The Benefits of Fermented Foods and Drinks

Today, foods such as yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi and miso, along with drinks such as
kombucha have become increasingly popular.

Kombucha is probably one of the fermented drinks that has received the greatest attention.
Made by fermenting sweetened tea with a culture of bacteria and yeast, Kombucha has
gone from being relatively unknown to appearing on supermarket and café shelves
everywhere.

There are many claims made about its health benefits, particularly in relation to digestion
and gut health. However, as with many natural products, it is important to distinguish
between traditional use and benefits demonstrated through scientific research and, just as
important, through personal experience.

Old Wisdom, New Understanding
What I find particularly interesting is that the value of fermentation is certainly not a new
idea. For centuries, people around the world have included fermented foods and drinks as
part of their everyday diet.

Many years ago, I was drawn to the well-known herbalist and natural health practitioner
Hanna Kroeger. I found her books to be a font of knowledge, gathering through her own
personal research and covering a vast array of subjects from vitamins and mineral usage,
herbal remedies, to detoxes, healing and much more presented in one sentence burst rather
than the pages of info we expect today.

She was writing about fermentation and the body’s internal environment many years before
most of us had ever heard expressions such as gut microbiome, probiotics or beneficial
bacteria.

In her book God Helps Those Who Help Themselves, Kroeger discussed what she referred
to as D-positive and D-negative fermentation and its relationship to cell respiration.
She believed that maintaining the right internal environment was important to the body’s
natural ability to maintain itself and remain healthy.
She also wrote extensively about certain foods and their potential influence on this process.

The Humble Beetroot
One food Kroeger was particularly enthusiastic about was red beetroot, which she described
as:
“Red beets are the queen of all.”
She recommended beetroot in various forms, including beet powder, beet soup and beet
relish, believing that it could positively influence the body’s internal environment.
Some of the terminology and conclusions in Kroeger’s writings reflect the understanding and
natural-health thinking of her time and are not recognised today as established medical
science.

Nevertheless, I still find her observations interesting, particularly when we consider how
much attention is now being given to food, fermentation, microorganisms and their
relationship with our wellbeing.
What Are We Learning Today?

Our understanding has changed enormously since Kroeger wrote her books.
Today there is considerable interest in the gut microbiome and the vast community of
microorganisms that naturally live within our digestive system and the role it may play in
digestion, immune function and our general health

Fermentation is a natural process involving microorganisms such as bacteria and yeasts.
Depending on how a food is made and processed, fermented foods may also contain live
microorganisms.

This has brought traditional fermented foods back into the spotlight and opened up a
fascinating area of modern research.

It reminds us that traditional knowledge can sometimes raise interesting questions long
before science has all the answers.

Perhaps the renewed interest in fermented foods is another example of old wisdom meeting
new understanding.

There is still much to learn, but I find it fascinating that practices used for generations are
now being looked at through fresh eyes.

It also makes me appreciate once again the writings of people such as Hanna Kroeger, who
were prepared to explore these ideas and encourage us to look beyond the accepted
thinking of their time.