Explainer | Kombucha and the health benefits of tea drink loved by Lady Gaga, Kourtney Kardashian, