Top 5 Ways Kombucha is Earth Friendly

Whether on Earth Day or any other day of the year, it may be a relief to find out that drinking Kombucha is earth friendly.

Sure, everything we do is going to have an impact. But as we’ll see below, the ways that Kombucha helps are more than you might imagine.

This is true especially if you brew it yourself at home! (but even if you buy it instead.)

Earth Day, which is celebrated April 22 each year, was founded by Sen. Gaylord Nelson in response to the disastrous oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara in 1969.

Each year is an opportunity to do something for Earth Day in your local area.

As a bonus, if you are brewing Kombucha at home, here are 5 Ways in which Kombucha is Earth Friendly.

1. Improve Your (Internal) Energy Efficiency

With gas prices soaring & air conditioner season kicking in, everyone is focused on saving energy. We all try to optimize for energy efficiency. Why not your body as well?

Quick quiz: What’s the easiest way to get more energy every day?

Answer: Improve inefficient digestion.

Surprised? A constant diversion of energy for breaking down food in the gut takes a toll. Bloating or sluggish digestion leads to distraction and distress.

Kombucha helps the engine run more smoothly. Improving your digestion makes it possible to have more energy to spend on the difficult tasks you face every day.

Senator Gaylord Nelson, father of Earth Day.

2. Nature Controls Naturally

Antibiotics (which literally means “against life”) kill harmful bacteria. The problem is they also kill healthful ones. In situations of extreme infection and illness, they can be an invaluable tool, saving innumerable lives.

However, more often than not these days, antibiotics are over prescribed. According to the WHO, this has led directly to the evolution of Super Bugs that are resistant to traditional treatments.

Via both humans and animals, chemicals and hormones in these antibiotics are leeching into our waterways, wreaking havoc on fragile eco-systems. This may be leading to early onset puberty and a host of other impacts we don’t know about yet.

While we may sometimes have to take antibiotics to prevent or fight an infection, we can always be consuming Kombucha and other fermented foods. The bacteria and yeast present in these natural ferments help positively populate the gut.

Moreover, there are a lot of other elements present in home brews that may influence gut health. Enzymes, organic acids, vitamins and more will help digestion. These elements also set the environment in the gut, which determine what bacteria and yeast can thrive.

KMAMMA SEZ… Drink plenty of water when drinking Kombucha to help keep toxins from reabsorbing. You can add ice or water to dilute the flavor and get your water at the same time.

3. Shift from Consumer Cycle
Reduces Carbon Footprint

At the end of the 20th century, the idea that something was “disposable” was liberating, right? America reveled in single-serving glory, tossing her plastic cup in the garbage without a care. We’ve come a long way in eco-consciousness since then. Yet our trash problem continues to grow, now literally choking our oceans.

The constant cycle of consumption and, consequently, waste is still a very large part of what fuels the American economy.

When you make the shift to brewing Kombucha at home, you eliminate several steps of the consumer cycle altogether.

• Packaging – Reuse the same glass bottles several times before recycling.
• Energy costs – Creating a product on a large scale consumes a lot of energy – not to mention the fuel and CO2 costs of shipping the product .
• Saves Money – Rather than becoming a financial drain or luxury, Kombucha becomes an inexpensive, healthy substitute for sugary and/or devitalized beverages.

There will always be a place for consumable goods. We buy Kombucha when travelling or out about town. But it seems silly to buy Kombucha by the case day after day when you can make your own for pennies a glass.

However, if brewing your own Kombucha just isn’t for you, you may be lucky enough to have a local Kombucha company or health food store that offers refillable growlers or reuses their bottles? This is also a sustainable solution, and it allows you to support small businesses.

Did You Know? We throw away enough glass bottles every month to fill a skyscraper. Those can be recycled or reused!

4. Infinite Abundance

Kombucha is one of many sustainable choices that you can make in the kitchen. Integrating more homemade foods into your routine also reduces waste and trash while saving money.

Even better, Kombucha cultures are always replicating, which means an infinite supply of Kombucha, provided it is properly cared for.

Once extra cultures are accumulated, they can be passed on to friends or used for home beauty products. Even over fermented Kombucha (too sour to drink) has a myriad of household uses including cleaning, pest control and wound care.

CLICK HERE for more Kombucha Vinegar Uses

5. Return to Harmony with Nature

This is one of Kombucha Kamp’s mantras! Earth Day was begun to remind people that our actions affect our environment and in turn, affect everything on the planet. Despite our human inventions to “control” or separate ourselves from nature – air conditioning, heating, lights – time and again we are reminded that in the blink of an eye, the earth moves and what took hundreds if not thousands of years to build is wiped out in one fell swoop.

This doesn’t mean we ought to fear nature. Rather, we should honor nature. And we should remember every day, not just 1 day out of the year, that we are all connected through nature.

The SCOBY looks like a full moon

Kombucha, being of nature itself, is in tune with the same natural cycles that flow through our lives. In the winter, fermentation slows down as the culture semi-hibernates.

In the summer, it speeds up. Many have remarked that the flavor of their Kombucha is influenced by the phases of the moon.

A Culture That Contrasts

Moreover, when we drink Kombucha, we invite beneficial microorganisms into our internal ecosystem.

This is a contrast with so much of our daily reality, dictated by airbrushed images presented in advertising and television.

Our current culture is rife with falsity and drama to distract the viewer.

But there is an ancient wisdom, inherited through our DNA and thousands of years of evolution, that yearns to be utilized.

Kombucha is a way to experience that connection. Pay attention to the subtle yet palpable benefits you receive when the body returns to harmony with its true nature.

There is no separation and every day IS Earth Day because every single one of our actions has a direct effect on our eco-system. WE ARE NATURE!

Science is beginning to delve into these issues. For example, the Human Microbiome Project is extremely exciting. It’s primary purpose is reestablishing a healthy mental and physical relationship with bacteria.

That is exactly what Dr. Julie Segre discusses in this AWESOME video:

“No Longer Germ Warfare”
An interview with Dr. Julie Segre
NIH Intramural Researcher
The NIH Common Fund’s
Human Microbiome Project

Also see:
The Human Microbiome Project