[LifeStyle] Fermenting: an ancient technique of health, care and conservation

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The fermented ones are foods that contribute to the balance of the intestinal microbiota, which has a direct connection with the immune system.

Fermentation is a chemical process that ancient cultures used to preserve food. In addition to being a preservation method, it is a technology that serves to make food more beneficial, it makes certain properties and vitamins intensify.

All cultures have had their own ferments. In Ecuador, there are a variety of fermented drinks such as the various chichas. And in a more global panorama, currently the consumption trend has pointed a lot towards Kombucha, Sauerkraut, Kefir, among others fermented with thousands of years.

So what makes ferment so valuable? Ferments are probiotic foods, this means that they are full of life, they are a set of microorganisms that ferment the food. Camila Ruales, nutritionist and psychologist, explains that our body is made up of many more microorganisms than cells. These sets of microorganisms (mostly bacteria) that live in various areas of our body are called microbiota.

A healthy microbiota is maintained by benign bacteria that work in symbiotic relationship with us. According to Ruales, there are thousands of studies that have shown that the health of these microorganisms largely determines our health as well. The healthier our benign bacteria are, the more they will help us fight pathogenic bacteria, and how we eat will directly affect the health of these bacteria.

Ruales explains that the gut microbiota, specifically, has several very important functions. First, it favors digestion and the assimilation of food compounds that we cannot assimilate on our own. It also fulfills a barrier function that protects us from pathogenic bacteria and toxins.

It is responsible for some regulatory functions of the immune system. It contributes to the production and transformation of some vitamins, and studies have also shown that the quality of our microbiota has an impact on how our mood is.

Fermented ones are excellent for keeping the intestine healthy and rich in nutrients. By consuming foods that help improve the environment of the microbiota, we can be sure that we are also helping in all the processes that run in our body. “I see nutrition as a prevention method. I am sure that when we eat well we will be healthy ”, says Ruales.

 

A fermenting lifestyle
Paola Lagos and Andrés Peñaherrera are the parents of the Kombucha Con Amor project that they created 4 years ago after living in Australia, where they found the fermentist lifestyle. Kombucha is its main product, this is a drink that results from the fermentation of the infusion of green tea through a probiotic culture. This ancient drink comes from Asia, it is part of the evolution in nutritious foods of an entire culture.

The elaboration of Kombucha began as an experience of their daily life, fermenting it at home. When they felt the benefits in their own health, they began to share the drink among those close to them, and now, the goal of the “Con Amor” venture is to offer a whole health experience with its products.

“Health is something that is interconnected, the digestive system is not separate from our other systems. Supporting the digestive system through the consumption of probiotics supports all the other functions linked to our intestinal microbiota, such as the immune system ”, says Lagos.

Currently we have many habits that can unbalance the intestinal microbiota, for example: the intake of antibiotics, a diet high in processed foods, stress, among others. For them, health is multifactorial, and within these factors, ferments are a contribution, a part of the medicine cabinet that can help us.

“The possibility and complexity of our life is given thanks to the symbiosis with this bacterial world, because we can live with these beings who help us assimilate what we cannot. The rescue of probiotics, of ferments, is a recovery of the complexity of life, of biodiversity. It is to preserve, cultivate and nurture healthy habits so that the bacteria can be in balance ", concludes Peñaherrera.

 

The power to heal the gut microbiota
Camila Carpio, 23, has been consuming Kombucha for more than a year and Kefir since the beginning of her quarantine. She says she was always interested in nutrition: "I was looking for ways to improve my digestive health and since I consume fermented foods I feel disinflammation, better digestion and the heaviness after eating has been reduced".

In a nutrition course, she found that part of digestive health is in the way the body receives and absorbs nutrients. "I suffered from anemia and ferments improve the conditions of the digestive system so that you can absorb nutrients much better," he says. Finding out about all these benefits was a great motivation for her to start incorporating fermented foods into her diet. "It is incredible to understand how important it is to heal the intestinal microbiota, because it is the basis of all processes and of all digestive health," she adds.