92 93 The effectiveness of kombucha is based on significant attention during its preparation, which requires particular care, some patience and a scoby [symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeasts] disc. Although left unmentioned until now, the scoby is a fundamental element of kombucha: it is what visually distinguishes it and makes it a drink - as mentioned above - very different from the classic tea, and a highly salutary one notwithstanding. A scoby has the appearance of a gelatinous disc, wrongly named fungus by many people; in reality, it is a colony of bacteria and yeasts that activate fermentation and transform sugar into CO2. What is needed: two litres of water, four bags of black or green tea [or two bags of the former and two of the latter, depending on taste], 200 g of sugar [ideally raw cane sugar] and a scoby disc. The process: after boiling the water, leave the tea bags to stew for fifteen minutes, add the sugar and stir until completely dissolved. Wait until the water becomes cooler [the temperature must not exceed 25° C to prevent the culture in the scoby from dying]. When the tea turns cold, pour it into a glass container and add the scoby and the starter liquid that accompanies it. Cover the glass container with a cloth and secure it to the edge with a rubber band. Place the container in a spot which is protected from direct sunlight and from which it will not be moved during the time required for fermentation: 8-12 days. During this time, the sugar transforms into CO2 and organic acids. At the end of the fermentation period, the scoby must be removed - make sure your hands are very clean - and rinsed in cold water. Then place it in a container with new tea to be stored until next time. It is also time to collect 10% of the liquid which you just obtained: this will serve as a starter for the next preparation. You will have obtained a properly-matured kombucha if you wait 5 days before consumption. During fermentation, you can observe the scoby floating on the surface of the tea. When found at the bottom of the container, it’s a sign that a new culture is ready to form on its surface. Over time, this new culture will become thicker, but it only means that there are additional overlapping discs. Each of them may be stored and used again. Or given as a gift. New scobies will arise from each culture in a regenerative process that can be infinite and is very similar to immortality, hence the hypothesis of the elixir itself being immortal rather than the user’s health, which is anyways supported and preserved. An inaccurate translation may have simply associated the adjective immortal with the word ‘health’ instead of the word ‘elixir’ [but let's not tell that to Google’s Bill Maris, who could gain a significant advantage from it for his research, which aims to extend human life to reach 500 years, although with completely different benefits]. The way in which kombucha saved Emperor Inyko can be found by dipping a toe into the basic principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine [TCM]. Above all, it is important to remember that TCM is based on this simple postulate: prevention before disease, where “prevention” is intended as the effort required to preserve vital energy, called Qi. Indeed, Qi permeates the entire universe and confers it with life: it is what guarantees health when it is in balance, or causes illnesses when it is not. In human bodies, this energy circulates through meridians - energy lines that cross the body - thanks to the organs’ activity. To this effect, the role of the spleen and the stomach are crucial: considered almost as a single unit, classical texts of TCM describe them as the source of Qi and blood. With a healthy spleen and stomach, the body’s health has nothing to fear. Li Dong-Yuan [1180-1251 AD], the physician who deepened this aspect, hypothesised that - since the essence of food feeds Qi - it was inevitably connected to the combination of the spleen and stomach, the two organs responsible for transforming food: the stomach during the first phase of assimilation, while the spleen in the final phase of the process. According to his words, the course that led to a state of illness was the following: «An abundant Qi results in no damage to the spleen and to the stomach. When the stomach is weakened, excessive drinking and eating naturally causes damage to the spleen and stomach, together with a smaller growth of original Qi, originating in disease²». An effective antidote for the spleen and stomach meridian, kombucha was thus used to balance this energetic and functional axis. Indeed, by helping the two organs with digestion, the elixir allowed the body to extrapolate the energies needed for the healing process. A detailed look at the substances contained in kombucha will reveal that precious probiotic ferments are found in this drink, thanks to the fermentation process through which it is obtained. These represent the good side of the intestinal flora which aide our immune system, human Chinese Wall, fending off external attacks of bacteria and viruses. In strict order of increasing percentage appearance: • Acetobacter (<2%) • Lactobacillus (up to 30%) • Gluconacetobacter (> 85%) • Zygosaccharomyces (>95%) All these ferments arrive healthy, safe and active, in the bowel, thanks to the presence of acetic, gluconic, tartaric, oxalic and citric acids. The composition is completed by vitamins B and C: the former supports the nervous system, while the latter supports the immune system thanks to its antioxidant properties. The same caffeine and alcohol contained in kombucha activate the metabolism in the liver, which in turn promotes blood circulation and has an efficient stimulating effect against fatigue. The combined action of all of the components contained in kombucha produce a detoxifying, antioxidant, energising and strengthening effect on the body's immune system. Some hypotheses and research attribute kombucha with the ability to counteract the most damaging degenerative processes of cells, extending its effectiveness to the field of tumorous diseases. Preparing kombucha: no fungi were harmed. Properties: the defence of the immune system 2. Li Dong-Yuan, Pi Wei Lun [Treatise on the spleen and stomach, available in English from Blue Poppy Press]. in Fermento in Ferment
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