple of yrs ago when I wrote this. Looking at PanchaKarma clean out in a few weeks never did anything like that before but am sure it will be good for me.
Perhaps you might do a little more research that has been done in real life for the last two thousand years regarding Kombucha instead of taking the the word of and, I might add, plagerizing a Marketing Writer. I read her article (the one you plagerized) and having some personal experience with Kombucha, something it is obvious that neither of you have, I am absolutely certain neither of you know the first thing about it. Instead of trying to appear to know something just by posting on a blog, perhaps you should actually find out about it, try it, learn it and then weigh the evidence before you reveal your obvious lack of information and uncanny ability to copy and paste. By the way, all the words here are my own. They were not written by someone else as yours and perhaps your source of information, the Marketing Writer were.
Sorry; no link source wikipedia; Kombucha
-------------------------------------
"Kombucha contains many different cultures along with several organic acids, active enzymes, amino acids, and polyphenols.[3]For the home brewer, there is no way to know the amounts of the components unless a sample is sent to a laboratory. The US Food and Drug Administration has no findings on the effects of kombucha.[4] Final kombucha may contain some of the following components depending on the source of the culture: Acetic acid, which provides much anti-microbial activity; butyric acid, gluconic acid, glucuronic acid, lactic acid, malic acid, oxalic acid, usnic acid, as well as some B-vitamins.[5]
Due to the acidic fermentation process used in its brewing, Kombucha contains ethyl alcohol in amounts that vary from 0.5% to 1.5%[6], depending on anaerobic brewing time and proportions of microbe. Commercial preparations are typically 0.5% for distribution and safety reasons.
[edit] Health Claims
A review of the published literature on the safety of kombucha suggests no specific oral toxicity in rats,[7] although it has also been shown to increase the size of both the liver and spleen in mice.[8] While no randomized case-controlled studies have been published in humans, several case reports have suspected liver damage, metabolic acidosis and cutaneous anthrax infections. [9] Other reports suggest that care should be taken when taking medical drugs or hormone replacement therapy while regularly drinking kombucha.[10] It may also cause allergic reactions. [11]
Other health claims may be due to the simple acidity of the drink, possibly influencing the production of stomach acids or modifying the communities of microorganisms in the GI tract. For example, anecdotal reports suggest better experience with foods that 'stick' going down such as rice or pasta. This is mostly due to relief of stomach gas responsible for preventing proper digestion.[cit"
-----------------------------------------------------------
If you have ever made home brew the basic recipe is similar. I can't speak to the healthiness of the "tea" but one might suppose that drinking alcohol when one has HCV could be a bad idea. Yes; the alcohol content are low. If one did not know one was drinking alcohol though one might go back for refills and thereby could inadvertently be "partaking" without knowing it.
best,
Willy
-------------------------------------
"Kombucha contains many different cultures along with several organic acids, active enzymes, amino acids, and polyphenols.[3]For the home brewer, there is no way to know the amounts of the components unless a sample is sent to a laboratory. The US Food and Drug Administration has no findings on the effects of kombucha.[4] Final kombucha may contain some of the following components depending on the source of the culture: Acetic acid, which provides much anti-microbial activity; butyric acid, gluconic acid, glucuronic acid, lactic acid, malic acid, oxalic acid, usnic acid, as well as some B-vitamins.[5]
Due to the acidic fermentation process used in its brewing, Kombucha contains ethyl alcohol in amounts that vary from 0.5% to 1.5%[6], depending on anaerobic brewing time and proportions of microbe. Commercial preparations are typically 0.5% for distribution and safety reasons.
[edit] Health Claims
A review of the published literature on the safety of kombucha suggests no specific oral toxicity in rats,[7] although it has also been shown to increase the size of both the liver and spleen in mice.[8] While no randomized case-controlled studies have been published in humans, several case reports have suspected liver damage, metabolic acidosis and cutaneous anthrax infections. [9] Other reports suggest that care should be taken when taking medical drugs or hormone replacement therapy while regularly drinking kombucha.[10] It may also cause allergic reactions. [11]
Other health claims may be due to the simple acidity of the drink, possibly influencing the production of stomach acids or modifying the communities of microorganisms in the GI tract. For example, anecdotal reports suggest better experience with foods that 'stick' going down such as rice or pasta. This is mostly due to relief of stomach gas responsible for preventing proper digestion.[cit"
-----------------------------------------------------------
If you have ever made home brew the basic recipe is similar. I can't speak to the healthiness of the "tea" but one might suppose that drinking alcohol when one has HCV could be a bad idea. Yes; the alcohol content are low. If one did not know one was drinking alcohol though one might go back for refills and thereby could inadvertently be "partaking" without knowing it.
best,
Willy
I guess I will continue to drink it once in awhile I could do worse things to my liver and do every now and then. Thanks Marcia for the tip on brewing I'll pass it on to the wife she is determined to get some started. Mr.Liver not sure what we will name it but Mr.Liver sounds like a good name to me.
