Kefir

Description

Kefir is essential for those who are fighting candida infections and interested in improving their overall health. Kefir is a fermented milk drink produced by the actions of bacteria and yeasts contained in kefir grains. Kefir grains are not grains in the same sense that wheat, oat and corn are grains, they are living organism that digest milk to produce kefir. This happens on the same principle as yogurt, but the grains are actually a separate living thing from the finished product, unlike yogurt. The grains look rather like cottage cheese and are similar to a gummy worm in texture. During fermentation, peptides and exopolysaccharides are formed that have been shown to have bioactive properties. Moreover, in vitro and animal trials have shown kefir and its constituents to have anticarcinogenic, antimutagenic, antiviral and antifungal properties. Although kefir has been produced and consumed in Eastern Europe for a long period of time, few clinical trials are found in the scientific literature to support the health claims attributed to kefir. The large number of microorganisms in kefir, the variety of possible bioactive compounds that could be formed during fermentation, and the long list of reputed benefits of eating kefir make this fermented dairy product a complex probiotic.

Pharmacology

More than a thousand years of consumption have demonstrated that the microorganisms in kefir are not pathogenic. Milk inoculated with grains can suppress the growth of pathogens such as Salmonella or Shigella. The grain matrix is composed of a complex of 13% protein (by dry weight), 24% polysaccharide, plus cellular debris and unknown components. The principal polysaccharide is a water-soluble substance known as kefiran. Several homofermentative Lactobacillus species including L. kefiranofaciens and L. kefir produce this polysaccharide. Kefir contains a variety of aromatic substances including diacetyl and acetaldehyde. Diacetyl is produced by Str. lactis subsp. diacetylactis and Leuconostoc sp., which give it a characteristic flavour. The pH of kefir is 4.2 to 4.6. Microorganisms present in the grains are called probiotic because they are beneficial to human health. There are lactobacilli, such as Lb. brevis, Lb. cellobiosus, Lb. acidophilus, Lb. casei, Lb. helveticus, Lb. delbrueckii, Lb. lactis, etc., lactococci, such as different subspecies of Lc. lactis, Streptococcus salivarius ssp. thermophilus, Leuconostoc mesenteroides and L. cremoris and a variety of yeasts (fungi), such as Kluyveromyces, Candida, Torulopsis, and Saccharomyces.

Kefir Grain cultivation in milk whey produces a rather high (10[7]/ml) lactobacteria count. The Kefir Grain biomass growth in natural whey or its blend with condensed whey is a short process (up to 3-4 days). It can be extended through recurring renewal of the nutrient medium. The largest Kefir Grain biomass increase (23.13%) was achieved in natural curd whey after 3 days of cultivation. The composition of the Kefir Grain protein acid hydrolysate by indispensable amino acids (IAA) is as follows (mg/100g): valine 220, isoleucine 262, leucine 444, methionine 137, lysine 376, threonine 183, phenylalanine 231, tryptophan 70; the total IAA is 1923 mg/100 g. The Kefir Grain dry matter (DM) contained 33.0% raw proteins, 9% raw ashes, 1.8% raw cellular tissues, 0.2% raw fats, the following macro elements (%): K (1.65); Ca (0.86); P (1.45); Mg (0.30), and the following microelements (mg/Kefir Grain): Cu (7.32); Zn (92.7); Fe (20.3); Mn (13.0); Co (0.16); Mo (0.33). Moreover, B-group vitamins were found in the Kefir Grain mass: B5 ~3mg/Kefir Grain; B2 < 5 mg/Kefir Grain; B1 < 10 mg/Kefir Grain.

