Probiotics and fermented vegetables

Probiotics are live bacteria and yeast that are beneficial to your body, particular your digestive system. Do you know that about 80% of your immune system is located in your digestive system? That’s why maintaining healthy gut is important for optimal health.

Unfortunately, we don’t get enough probiotic in our modern day diet. Some people would argue that they eat yogurt (store bought, usually) on regular basis. But the problem is that are not enough probiotics in commercial prepared yogurt. In additional, store bought yogurt is typically full of sugar, which could be a complete different subject on its own.

My whole family took probiotic supplement from reputable source in the past. But, honestly, they are not cheap. But I have learned a cheaper way to add more probiotic to our diet.

I was fortunate enough to attend a naturopathic doctor’s seminar a while ago. During his session, he mentioned that couple tablespoon of fermented vegetable is more beneficial than any probiotic supplement. So I went to the health food store right after the talk and got some live culture fermented vegetable, which is a fraction of the cost of probiotic supplement.

When buying fermented vegetable, make sure they did not use any vinegar and heating process for maximum benefits. Using vinegar is not really fermenting and heating will kill the benefical "stuff". Sauerkraut is always a safe choice to start, but there are many different options available nowadays, including beets, carrots, beans and much more.

On a side note, if you struggle with not able to lose weight even with proper exercise and healthy  diet, it’s possible that your gut is not working properly. Adding fermented vegetable may aid your weight loss.

After buying several jars of fermented vegetables, I decided to make my own. My first batch is fermenting as I write. I will keep you posted how it turns out.


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7/19/16 - update
I let my jars in the basement for a week with a plastic bag underneath in case of explosion (since gas will be created during the fermentation process).
I am glad to report that my first batch was a success. :)