Kefir: A Probiotic Fresh Food
by Jennifer Vagios, R.D.
APOGEE’s Dietitian
When you think of fresh food, you probably picture green veggies and colorful fruits. But there’s another food that’s so fresh that it’s alive in your fridge: cultured yogurt and kefir. These foods are made using bacteria cultures known as probiotics. The bacteria are beneficial: Not only are they digesting the lactose in the dairy, but once in your gut these probiotics will boost your health in many ways.
Fermenting or culturing foods with probiotics is an ancient art that’s getting a lot of attention. The Food Agricultural Organization of the World Health Organization defines probiotics as “live microorganisms, which, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit to the host.” Research has proven that probiotics improve the body’s ability to resist intestinal infection and improve digestion. They’re being investigated as a way to boost immune function, ease colitis and irritable bowel syndrome and even contribute to a healthier heart.
You are most likely to be familiar with one fermented probiotic food: yogurt. There are yogurts with bacteria that do specific tasks, such as improve regularity or boost immune function. But kefir is just as active—perhaps even more so. While most yogurts contain five or six species of probiotic bacteria, kefir has as many as ten. And now kefir comes in non-dairy versions: So Delicious is marketing a coconut kefir, which is cultured coconut milk, so even vegans can get the benefits of active probiotic cultures.
Kefir is thick and creamy—even the 2 percent or non- fat versions. Unlike most yogurts, you can pour kefir, making it the perfect base for smoothies. Just add fruit and perhaps a handful of flaxseed meal and flax oil. Or mix it with granola or nuts and fruit in the morning instead of milk. You can use kefir in any recipe that calls for buttermilk or yogurt. Just keep in mind that the living bacteria are fragile: Cooking will kill the good guys!
Like milk, kefir delivers calcium; if it’s fortified, kefir also contains Vitamin D. But the real benefit of kefir comes from the billions of bacteria that are busy breaking down the lactose sugars, making kefir easier to digest than milk. Once in your gut, these living cells crowd out any disease-causing bacteria and ease digestion. Because your intestines are a key part of your immune system, a healthier gut helps you fight off—and recover from—viruses and even traveler’s diarrhea. (If you have digestive health problems or a diagnosis, you should talk to your doctor before changing your diet. )
The truly ambitious natural foods enthusiast might want to make their own You’ll need kefir grains, which are little nodules of live bacteria. Added to good quality milk, they’ll begin digesting it immediately and with a day or two, will have turned milk into kefir. Now that’s fresh!
Tags: Jennifer Vagios, kefir, probiotic
