I am currently treating a patient who is a keen gym goer and exercise is a big part of her life, which makes for good conversation as I confess I am the same. We recently got on to the subject of supplements and Kefir came up. This was something she knew a lot about as it was involved in her line of work and she offered to let me try some samples. My immediate reaction was to screw up my face as I remember a previous house mate of mine attempting to make Kefir milk which she kept in a jar in the fridge and quite frankly smelled of gone-off milk, the way she used to psych herself up before she consumed this wet cottage cheese looking goo suggested it did not taste any better than it looked. Little did I know that this was just one way of introducing Kefir into one’s diet and actually there are companies that make nice tasting, nice looking more convenient ways of consuming this highly nutritional supplement.

So, What is Kefir?  Kefir is a fermented milk drink made with Kefir grains. Historically it has been used in Asian and European folk medicine because of its ability to help cure a wide variety of conditions.

It is a probiotic beverage that tastes not too dissimilar to Greek yoghurt, only a little bit thinner and slightly bitter, this would be the unflavoured version. There is also flavoured versions and you don’t have to drink them straight from the bottle, you can pour it over cereal, make porridge, mix with fruit, what ever you fancy.

Kefir has many health benefits other than its probiotic properties. It is high in vitamin K2 which has been shown to improve bone health as well as containing essential amino acids, rich in enzymes and minerals that can help improve the immune system, gut problems, skin problems and even allergies.

You can now buy ready made, bottle Kefir from a local supermarket.