The History Kombucha

The origins of kombucha (pronounced kom-BOO-cha) are all speculative and therefor a bit difficult to pinpoint, but what most people seem to agree on is that it originated in China around 200 BC. From there the drink gained popularity and moved across to Japan, Russia, Prussia, Poland, Germany, etc. and there are stories written about Genghis Khan and his horsemen carrying flasks of kombucha on their many travels. Joseph Stalin also allegedly drank kombucha to avoid cancer, and while it seems to have died out somewhere during the First and/or Second World War, but the drink didn’t disappear completely.

There are also reports that after the Chernobyl disaster, that a group of people, particularly elderly women, were able to resist and survive the radiation. It was reported that these women drank kombucha.

Whichever stories are true or not, kombucha is widely known as an “elixer of life”. There also is a lot of variation to how the name came about, but the most popular version is that it came from a Korean physician by name of Kombo or Kambu who used the tea- based drink to treat the emperor of Japan. Combining the name of the doctor and the word “cha”, meaning tea, kombucha was created.

So what is this mysterious drink with all these stories surrounding it? In a nutshell: it’s a tea. A fizzy-flavoured cold tea.

Here’s a (pretty remarkable) list of things that kombucha can contribute to (this must also include a healthy lifetstyle:

Detoxify the body
Reduce cholesterol
Reduce inflammatory problems
Alleviate arthritis, rheumatism and gout symptoms
Protect against diabetes
Reduce blood pressure
Enhance the immune system
Antibiotic effect abasing bacteria, viruses and yeast

Normalize intestinal activity and balance intestinal flora
Prevent/heal bladder infection and reduce kidney calcification
Stimulate glandular system
Reduce stress and nervous disturbances
Reduce headaches
Improve hair, skin and nail health
Weight loss
Reduce joint pain
Improved digestion

These all sound great, but you should want to sip on something delicious to soak up the benefits, right? Browse the Booch flavours and find your favourite.