This Refreshing Drink Can Help Boost Gut Health, Steady Blood Sugar, and Melt a Menopot
Are you looking for a refreshingly sweet and bubbly summer drink that’s also packed with major health benefits? Well, you should add kombucha to your shopping list. This fermented drink (it tastes a lot better than that sounds!) comes in all sorts of flavors and will help heal your gut to boost immunity, balance blood sugar, and more. Here is everything you need to know about the benefits of kombucha — plus, three drink recipes you can try making at home.
Powers Immunity
Sipping kombucha daily increases levels of the “good” probiotic bacteria living in the gut. In a study published in the British Journal of Nutrition, this effect reduced subjects’ annual sick days by 31 percent. Bonus: Since more than 70 percent of the immune system resides in the gut, kombucha recharges that system after it’s fought off infection.
Steadies Blood Sugar
Enjoying fizzy kombucha every day for a month can reduce blood glucose levels by 50 percent. That’s the word from researchers writing in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, who found that the sip lowered levels of the enzyme amylase, slowing the breakdown of carbohydrates to limit the amount of free glucose in the bloodstream.
Melts a Menopot
The acetic acid in kombucha switches off key fat-storage enzymes, an effect that can help melt a menopot effortlessly. In fact, subjects in a Japanese study who were given acetic acid gained significantly less weight on a diet designed for weight gain than those who didn’t receive it.
Now onto the kombucha drink recipes that will deliver all of these health benefits in a delicious and refreshing way!
Orange-Ginger Refresher
- 4 slices fresh ginger
- 1⁄2 cup orange juice
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 cup kombucha
In pitcher, muddle ginger, orange juice and honey; strain into ice-filled glasses. Stir in kombucha. Makes two servings.
Cherry-Berry Revitalizer
- 1 cup kombucha
- 1⁄2 cup cran-cherry juice
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1⁄2 cup berry-flavored seltzer
Divide kombucha and juices between ice-filled glasses. Top with seltzer. If desired, garnish with raspberries, lime slices and mint. Makes two servings.
Cucumber-Citrus Kicker
- 1 mini cucumber
- 1 sprig fresh mint
- 1 cup kombucha
- 1⁄2 cup ruby red grapefruit juice
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Puree cucumber and mint; strain into two ice-filled glasses. Divide kombucha and juices between glasses. Garnish as desired. Makes two servings.
This article originally appeared in our print magazine, First For Women.
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