Throw Away Your Probiotics!

I prepared my second round of fermented foods last night. I made red cabbage with carrots and red beets, green cabbage with carrots and red beets, and green cabbage with green pepper and onion. I chose to use a starter culture called "Body Ecology" on this round. It makes the fermentation process go faster.

We love the taste of the fermented foods. I think that I may experiment with greens such as spinach, kale, and cilantro next time. Kefir is also on the agenda.

It took me 2.5 hours to prepare the 7 quarts of cultured foods and for the cleanup. I made a huge mess in the kitchen. Our food processor wore out after all these years so I had to cut everything by hand. It was a big job, but it is worth it! Did I find a new but strange hobby?

How is everybody else's fermented foods coming? Deejavu- How did your first round turn out?

Don

My LLND told me that if we're drinking kombucha, we can stop buying probiotics. So, I've started brewing kombucha, and flavouring it at bottling time with a bit of fresh ginger and lemon juice. It's very tasty!

about the candida issue, I believe that yeasts that are not candida yeasts are fine to take, and may even outcompete candida.

There are yeasts in kefir, and i have treated candida with kefir, alone.

We've recently switched from kefir to kombucha, though, since we're not using dairy. I really miss it. It's very easy to make and the flavour grows on you.

If you're fermenting vegetables at home, it's advised to seed it with ferments, either store bought or home made.

I love this thread... Don, thanks so much for posting it. The interview was scary but I'm so glad to be more informed now. I just finished a bottle of probiotic supplements and think I'll switch over to a different source of probiotics now.

So... For a couple years I brewed my own kombucha... I know all the ins and outs of it if anyone needs some guidance!! And Don, for what it's worth, kombucha doesn't taste like tea... I may get laughed at for this, but my best batches tasted like champagne!!

I stopped the kombucha because I thought the trace amounts of sugar were bad for lyme. If we're really sure that's not the case, I'll go back to it in a heartbeat!!

bbrian,

I am eating 2 servings of fermented every day. I have a general sense of wellbeing since I have been eating it for the last 3-4 weeks.
Its great to see others jumping on the bandwagon. I hope that everyone that is eating this stuff will see tangible results from eating the fermented foods.

Gee Whiz- I didn't think that anyone would take me seriously about my facetious thread title "Throw Away Your Probiotics!" I guess that I better be careful in using hyperbole in the future.

Don

rowingmom,

Thanks for the compliment and for the info about the sauerkraut. I am so happy that your daughter in the short term is doing so well. I am looking forward to hearing of great progress in the future as well.

I have been eating the cabbage based fermented foods for the last month. I eat them twice a day and my GI tract feels fabulous! No gas or cramps any longer (TMI). Maybe I needed probiotics and didn't even know it! The only problem is that I am getting tired of eating cabbage with beets or cabbage with carrots twice a day. I am going to have to branch out more and find other things to ferment that don't have cabbage in them!

Don

Bumpity Bump!! I plan on making fermented foods next week! Can't wait, yeah!

Denise

I stopped consuming store bought keifer and yogurt (loaded with sugar) and feel much better, my candida suddenly improved. Plus I have dairy protein intolerance, so the probiotics in it is essentially canceled out in me.

Then I added yeast probiotics - Florestore, the Candida improved even more. (fight fire with fire).

Wish I could stand sourcrout (however its spelled LOL).

For me popping a probiotic pill is very convenient. I just dont have the time to make food that become science project.

I eat a basic whole foods diet (close to paleo I guess), I dont really mix things or make "dishes". Boring but healthy - my gut likes it.

Very Interesting... i was just looking at a bottle of probiotics today (the store had a five dollar coupon) but i still didn't like the price... something told me to do more research first. And here is Heathersdad doing it... Awesome!
I have been using a rather expensive brand of yogurt, just to have something in place... but i knew that i needed more. I'm very excited about this... read the article... listening to Dr Natasha now... its like discovering a missing link in my own recovery. I had read about Keifer and actually wanted to buy the liquid drink today...at the health food store... but once again did not like the price. I want to use something that i know i can afford to use on a regular basis. This looks to be very economical!
A light bulb went off while i was reading... because i had always wondered why i craved sauerkraut during my cycle (when my stomach was trashed)... i never really cared for sauerkraut... but my body knew that i needed it. I don't eat hot dogs normally... but once a month i would go to the hotdog shop and order a sauerkraut dog... i would always ask them to put only light sauerkraut on it. So interesting to me how i don't care for it.. but the body knows... it tells me what it really needs... i just need to listen attentively.
I am definitely going to research this further... i hope to have the strength to do some canning this weekend. Looking forward to checking out different recipes.

The Doctor just said "If your Doctor doesn't know something...that doesn't mean the knowledge doesn't exist elsewhere... it usually does... so you just have to look elsewhere" ... AMEN!

Thanks Bunches To Heathersdad!!!

Thanks for bringing this one back up. Good info.

GardenPeace, good point... it is very likely that it wasn't real... but i think my body was trying to tell me... and then if i found the real deal... my system would truly benefit. I am researching alot of recipes and methods and making a list to prep for the weekend. I was able to go to a very large market yesterday (its about an hour drive) to look around... my gosh they have so many things that i would normally have to order online.

The starter ingredients/supplies for yogurt and pickling etc... they also have a little restaurant where they serve organic food. After Alot of research with Dr Mercola (after reading this post) i did a test and found my nutritional type... and ordered dinner accordingly.

When i got home my body thanked me by `eliminating a problem that i have been having with constipation (yes...pun intended). I had the best day since i got sick last month... i still have pain and issues... but i was feeling grateful for the amount of energy that i did have... to be able to go on an outing.

I am just so happy that this thread was in a place and that i could see it. And of course very much appreciate Heathersdad for posting it.

I have perused Alot of forums along my journey so far... this one is the very best-est! (in my opinion)

Hi all, bumping up this thread as some may find it helpful as far as making your own fermented food instead of taking probiotics.

The only problem is most of Dr. Mercola's articles have been taken down (political reasons in which I can not discuss since politics are not allowed to be discussed on this forum) so one may not be able to access them. This may be temporary, time will tell.

Denise