Have you tried kombucha yet?

Kombucha is fermented green tea. It’s slightly fizzy, deliciously sour and should contain no sugar.

Here are the reasons that I love it and why I recommend it to clients:

It’s fermented – which means that it contains lots of friendly bacteria that can populate your gut and encourage more balance and diversity in your gut microbiome (the ecosystem that resides in your gut that performs so many different functions to keep us healthy)

It’s a great alternative to fizzy drinks. I love that I have a healthy option to recommend to clients who are hooked on soft drinks. If you love the fizz and refreshment that those cans of sugary (or even worse no sugar) drinks offer, then give Kombucha a try and they could be a thing of the past with their spoonfuls of sugar and other nasty ingredients.

It’s sour. This can be a challenge for some, but sour foods and drinks have health benefits. They can stimulate digestion and can support detoxification in the liver. If you are put of by the sourness, keep trying because you can become accustomed to it.

Kombucha is often flavoured with ginger, which is a great anti-inflammatory and can help with sore joints, digestive inflammation and other forms of inflammation.

It’s refreshing. I like to have some in the fridge and have it as a treat instead of a Gin and Tonic after a long day in front of the computer.

And these days it’s available in supermarkets. M&S sell it, I’ve seen it in our Sainsbury Local, and all big chains.

And you can make it yourself. I made it in lockdown (oh those heady days where I had time for projects like this!). You need a scoby (a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast!), a Kilner jar, green tea and a starter tea. Here’s a straightforward recipe and here is a UK site that sells scobies and starter kits.

Let me know how you get on!