By Peggy A. Alaniz
Good Bacteria! Many of us are aware that there is such a thing as good bacteria, however it tends to be killed daily along with the bad bacteria. In a Covid-19 world most products talk about how they kill viruses and bacteria. The overuse of germ, virus, and bacterial fighting products kind of makes me cringe with fear. Now, while hand sanitizers and antibacterial soaps are becoming a necessary evil, we need to keep in mind that balance is a good thing. In order to eradicate the bad bacteria, some of the good becomes a casualty. Those antibacterial products slowly leak into your body, destroying the helpful bacteria needed to aid your body’s natural digestion process. So, you need to be aware, and start your own counter measures to keep good bacteria in your body.
What does this have to do with tea? You can, of course, get probiotics, or good bacteria, in capsule form as well as in yogurt. Yet, for those of us who might be a little lactose intolerant, Kombucha could be an alternative choice. Kombucha is made from fermented black or green tea. It is slightly effervescent with a strong tart vinegar taste. It has pucker power for sure! The origins of Kombucha are still debated, however, more than likely it was developed in China, Japan, India, or eastern Russia along the silk trade route, probably to counter the adverse effects of drinking water from an unfamiliar area.
Nutritionists claim that Kombucha helps our bodies in many ways, such as aiding in digestion, helping to reduce blood sugar levels in people with diabetes, lowering cholesterol levels, aiding weight loss, and reducing inflammation. From my personal experience with Kombucha, I can attest to the fact that it helps a sluggish digestive system. I also believe that it helped to aid some weight loss. Then again, if your tummy is happy, the rest of your body follows suit. I drink Kombucha on a regular basis, but again, balance is key. Since it helps digestion, I usually drink about a cup after my largest meal. This way I am introducing the good bacteria into my system with something that it can feed off of. Some people consume it like soda pop, which I would not suggest, as too much of a good thing can become a bad thing quickly.
While you can make your own Kombucha at home, I suggest store bought, unless you are meticulous in your process. There is a lot that can go wrong (kind of like homemade hooch). Since there is some alcohol content in Kombucha it can be unstable. A creditable recipe, or working with an individual who already is reputable at brewing Kombucha, would be a good place to start if you want to go the home brewing route. You will also need to purchase or produce a starter.
Another type of tea that also helps to aid digestion is ginger tea. Fresh ginger tea is spicy and warming. So, for our tea recipe we are going to go with a fresh ginger tea, which can be drank hot with some lemon or orange slices, or cold in an iced ginger fizzy.
Peggy A. Alaniz is a tea enthusiast and former employee of Celestial Seasonings Tea in Boulder, Colorado.
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Coffee traces its heritage back centuries to the ancient coffee forests on the Ethiopian plateau. The story goes that a goatherder named Kaldi noticed that after eating the berries from a certain tree, his goats became so energetic they did not want to sleep at night. Kaldi told the abbot of the local monastery, who made a drink with the berries and found that it kept him alert through the long hours of evening prayer. The abbot shared his discovery with the other monks, and knowledge of the energizing berries began to spread. (Thank you to motifcoffee.com)