The last kombucha danger is contamination. If brewing your own kombucha tea, be sure to use squeaky-clean containers. Bacterial contamination can create dangerous combinations. One report showed lead poisoning as the culprit because someone brewed kombucha tea in a ceramic container. Doctors believe the ceramic glaze used on the container contained lead, common in some imported ceramic items, and the lead leached out from the heat and acids of the black tea. Use caution and common sense when brewing your own batch of kombucha tea, and always consult a physician if you become ill, tired, or experience any adverse symptoms after drinking kombucha.
Several people have reported jaundice or liver problems after drinking kombucha tea for prolonged periods. The liver problems disappeared as soon as the individuals stopped drinking kombucha, and reappeared when they resumed their kombucha habit, thus confirming the doctors’ opinion that the kombucha tea caused liver problems
http://vitamins.lovetoknow.com/Kombucha_Danger
http://vitamins.lovetoknow.com/Kombucha_Danger
I used to make my own and when it was ready I would bottle it and leave it in a cool cupboard for another 4 weeks or so. It would become as sparkly as champagne and really delicious. The best is to make it with 'gunpowder' green tea and not with black tea. It has been drunk for centuries in places like Japan, China and also Russia. And is supposed to be a good health drink. I believe it is liver friendly.
Kombucha is brewed by placing the fungi in a glass bowl with three quarts of cooled black tea that contain one cup of sugar. It is then covered with cloth and placed in a dark, warm place for a week to 10 days, until it spawns a second disk. The tea is then strained and stored in glass in the refrigerator.
Friends of the fungi tend to view it as the pods from the movie "Cocoon," a gift from outer space that can lower blood pressure and raise T-cell counts, increase vitality, eliminate acne, ease the aches and pains of arthritis and even restore gray hair to its original color.
Betsy Pryor, the founder of Laurel Farms, said that the mushroom's magic was not medicinal, but spiritual. "My customers talk about a sense of well-being, an increased spirituality," she said.
Ms. Pryor, who wrote advertising copy and an unpublished medical thriller before establishing Laurel Farms, said that Kombucha was "a gift from God." Nevertheless, she obtained a trademark on the phrase "Kombucha Tea," dreams about a joint venture with the Coca-Cola Company and is at work on a book of testimonials about "the sparkling health beverage," she said.
"This is not about profit," said Ms. Pryor, who is well known among Los Angeles AIDS patients for championing Kombucha and for giving the fungus to those in need.
For many, Kombucha is the pet rock of the 90's -- except that it is alive. Norman Baker, an owner of Laurel Farms, encourages customers to name their fungi. "The Kombucha," he told a group of potential imbibers on Venice Beach in California last winter, "is sensitive and probably as intelligent as a dolphin. It knows where to go in the body."
In addition to baptizing their Kombucha with names like Misha-the-Mushroom and Lewellyn-of-Laurel-Farms, Manhattan cultivators have been heard to coo around the fermenting fungi, to excitedly exchange news about "babies" and to solicitously seek good homes for them."
You can't make up stuff like this.
ML
Friends of the fungi tend to view it as the pods from the movie "Cocoon," a gift from outer space that can lower blood pressure and raise T-cell counts, increase vitality, eliminate acne, ease the aches and pains of arthritis and even restore gray hair to its original color.
Betsy Pryor, the founder of Laurel Farms, said that the mushroom's magic was not medicinal, but spiritual. "My customers talk about a sense of well-being, an increased spirituality," she said.
Ms. Pryor, who wrote advertising copy and an unpublished medical thriller before establishing Laurel Farms, said that Kombucha was "a gift from God." Nevertheless, she obtained a trademark on the phrase "Kombucha Tea," dreams about a joint venture with the Coca-Cola Company and is at work on a book of testimonials about "the sparkling health beverage," she said.
"This is not about profit," said Ms. Pryor, who is well known among Los Angeles AIDS patients for championing Kombucha and for giving the fungus to those in need.
For many, Kombucha is the pet rock of the 90's -- except that it is alive. Norman Baker, an owner of Laurel Farms, encourages customers to name their fungi. "The Kombucha," he told a group of potential imbibers on Venice Beach in California last winter, "is sensitive and probably as intelligent as a dolphin. It knows where to go in the body."
In addition to baptizing their Kombucha with names like Misha-the-Mushroom and Lewellyn-of-Laurel-Farms, Manhattan cultivators have been heard to coo around the fermenting fungi, to excitedly exchange news about "babies" and to solicitously seek good homes for them."
You can't make up stuff like this.
ML
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