Important tips for consuming kombucha to avoid candida flare-ups and why some people who drink it experience worsened symptoms temporarily.
I’ve been asked more than once recently if kombucha is beneficial for those who are battling candida overgrowth. There is evidently a school of thought making the rounds that candida sufferers best avoid this healthful, traditionally fermented beverage.
Is avoidance truly a good course of action? Or, can this probiotic rich beverage actually help gut healing?
What Exactly Is Kombucha?
For those of you new to this delicious beverage, kombucha is a traditional Russian drink that is made from fermenting plain black tea (or a combination of black and green tea) and sugar. It has been consumed for hundreds of years and, through extensive testing in Russia, proven to be an effective overall detoxifier through the binding of the organic acids to toxins present in the body.
Once tightly bound to the organic acids, the toxins are then rushed to the kidneys for excretion.
Russian communities that drink a lot of kombucha do not suffer from cancer at the high rates that plague folks who live near that country’s toxin spewing factories — even when the local flora and fauna are dying!
During the years of the Iron Curtain, the Soviet Union used kombucha as one of its secret weapons in the training of its Olympic athletes — the athletes would drink up to 1 quart of kombucha per day to help them train harder.
The popularity of kombucha in North America has been steadily growing for the past 20 years or so. I’ve been brewing kombucha in our home since 2001, and it has proved to be an integral part of our family’s overall wellness strategy.
Do Kombucha and Candida Mix?
We’ve established that kombucha is a healthy, traditional beverage. But, what if a person has candida overgrowth? Will the fact that kombucha contains beneficial yeasts as well as bacteria in the final brew aggravate the situation?
The key is that kombucha contains beneficial yeasts, not pathogenic ones like candida.
Therefore, when someone with candida starts drinking kombucha for the first time, there may indeed be a flare up of symptoms that may confuse the person into thinking that the kombucha is actually making the problem worse.
In fact, this flare up of candida symptoms is more than likely only temporary as the beneficial yeasts and probiotics in this traditional fermented drink begin to rebalance the gut environment.
Rebalancing of the gut environment involves die off of possibly large amounts of pathogens which causes symptoms to flare up temporarily.
How Fermented Tea Discourages Yeast Overgrowth
This short term aggravation of symptoms is sometimes referred to as “a healing crisis” and is necessary if improvement in the gut environment is to occur over the long term.
A healing crisis can occur not only with kombucha, but with other fermented beverages such as kefir or even yogurt.
A friend of mine noticed when she started drinking kefir awhile back that her eczema flared up. I told her to keep on with it and it would eventually go away on its own as the die of symptoms from the aggressive probiotics in the kefir lessened. Sure enough, her eczema went away and her overall health improved considerably from the introduction of raw kefir into her diet.
Even though kombucha can be enjoyed by candida sufferers, it is certainly possible for some folks to not react well to kombucha regardless of whether they suffer from gut imbalance or not. There is no food or drink even if traditional and nourishing that works well for absolutely everyone.
On a personal note, my husband and I both used to suffer from candida overgrowth years ago prior to our introduction to Traditional Foods and kombucha in particular. We have found over the years that drinking kombucha on a daily basis does in fact help considerably in keeping the problem at bay by working to maintain a balanced gut environment.
So drink up and enjoy your kombucha even if candida is something you are working to resolve at the moment. Just be aware that you may get worse before you ultimately get better.
Watch Out for Commercial Brands!
Please note that the kombucha that is safe to drink if you have candida is only plain kombucha ideally brewed yourself. Watch out for commercial kombucha, however!
Store kombucha consumption presents a very real candida flare-up risk. Many if not most commercial brands are loaded with sugar. Definitely avoid them if you have candida issues!
More Information
Want to know more about kombucha and candida? These articles provide more detail for your research.
Fluoride in Kombucha
Does Kombucha Prevent Grey Hair?
Jun Tea: Kombucha Champagne
Batch vs Continuous Brew Kombucha
Have You Tried Kombucha?
Safe Traveling with Kombucha
Kombucha: Drink It and Wear It?
Pau d’Arco: Best Herb for Treating Candida
Biofilms: Overlooked Step in Treating Candida
Stephanie McCall via Facebook
How can I make kombucha at home?
Joan Winkelmann Scherry via Facebook
Wondering this myself lately, thanks.
Skye Daniels via Facebook
Great article! Thanks.
Teresa
Sarah,
Do you have any idea how long a kombucha culture will last being stored in frig?
I haven’t used it in months but would like to start making it again. Mine always tasted sweet so I was afraid to drink it everyday. But I would like to try it again!
Sarah, TheHealthyHomeEconomist
It will last about one month IF covered with a cloth (not a secure lid) and the culture is in tea water. The one you describe should be thrown out as it will be dead at this point.
Elizabeth
This answered my question. =)
Elizabeth
I had the same question…my scoby has been in a jar with the same 1/4 cup of tea for probably close to a year or so, maybe even more if my time is just that off. =) How long is a scoby good for?
Janelle
I would just start over, you can just use a bottle of raw kombucha from the store, it will usually grow a new SCOBY, I’ve done it a couple times now.
