Phoebe's Ferments

After studying to be a nutritionist, I have discovered just how important good bacteria is for our overall health as well as emotional and mental well being. Fermented foods have been something that traditionally was a staple part of all cultures and diet, up until the last 50 or so years when we started to get "sterile". It was used as a form of food preservation long before refrigeration was invented. The good bacteria we get from the fermented foods (Lactobacillus) in our intestines and colon helps breaks down the food we eat and makes it into usable nutrition for our bodies. It is also a huge part of our immune systems and helps to prevent and at times helps to reverse some of the allergies we have developed due to our unhealthy digestive tracks. Sugar and stress is another thing that wreaks havoc on our fragile eco-system or bio-domes of health. The number of bacteria in your body outnumber your cells by about 10 to 1. These bacteria are comprised of both beneficial ones and harmful ones. The perfect balance is about 85 percent good bacteria and 15 percent bad. Maintaining this ideal ratio becomes effortless when adding fermented foods to your diet on a daily basis or even at every meal. I have made huge strides in my own health by introducing these foods into my diet. It is a much more cost effective way of helping to deal with digestive issues or any other health issue the purchasing expensive probiotics. As quoted here from Dr. Mercola ~ Fermented foods not only give you a wider variety of beneficial bacteria, they also give you far more of them, so it’s a much more cost effective alternative. Here’s a case in point: It’s unusual to find a probiotic supplement containing more than 10 billion colony-forming units. But when my team actually tested fermented vegetables produced by probiotic starter cultures, they had 10 trillion colony-forming units of bacteria. Literally, one serving of vegetables was equal to an entire bottle of a high potency probiotic! So clearly, you’re far better off using fermented foods. There are so many health disorders that can be helped by introducing fermented foods into your daily lives. Such as Arthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, ADD, Depression, Anxiety, Asthma, Allergies, Skin Conditions, Auto Immune Disorders, just to name a few. Our health whether it's physical, digestive, emotional or mental health all comes from our digestive health. I strongly encourage you to try adding fermented foods into your diet and see how it will help you to lead a healthier,happier life!