Nilou Alizadeh | Contributor
Featured image: Smoothie? Energy drink? Caffeine? No, just Kombucha. | Courtesy of Pexels
Imagine an alternative to your everyday coffee, pop, tea, or energy drink—a refreshing, sweet drink that may offer multiple health benefits—kombucha. Kombucha is a drink made from sweet black tea, fermented with yeast and a bacteria culture.
Kombucha only recently become a mainstream beverage and can be found in health-food, grocery, and some convenience stores across Canada. One Regina café even offers kombucha on tap as an alternative for those who are health-conscious.
The origin of kombucha is unknown, but it has been around for thousands of years, praised as an “immortal health elixir.” Throughout the 20th century, scientists in Russia and Germany investigated this mysterious drink after noticing that entire regions of their respective countries appeared to be immune to rising rates of cancer. The reason? Kombucha.
The drink is especially prominent in the East, including in China, Russia, and Serbia, where it is known for its health benefits. Some of these include an increase in energy, a strengthening of the immune system, improved digestion, weight loss, reduction in high blood pressure, decreased chance of heart disease, and the lowering of one’s chances of developing various cancers.
The drink is rich in antioxidants, B-vitamins, and glucaric acids, and is also credited for reducing or eliminating the symptoms of fibromyalgia, depression, and anxiety.
There is, however, one element produced during the fermentation process that further sets kombucha apart from your everyday energy drink—alcohol.
Kombucha contains a small, yet measurable percentage of alcohol. A single bottle can contain an alcohol level of 0.5 to 2.5 per cent. While it may be easily sold and accessed, some demand that kombucha be registered and regulated as an alcoholic beverage, only to be sold in facilities licensed to handle alcohol. Due to this controversy—and as a measure of caution—a number of chain food stores, moreso those in the United States, will require patrons to show proof of age before allowing them to purchase it.
There is, however, a mixed reaction from those who have tasted it. Nathan Abdool, a fourth-year Kinesiology student, notes its alternative taste, and Negar Almas, a third-year Political Science student, raves about its texture. Both suggest more people should try kombucha and form their own opinions of the drink.
