Can drinking kombucha help to boost your immune system?

For many of us, if not all, it’s never felt more important to look after ourselves! Whether that’s a live yoga class from the living room, stocking up on veggies or taking some extra supplements, there’s tonnes we can do to keep our body, mind and soul in great condition. Whatever your current health regime, at the core of staying healthy is protecting our immune system. And while we’re not doctors (disclaimer alert!), we wanted to share with you our top tips on how kombucha can help to boost your immune system.

According to Sheena Cruickshank, a professor of immunology at the University of Manchester, writing in the Guardian, the key to taking care of your immune system is:

• Eating a varied diet – “The microbiome really likes fibre, pulses and fermented foods”
• Keeping physically fit – “Exercise mobilises white blood cells by increasing your blood flow, so they can do their surveillance jobs and seek and destroy in other parts of the body.”
• Reduce your stress levels – “Stress hormones such as cortisol can compromise immune function”
• Cutting back on alcohol – “Some studies have suggested that the first-line-of-defence macrophages are not as effective in people who have had a lot of alcohol,”

So, where does kombucha come into this? 

Kombucha is a great alternative to regular soft drinks that’s suitable for the whole family! It’s low in sugar and packed with naturally-occurring vitamins, acids, and beneficial bacteria. It has been suggested that the ‘friendly bacteria’ in fermented foods, such as kombucha, kimchi and sourdough breads, can help to promote good gut health and fight against the bad bacteria that can make us unwell. According to Healthline, green tea, turmeric and ginger also have immune-boosting qualities, which is why our Peach & Turmeric and Ginger flavours of Equinox Kombucha have been flying off the shelves!

When it comes to keeping physically fit, we know that this can be a challenge, especially if you suffer from poor sleep or a lack of energy. Last year, we conducted an 8 week study with over 80 people to see whether they experienced any health and wellbeing benefits from consuming Equinox Kombucha on a daily basis. Interestingly, the post study results showed an overall increase in reports of a higher quality of sleep and an overall decrease in self-reported stress levels. These exciting results may suggest that drinking kombucha regularly can be a positive contributing factor to better sleep, lower stress and subsequently a stronger immune system. What’s not to love!

And now to the clincher for a lot of us! Cutting back on alcohol can be tricky (why IS wine so delicious?), but thankfully there are lots of tasty alternatives now available. We’re partial to a Pink Grapefruit and Guava kombucha mocktail, or a punchy Peach and Turmeric kombucha if we’re after a ‘grown-up’ drink that’s alcohol free. After we finished our study, almost two thirds (64%) of the people participating responded ‘yes/sometimes’ to swapping alcohol for a kombucha saying things like: “It does make a good alcoholic drink substitute I have to say.”, which we reckon is very high praise indeed!

So, if you’re looking to make some simple, easy changes to boost your immune system, keep active, eat well, get lots of sleep and swap your booze for booch!