Did you know that 1 gram of naturally-fermented sauerkraut can easily contain 54 billion live bacteria? Compare that to a fairly standard probiotic supplement, which only contains 2-5 billion live bacteria per pill. If you’re serious about helping to re-populate your gut with healthy, probiotic bacteria, you can’t do better than introducing cultured, living foods into your diet. This week, I’m privileged to be giving away a free enrollment in the Get Cultured! e-course to one of my lucky readers.
Getting Cultured: Questions and Answers
Last week, I asked my FaceBook community to share their questions for Jenny about culturing foods and her newest e-course. These are Jenny’s answers!
Zapping Sugar Cravings With Fermented Food
My eldest child LOVES sugar. He has literally said to me: “I love sugar so much I wish I could eat it all day long every day.”
I can lead by example. I can say that sugar makes your teeth grow in crooked or rot and fall out. I can say that sugar makes you sick, irritable, and angry. This kid isn’t fazed. That’s why I was jazzed when I saw one of the articles in the most recent Wise Traditions journal was called “Growing Wise Kids: Zapping Sugar Cravings” by Jen Allbritton.
I was also very impressed by the second step she suggests we take to help our kids nix the sugar habit: eating more fermented foods!
Wild Fermentation Goes Mainstream
I know it’s wild. Those of you who ferment your own dill pickles, relish, sauerkraut, kombucha, kimchi, chutneys, and other fruits and vegetables probably feel like you have a sign pasted to your forehead that reads: WEIRDO.
But, apparently, fermentation has become all the rage in San Francisco. Tara Duggan of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote a feature-length article on the trend which includes a handful of yummy sounding recipes.
Health Benefits of Raw & Fermented Foods
She sat across the table from me enviously eying my salad. “I’d really love some vegetables right now,” she said. We started talking about her diet — the typical diet of the typical American. I told her that 60-80% of the diet of traditional people groups isn’t cooked. “Oh,” she interrupted, “I bet I don’t cook 60% of the food I eat.” She missed my point. She was talking about sandwiches and cold breakfast cereals, snack bars and cheese sticks. Let’s not beat around the bush, people. The Standard American Diet (SAD) is cooked. Aside from the occasional salad or piece of fruit, we just don’t eat raw foods. In fact, we fear them.