Fueling the fermentation fervor is the buzz around probiotics, aka beneficial bacteria and yeast. Fascinating research about the microbes that inhabit our bodies (such as The Human Microbiome Project) is beginning to unlock some major mysteries of the human health puzzle. In short, billions of tiny things that live in your gut and all over every surface of your body are having a major effect on everything your body does and feels.
Early studies point to a lack of microbial diversity in the gut as an exacerbating factor in everything from alcoholism to asthma to autism, and potentially many more. Bacterial typing studies, fecal transplants, microbially personalized medicine, and many other exciting re-evolutionary developments are already emerging from this new field of study. Many are heralding this new body of data and information as a massive revolution to our current “sick care” paradigm but it will take a lot to transform the model of those companies currently profiting upon the sick.
But this information is all new and evolving, so our understanding how best to get those good buggers into the body and doing their job is an open question. Not to mention which bacteria or yeast may benefit any particular person, or in what mix together they are best consumed. Some studies show microorganisms trading genetic material in the gut, or even dead bacteria passing on useful attributes to the living ones.
It’s true that in some cases, large doses of clinically grown single-strain probiotics delivered to the gut in pill form may be the best way to treat a health issue. But in general, we firmly believe in eating a diverse diet of living, fermented foods featuring dozens or hundreds of distinct, naturally-occurring bacteria and yeast present in symbiosis as the best path to long term gut balance.
That’s where embracing the ancient tradition of making ferments at home can not only save a lot of dough but also open up a world of flavor and imagination with simple, inexpensive ingredients.
