Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Body Ecology - Kefir Benefits and How to Make Your Own!

Young Coconut Kefir:
This is also a great choice! 

Get the Young coconuts (green or white).  Remove the 1 ½ cups water from inside of coconut to make kefir.  Use water from about 3 coconuts to one package of starter.  Warm coconut water to about 90 degrees.  Pour into glass jar and add starter culture.  Body Ecology’s Kefir Starter is what to use.  Let is sit at room temperature (70 degrees) for 36 hours.  The color will change to milky white and you will see a bit of bubbling or foam on top.  This means the sugar has been fermented.  It should taste tart and tangy, not sweet. 

You can use about ¼ cup from this first batch and “transfer” to your next batch instead of using another starter kit.  You can do this up to seven times.  The next batch will only take 24 hours to culture since the bacteria are awake and working already.  It’s always best to warm the coconut water t 90 degrees first. 

For the coconut meat, you can ferment this as well into a “cheese.”  Remove meat and all shell pieces and put in a blender with small amount of water to make a smooth pudding.  Add several tablespoons of fermented coconut kefir water, or use a culture starter kit and let sit for 8 hours at 70 degrees (room temperature).  

A half cup of this kefir, the water or the meat, is great with any meal.  You can add ginger, stevia, lemon or lime if desired. 

Kefir:
Kefir is one of the healthiest and most beneficial foods you can possible consume.  It is critical for creating healthy environment in the intestinal tract and is crucial for you to be able to digest and assimilate foods properly.  They are especially important for you to tolerate foods that are not the healthiest, such as people who are lactose intolerant.  This is because their body is missing the lactase enzyme to properly digest these foods. 

Tryptophan is an essential amino acid found in milk kefir.  Many call kefir “nature’s tranquilizer” or “nature’s Prozac.”  Its calming effect is perfect for anyone who is high-strung, nervous, anxious or for over-active children.  The body converts the tryptophan into serotonin that can help with constipation and depression, induce sleep and prohibit waking up at night. 

With kefir, your body will also begin to produce the b-vitamins and vitamin k needed by the body. 

Other benefits of kefir:
-           Stops food cravings because you are nourished and balanced
-          Provides the sour taste missing from the American diet
-          Beneficial and healing for the skin, can also use externally
-          Cooing to the body, therefore beneficial during fevers or viral conditions
-          Good for establishing bacteria after taking antibiotics. 
-          The bacteria automatically populate the vagina, or you can implant directly using a douche
-          They have a cleansing affect on the colon and help heal the liver
-          You notice better breath, healthier bowel movements, normal stools and less gas.


Introducing kefir:
Dairy based kefir may be difficult for those with leaky gut and candidiasis.  The lining must be healed first, following the program for three months should accomplish this.  However, coconut kefir contains no casein and can be used at the beginning.  This will help populate your intestinal tract and get it ready for the dairy based kefir when you are able to introduce it.

Raw goat milk or cow’s milk can be used.  Goat’s milk is higher in minerals and more easily digested by humans. 

Great Kefir Drink:
4-8 ounces of kefir
One tablespoon of unrefined oil like flax or pumpkin
Pinch of sea salt
Fiber (flax) and probiotics like acidophilus and bifidus
Herbs like stevia, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla

Making Kefir:
Get the best quality, raw or organic milk possible.  It’s super easy to make at home.  Warm the milk to 90 degrees, add the starter culture, shake or stir, cover and let sit for 24 hours.  It is ready when thick and you can stand a toothpick in it.  Shake it and refrigerate to stop fermentation process. 

At store, if they have Helios Nutrition kefir, that one is ok. 

Make a new batch every day or two.  It is an ideal breakfast food, best on empty stomach.
In Russia, children begin drinking kefir at 4 months and are offered the drink in school. 
If you are lactose intolerant, try kefir.  The fermentation process digests the milk sugar lactose. 

Dr. Vaughn

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