Definition of terms:

1. Kefir grain is the actual culture with which you culture milk. It is not a grain like wheat but a slimy culture that resembles cauliflower florets.
2. Kefir is the term for milk that has been fermented with Kefir grains.
3. Kefir whey is the thin liquid you get from straining Kefir through linen. The other component is curd or cream cheese.
4. Kefir cream is cream that has been cultured using Kefir or Kefir grains.
5. Kefir butter is butter that has been cultured from cream using Kefir.
6. Kefir is quite different to yogurt and does not require the same precision in culturing it.
7. Note: There is a big difference in the amount of cream between supermarket milk and milk from Jersey or Guernsey cows.>

Traditional societies have successfully used real Kefir for thousands of years to culture milk products in a primitive environment that lacked the technology of modern societies. (In a goats stomach hung in a doorway, for example).

Cultivating Kefer Grains (Starter) - Kefir grains are prepared in a goat-hide bag filled with pasteurized milk inoculated with sheep intestinal flora, followed by culture of the surface layer in milk. A polysaccharide layer gradually appears on the surface of the hide. The layer is removed from the hides and propagated in pasteurized milk. Kefir grains appear as pieces of coral or small clumps of cauliflower florets or pop corn and range from 3 to 20 mm in diameter (Libudzisz and Piatkiewicz, 1990). The grains look like composition of kefir is variable and not well defined gelatinous white or yellow particles. These grains (Zubillaga et al., 2001) contain lactic acid bacteria (lactobacilli, lactococci, leoconostocs), acetic acid bacteria and yeast mixture clumped together with casein (milk proteins) and complex sugars by a matrix of polysaccharides.

• Effects on the small intestine and digestion,
• Direct modification of the colonic microflora and its metabolism, and
• General effects initiated in the colon.

The intestinal microflora are important for maturation of the immune system, the development of normal intestinal morphology and in order to maintain a chronic and immunologically balanced inflammatory response. The microflora reinforce the barrier function of the intestinal mucosa, helping in the prevention of the attachment of pathogenic microorganisms and the entry of allergens. Some members of the microflora may contribute to the body's requirements for certain vitamins, including biotin, pantothenic acid and vitamin B₁₂. Alteration of the microbial flora of the intestine, such as may occur with antibiotic use, disease and aging, can negatively affect its beneficial role. The main health benefit of yogurt and related fermented milk products is to improved lactose digestion; while bifidobacteria primarily affects the balance of the colonic microflora; and kefir and L. casei provide more global benefits, the first in relation to its antimicrobial effects and the second to diarrhea.

Contra-indications - hypersensitivity to milk products and probiotics. The most common adverse reactions with probiotic foods are gastrointestinal and include flatulence and constipation.

 Making Kefir is a simple procedure

Ingredients:

• 1 tea cupful of kefir grains
• 1 quart of fresh goats milk

Method:

1. Wash the Kefir grains that are in a plastic strainer under the faucet or with a spray. Move the grains around in the strainer once or twice to be sure that the grains at the bottom are also being washed. The grains should be thoroughly clean.
2. Put the washed grains of Kefir into a quart of fresh milk. (Do not have the jar of milk completely full. Allow room for the addition of the Kefir grains.)
3. Stir with a clean spoon, place a saucer on top of the jar to keep out the dust, and set the jar back out of the way on the counter top.
4. Allow the new Kefir to stand for two or three days, stirring once or twice a day as you think of it.
5. Pour the Kefir in a plastic strainer and allow the kefir whey to slow drip into another container - keep for other recipes.
6.   With the back of a spoon, gently press some of the remaining liquid from the Kefir grains.
7. What is left is similar in appeance to cottage cheese - pour this into a sterile bowl and remove your Kefir Grains and about a quarter cup of kefer and set aside as starter for your next batch (he Kefir grains should be thoroughly cleaned before starting new batch to prevent contamination.
8.   Pour the remaining strained Kefir that is in the bowl into another sterile jar with a lid, and refrigerate.
9. Optional - Pour remaining Kefir back into a sifter and strain until kefir is finely ground if it is to be drank.
10.   Taste the Kefir milk occasionally in order to determine when it is done to your taste.
11. Repeat this process to start a new jar of Kefir.