here are its beneficial properties – breaking latest news

Il kefir has a name that comes from keif, in Turkish to feel good. In fact, it could deliver on its promise. Compared to yogurt it contains many more lactobacillicalled probiotics because they can reach and populate the intestinal microbiota, i.e. the old bacterial flora.

But in recent years, water kefir has also carved out a niche in the market, the alternative chosen by vegans and by those who want to reduce animal sources for ethical and environmental reasons. The drink has in common with the traditional kefir obtained from milk the abundance of microorganisms and the process of fermentation which makes it sparkling.

And probiotics

Taking fermented foods and drinks can be healthy, because it means enriching our microbial community of bacterial strains that collaborate in digestion and produce substances useful as vitamins. A work by a team of Belgian and Swiss researchers, published in the journal Nutrients, experimented the action of water kefir with an investigation conducted in vitro, on a cellular setup: it turns out that probiotics, once in the intestine, produce short-chain fatty acids. These compounds keep the intestinal walls intact and modulate the metabolismin the sense that regulate appetite and the way we burn calories.

How did it

Water kefir is now found in the best-stocked supermarkets but it is also prepared at home without difficulty. The basis is water, to which is added table sugar or other simple carbohydrates and kefir granules, ie gummy agglomerates with cultures of 15 species of bacteria and yeasts which will multiply by fermenting the sugary matrix. In the end, the solution can be enriched with fresh or dried fruit and flavored with ginger or cinnamon.

Few calories

In the drink, the sugar is largely degraded by bacteria and yeasts, so water kefir has about 20 calories per 100 gramsand the alcohol content does not exceed 1 percent (alcohol is a product of fermentation).

* The revision of the text by Maria Rescigno, full professor and vice-rector for research at Humanitas University, Milan