Fight Cold and Flu Season with Probiotics

The H1N1 virus, also known as the swine flu, has been hitting hard in northeast Wisconsin.  With a likely shortage of vaccine and vaccine concerns, what can you do to help protect your family naturally?

Last flu season Green Sense discussed how to Boost Your Immune System Naturally, including recipes for bone broths.  This cold and flu season I’d like to focus on probiotics.

Probiotics are beneficial microorganisms similar to the "friendly" bacteria found naturally in the body's digestive system.  They have recently become very popular as a food additive and supplement, but is there any truth to all the health claims?  As it turns out, yes.

After an 18 month study that examined the effect of probiotics Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium animalis on children aged 3 to 5, the results showed that:

• the Lactobacillus acidophilus group had 53% fewer fevers, 41% fewer coughs, and 28% fewer runny noses than the placebo group
• the group given both bacteria strains had 72% fewer fevers, 62% fewer coughs, and 59% fewer runny noses than the placebo group
• the Lactobacillus acidophilus group recovered from cold symptoms 32% faster and the two-bacteria group recovered 48% faster than the placebo group, when they did get sick, with less antibiotic use (68% and 84% less, respectively)

Other studies have shown similarly positive results.  If you consider how much surface area there is in the digestive track (some estimates calculate that it forms up to 70% of the immune system), it makes sense that keeping it healthy helps keep you healthy.

Personally, I have started brewing kombucha, plus we regularly consume yogurt and kefir with live and active cultures (read the label – you want good bacteria that are still frisky).  I have also ordered some water kefir grains and will soon be making beet kvass.  So far, so good.

Related Links:

New Study: Probiotic Strain Boosts Immune Response to Flu Virus - Researchers found that a specific strain of probiotics, increases the body's immune response to the flu virus -- specifically, to influenza A. Swine flu, also known as H1N1, is a variant of influenza A.

Probiotics May Reduce Colds and Flu in Children - New Study Shows Friendly Bacteria Help Strengthen Immunity

Digestive Problems & The Immune System – Analysis of the relationship between digestion and the immune system.

 

Probiotic Recipes

Beet Kvass (adapted from Nourishing Traditions) and featured at www.feelgoodeats.com

In Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon notes, “One four ounce glass in the morning and night, is an excellent blood tonic, promotes regularity, aids digestion, alkalizes the blood, cleanses the liver, and is a good treatment for kidney stones and other ailments.” (p. 610)

Ingredients:

3 medium organic beets
¼ cup whey (innoculant)
1/2 tablespoon sea salt
2 quarts filtered water*

Directions:

Slice off the beet greens and save them for another purpose (beet greens are loaded with nutrients and can be prepared like chard or kale). Slice off the bottom of the beet and thoroughly scrub and peel. Coarsely chop the beets and place in a tall glass container.

Add the filtered water, sea salt, and whey and stir to combine. Cover securely and keep at room temperature for 2 days, stirring a few times. After 2 days, strain out the beets and discard, transfer the liquid to mason jars and store in the refrigerator.

*Don’t use tap water if it is chlorinated because chlorine will inhibit the fermentation process.

 

Basic Kombucha from Wild Fermentation featured at Common Sense Homesteading

I personally have two three quart batches brewing on my counter at any given time.  Cold temperatures will slow down fermentation, so I am letting mine ferment for around two weeks.

Timeframe:  About 7-10 days

Ingredients (for 1 quart/1liter):

1 quart/1liter water
1/4 cup/60 milliliters sugar
1 tablespoon/15 milliliters loose black tea or 2 teabags
1/2 cup/125 milliliters mature acidic kombucha
Kombucha mother (SCOBY)

Directions:
1.      Mix water and sugar and bring to a boil in a small cooking pot.
2.      Turn off the heat; add tea, cover, and steep about 15 minutes.
3.      Strain the tea into a glass container.  It's best to use something wide; kombucha needs adequate surface area and works best if the diameter of the container is greater than the depth of the liquid.  Allow the tea to cool to body temperature.
4.      Add the mature acidic kombucha.  When you obtain a culture, it will be stored in this liquid.  Save a portion of the subsequent batches for this purpose.
5.      Place the kombucha mother in the liquid, with the firm opaque side up.
6.      Cover with a cloth and store in a warm spot, ideally 75- to 85F (21 to 29 C).
7.      After a few days to 1 week, depending on the temperature, you will notice a skin forming on the surface of the kombucha.  Taste the liquid.  It will probably still be sweet.  The longer it sits, the more acidic it will become.
8.      Once it reaches the acidity you like, start a new batch and store you mature kombucha in the refrigerator.  You now have two mothers, the original one you started with, and the new one.  Use either the new or the old mother in your new batch, and pass the other one on to a friend (or the compost).  Each generation will give birth to a new mother, and the old mother will thicken.

 

Water Kefir from Rebuild: the blog

Water kefir is an effervescent beverage that can be used as a healthy replacement for soda pop.  Kefir grains can be purchased online at Cultures for Health and other vendors.

Water kefir instructions: Innoculating the Water
1.      Dissolve 1/3 cup sugar with warm water in a clean glass jar.
2.      Add one quart of water. (See instructions below on adding juice or fruit as well.)
3.      Add grains.
4.      Place in cupboard or other spot out of direct sunlight.
5.      Cover jar with a clean dish towel.
6.      Let sit for 24 hours|
7.      Strain grains from liquid
8.      Add juice, reuse grains. Go back to step 1 with grains.

 

One-step kefir soda (uses dry fruit)

1.      1/3 cup of sugar dissolved in 1 quart water
2.      Add grains when water has cooled
3.      Add 1-3 pieces of dried fruit (e.g., pineapple, apricot, papaya, mango)
4.      Ferment for 24 hours or until it reaches desired sweetness. (A longer fermentation process will reduce the sugar content and raise the alcohol content, though this recipe will not turn into "hooch." There is not enough sugar.)
5.      Strain grains, start new batch, drink soda.

 

Two-step kefir soda (uses fruit juice)

1.      1/3 cup of sugar dissolved in 1 quart water
2.      Add grains when water has cooled
3.      Ferment for 24 hours or until it reaches desired sweetness. (A longer fermentation process will reduce the sugar content and raise the alcohol content, though this recipe will not turn into "hooch." There is not enough sugar.)
4.      Strain grains, start new batch.
5.      Add 1-2 cups of fruit juice to kefir water. Ferment for another 24 hours or until desired sweetness.

Note: Juice can be added initially to the grains to make it a "one-step" process, but grains will take on the color of the juice. It may also be difficult to remove all of the fruit pulp when straining the grains.