Fermentation occurs when bacteria break down sugar, converting it to acid, gas or alcohol. This enriches dairy, soy and vegetable products with a tangy flavour and beneficial bacteria called probiotics. Eating fermented foods helps to populate your gut with probiotics, and this can increase the availability of nutrients in your body, reduce food allergy symptoms, enhance your immune system and protect against disease.
Here’s what fermented foods have to offer, and which ones to look for.
1. Maintain gut health
Your gut contains more than 100 trillion bacteria but you need a healthy balance of good and bad. “Too much ‘bad’ bacteria can damage your health,” explains dietitian Robbie Clark. Probiotics from fermented foods can help to improve digestion, prevent diarrhoea and protect against harmful bacteria such as E. coli.
2. Support mental health
Your mental processes are influenced by your gut bacteria, says Dr Eva Selhub, author of Your Health Destiny. For example, most of the serotonin you produce – which promotes better mood and sleep – comes from your gut, she explains. As a result, probiotics in fermented foods are linked with improved symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression.
3. Reduce type 2 diabetes risk
Not only are probiotics thought to help lower your diabetes risk, they may also improve the total cholesterol and antioxidant levels of people with diabetes. To reap the benefits, increase your intake of fermented dairy foods.
4. Improve blood pressure
Eating probiotic-rich yoghurt and fermented milk products like sour cream could help lower your risk of developing high blood pressure. Try eating these foods as part of a healthy diet in place of snack foods.
5. Help manage weight
Maintaining a healthy gut could help regulate your weight and body fat and reduce your risk of obesity, advises Clark. “Gut bacteria affect the way we store fat, our blood glucose levels and metabolism, and how we respond to hunger hormones,” he explains.
Fermented foods may be labelled with words including ‘raw’, ‘unpasteurised’, ‘added live cultures’, ‘probiotic rich’ or ‘naturally occurring probiotics’. You can find them in the refrigerator section of supermarkets and health food stores:
Yoghurt
Most yoghurt contains bacteria called Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus which are added to milk and fermented.
Sauerkraut
Sauerkraut is made from ‘pickled’ cabbage, which means bacteria have fermented the sugar in the vegetable.
Miso
This Japanese staple is made from fermented soybeans. The thick paste adds sweetness and saltiness to soups, dressings and seasonings.
Kimchi
Made from fermented vegetables such as cabbage and radish, this Korean side dish delivers salty, sour and spicy flavours.
Tempeh
Made from fermented soybeans, tempeh is similar to firm tofu. It’s a source of protein and an ideal meat substitute.
Kombucha
Bacteria, yeast and sugar are added to tea and fermented to make this fizzy drink. It can taste sweet or tart.
Natto
Pungent, gooey and stringy, natto is a Japanese food made from fermented soybeans.
Crème fraiche and sour cream
When bacteria are added to cream it becomes thick and sour. Traditional crème fraiche is made with unpasteurised milk that has naturally occurring bacteria.
Cultured buttermilk
The cultured buttermilk you buy in shops is made from cow’s milk which has good bacteria added to it, creating a tangy taste and thicker consistency. Cooking at high temperatures, however, will kill the good bacteria.
Kefir
This drink is like tangy, runny yoghurt and is prepared using milk, kefir bacteria and yeast.
