Is there too much sugar in Kombucha tea for it to be healthy?!
Is there too much sugar in Kombucha tea for it to be healthy?
Hello!
I started brewing Kombucha at home but am wondering if it is really healthy given the fact that you add 1 cup of sugar to 3 quarts of water to brew the tea ( in the recipe I use, anyway). It seems like a lot of sugar. I know it is part of the fermentation process. When I buy it bottled (GT's Kombucha) it has a low sugar content according to the nutritional information panel--just 4g per serving. Does the fermentation get rid of some of it?
Also, I just read a post regarding kidney failure and Kombucha--anyone heard of this? I only drink a few oz. a day.
Answers:
First of the sugar content gets diminished during fermentation because that is what the Kombucha feeds off of. The longer you let your tea ferment, the lower your sugar quantity will be.
When the Kombucha is still bubbling it taste like young wine and contains more alcohol (and sugar). The longer you wait, the more sour it gets, and the less sugar it has. You can test the tea by taking a spoonful and tasting it.
I also agree that it is not healthy to replace the sugar with Sweet N Low.
I have heard about the kidney failure, but that only happens if you already have kidney problems, and drink a lot of Kombucha. The reason for it is that Kombucha detoxifies the body, and everything goes through the kidney's. If your kidney's are weak or you drink more than the suggested amount of Kombucha, then you could potentially have problems.
Here is a link to a GREAT Yahoo Kombucha group. There are a lot of knowledgeable people on there and you can ask any questions you want: http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/kom...
And if I can be of more assistance, please feel free to contact me.
Source(s):
Brew our own Kombucha at home
http://360.yahoo.com/jamie_hassen...
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/kom...
Fermanation gets rid of some of the sugar but the thing to do if you feel like your getting too much sugar is to replace it with something healthier. Sweet-N-Low is a low calorie sweetner, but there has been some people suggesting it could cause cancer. I suggest pure cane suger. Personally I like the taste better and it's healthier than regular sugar.
the sugar gets converted during the fermentation ---and it's much better to make your own --never heard of the kidney failure thing
DO NOT replace the sugar in your Kombucha with Sweet-n-low!! What an awful idea! Sweet-n-low is nasty, synthesized sweetener to begin with. Secondly, Kombucha will not grow in tea solution sweetened with it. You need to make your tea solution with sugar ( I use organic sugar, it's unbleached, minimally processed). The culture needs the tea/sugar to feed on and grow! The culture will metabolize almost all of the sugar if you let it go long enough. GT's let's theirs brew for 30 days, that's why it's so low in sugar. Kombucha is far healthier for you than soda (sugared or artificially sweetened). It helps to detoxify your body and make it more alkaline.
I haven't read the post about kidney failure, I'll check it out.