Sarah
That depends on the formulation and the brand. I know for instance that GT Dave’s has reformulated and the full complement of culture is not present in the new raw KT (due to concerns of alcohol content). It will grow a scoby but it will be subject to issues and probably won’t last many cycles. Best to get a healthy scoby from a friend or seller.
Janelle
I guess its a good thing I had used some of my old kombucha that had been sitting in the fridge, I thought it was probably dead so I used part of it along with some KT and it did grow a healthy looking SCOBY, hopefully it is a viable culture, we shall see. I am still waiting for it to sour after about 8 days.
Cassandra
I had a scoby in a covered jar with some tea for 3 months, it was fine.
Sarah, TheHealthyHomeEconomist
WOW! I think you must hold the world record on that one 🙂
Beth
I had mine in the fridge for 2 years and I just started making kombucha again. I used the GT’s original as my starter tea and it’s going great. My scoby was in a glass jar with a plastic lid on it. I’m on my third batch and this one is the best so far.
Carolina
Great article. I think that will help with my others methods I’m using (How To Cure Candida). I have seen it first on vizijaplius.lt/blog/
Janna
I’m currently looking for wisdom on drinking kombucha while pregnant or nursing. Any thoughts? Thanks.
Sarah, TheHealthyHomeEconomist
I drank kombucha all through pregnancy and lactation for my youngest 2 children. It really was so helpful to me. It relieved any aches and pains from carrying so much extra weight particularly hip pain which I never had at all as long as I drank kombucha.
Amy M
I’ve heard that it’s important to start kombucha before getting pregnant because the initial detoxification from the kombucha can cause miscarriage. Have you heard anything about this?
Sarah, TheHealthyHomeEconomist
I’ve not read this anywhere. I actually started drinking kombucha regularly when I was pregnant and it did me a world of good.
Hannah Crum
It is important to trust your body. Many women drink Kombucha during pregnancy while others find that they cannot tolerate the taste or smell. Also, lactating women have reported that they have increased breast milk production when they included Kombucha as part of their regimen – check out this article for more info – http://www.kombuchakamp.com/2011/06/kombucha-tea-pregnancy-safety-probiotics-fermented-foods.html
Emma
I seriously question how fermented the store bought kombuchas are, and some kombuchas are pasteurized. It’s like drinking soda they are so sweet.
I’ve been meaning to blog about how to make kombucha using a second fermentation which enhances the carbonation and makes it taste better.
I was blessed to receive cultures for something called ‘jun’ which uses raw honey and tea and tastes and feels 1000 better than kombucha!
Thanks for sharing this, it also relates to wine and candida!
Jennifer
Emma, can you tell me more about “jun”? Where can you acquire it?
Stanley Fishman
Very useful information, once again. We drink Kombucha every day, and it makes a huge difference. It is a great replacement for soft drinks, and we have grown to love the taste.
Christina
Sounds good! I am boiling water for my first-ever kombucha batch at this very moment. Interesting about the kefir. I started making it from unhomogenized store-bought local organic milk but because of legalities it is pasteurized. Do you think the benefits of kefir are still worth it when making it from pasteurized milk?
Sarah, TheHealthyHomeEconomist
Yes, kefir is still very much beneficial even when made from pasteurized milk. That is good that you have nonhomogenized milk too.
Sarah
So good to know! I was wondering that too. We will be moving somewhere that is going to be difficult to obtain raw milk. I have been sooooo spoiled the last 4 years with dairy in the next town.
Dharmender
For fermenting Kombucha – can sugar be substituted with some other sweetener like honey or somthing else?
Sarah, TheHealthyHomeEconomist
No, honey is antibacterial and so will work to counteract the growth of probiotics in the brew. Just use organic white sugar. Almost all the sugar is fermented and should cause little to no blood sugar problems in most people.
tracy
hi sarah my name is tracy I feel horrible due to die off do you know of anything that can help ease this it would be greatly appreciated. thanks very much
Adrienne @ Whole New Mom
Hi Tracy. I have a load of ideas for you. One is zeolite. Another is liver support. I take a really good one. Also a Chinese Blend that I take called Yin Chiao. You are welcome to drop me a line at wholenewmom at gmail dot com for help. I’ve been through horrible die off and I know how awful it can be. Hang in there.
CC Elms
Sorry about your die-off symptoms, my friend, I’ve been there as well.
Now, I just use carbonized bamboo (others use charcoal, it’s easier to find). It absorbs the die-off toxin that creates the symptoms. Carbonized bamboo is difficult to find unless you have a good alternative doctor; but the good news is that charcoal does the same thing.
Just thought that I would share; I hope this information helps you like it helped me.
terra
Actually it is a myth that honey kills good bacteria. Studies show that honey has a synergistic effect with beneficial bacteria and helps it grow. If honey killed good bacteria, no one would be able to make JUN tea.
Cassandra
It is possible to ferment it with raw honey, plenty of people do it. Sarah is correct that there is a chance it will harm the SCOBY, but it is not always the case. Plenty of people also use chlorinated tap water without causing harm to the SCOBY.