Kombucha is a fermented tea that is imbibed for medicinal purposes. Although there is limited specific scientific information supporting any purported benefits due to a lack of studies being conducted, there does exist much anecdotal information purporting its historical medicinal value.. Kombucha is available commercially, but can be made at home by fermenting tea using a visible solid mass of microorganisms called a kombucha culture or mushroom.
Biology of kombucha
The culture contains a symbiosis of Acetobacter (acetic acid bacteria) and yeast, mostly Brettanomyces bruxellensis , Candida stellata , Schizosaccharomyces pombe , Torulaspora delbrueckii and Zygosaccharomyces bailii .
The culture itself looks somewhat like a large pancake, and though often called a mushroom, a mother of vinegar or by the acronym SCOBY (for "Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast"), it is scientifically classified as a zoogleal mat.
Videos
- Concentrated tea after a few hours on the slide
- Fresh tea, more typical of the finished product that people drink
The magnified tea on the slide has a "milky" appearance because of the limited depth of field at 400X.
History and names
The recorded history of kombucha began in Ukraine and Russia during the late 19th century. In Russian, the kombucha culture is called čajnyj grib чайный гриб (lit. "tea mushroom"), and the drink itself is called grib гриб ("mushroom"), "tea kvass " квас, or simply kvass , which differs from regular kvass traditionally made from water and stale rye bread.
In Chinese, kombucha is called hongchajun 红茶菌 (lit. "black tea fungus/mushroom"), hongchagu 红茶菇 ("black tea mushroom"), or chameijun 茶霉菌 ("tea mold").
In Japanese, the kombucha drink is known as "kōcha kinoko" 紅茶キノコ (lit. "black tea mushroom"). Both the Chinese and Japanese names use hongcha or kōcha "black tea" rather than cha 茶 tea or lü cha 綠茶 "green tea".
Japanese kombu 昆布 "a Laminaria kelp; sea tangle" is dried and powdered to produce a beverage called kombucha (lit. "kelp tea"). The English kombucha fermented tea name is pronounced like, and confused with, the Japanese kombucha seaweed tea name.
Some promotional kombucha sources propagate falsehoods that the history of this tea-based beverage originated in ancient China or Japan, but in both cases centuries prior to knowledge of tea (see history of tea in China and history of tea in Japan). One author claims kombucha, famously known as the "Godly Tsche " during the Chinese Qin Dynasty (221-206 BCE), was "a beverage with magical powers enabling people to live forever". There are no recorded references to either tea or "godly tea" during the Qin dynasty. Another author claims an etymology from "a Korean doctor named Kombu treated the Japanese Emperor Ingyō in 415 A.D." The early Japanese history Kojiki does mention an envoy from the ancient Korean state Silla who was "deeply versed in the medical art" and cured the Emperor's sickness – but his name was 金武, which is pronounced Korean Kim/Gim Mu or Japanese Kin/Kon Mu.
Components
Kombucha contains many different cultures along with several organic acids, active enzymes, amino acids, and polyphenols. For the home brewer, there is no way to know the amounts of the components unless a sample is sent to a laboratory. Kombucha, has been safety-checked by The US Food and Drug Administration . 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.
Due to the acidic fermentation process used in its brewing, Kombucha contains ethyl alcohol in amounts that vary from 0.5% to 1.5%, depending on anaerobic brewing time and proportions of microbe. Commercial preparations are typically 0.5% for distribution and safety reasons.
Additionally, some tea makers offer a dried version of kombucha, mixed with the tea leaves, that dissolves in hot water.
Health Claims
Kombucha proponents claim many advantages such as increased energy, sharper eyesight, better skin condition, and better experience with foods that 'stick' going down such as rice or pasta.
A review of the published literature on the safety of kombucha suggests no specific oral toxicity in rats, although it has also been shown to increase the size of both the liver and spleen in mice. While no randomized case-controlled studies have been published in humans, several unsubstantiated reports have suspected liver damage, metabolic acidosis and life-threatening toxicity. Other reports suggest that care should be taken when taking medical drugs or hormone replacement therapy while regularly drinking kombucha. It may also cause allergic reactions.
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.
Scientific Claims
Health claims for kombucha focus on a chemical called glucuronic acetate, a compound that is used by the liver for detoxification. The idea that glucuronic acid is present in kombucha is based on the observation that glucuronic acid conjugates (glucuronic acid + waste chemicals) are increased in the urine after consumption of kombucha.
Early chemical analysis of kombucha brew suggested that glucuronic acid was the key component, and researchers hypothesized that the extra glucuronic acid would assist the liver by supplying more of the substance during detoxification. These analyses were done using gas chromatography to identify the different chemical constituents, but this method relies on having proper chemical standards to match to the unknown chemicals.
A more recent and thorough analysis, outlined in the book in Analysis of Kombucha Ferments by Michael Roussin. suggests a different explanation. Roussin reports on an extensive chemical analysis of a variety of commercial and homebrew versions of kombucha, and finds no evidence of glucuronic acid at all. These scientific measurements contradict the earlier studies and conflict with the original hypothesis.
Instead, Roussin discovered that the active component in kombucha is most likely glucaric acid. This compound, also known as D - glucaro -1,4 lactone, helps in the elimination of glucuronic acid conjugates that are produced by the liver. When glucuronic acid conjugates are disposed in the bowel during the elimination process, normal gut bacteria can break up these conjugates using an enzyme called beta-glucuronidase. Glucaric acid is an inhibitor of this bacterial enzyme, so the end result is that the glucuronic acid + waste is properly eliminated the first time, rather than being reabsorbed and detoxified over and over. Thus, glucaric acid probably makes the liver more efficient.
Interestingly, glucaric acid is commonly found in fruits and vegetables, and is being explored independently as a cancer preventive agent. It has also been discovered that the bacterial beta-glucuronidase enzyme can interfere with proper disposal of a chemotherapeutic agent, and that antibiotics against the gut microbiota can prevent toxicity of some chemotherapy drugs.
Reports of adverse reactions may be related to unsanitary fermentation conditions, leaching of compounds from the fermentation vessels, or "sickly" kombucha cultures that cannot acidify the brew. Cleanliness is important during preparation, and in most cases, the acidity of the fermented drink prevents growth of unwanted contaminants. If a culture becomes contaminated, it will most likely be seen as common mold which is often green, blue or black in color. Often novice brewers will mistake the brownish root filaments on the underside of the culture as a mold contamination when it is seen through the surface of a thinly formed culture.
Safety and contamination
As with all foods, care must be taken during preparation and storage to prevent contamination. Keeping the kombucha brew safe and contamination-free is a concern to many home brewers. Key components of food safety when brewing kombucha include clean environment, proper temperature, and low pH.
There is a low rate of homebrew contamination which might be explained by protective mechanisms, such as formation of organic acids and antibiotic substances. Thus, subjects with a healthy metabolism do not need to be advised against cultivating Kombucha. However, those suffering from immunosuppression should preferably consume controlled commer
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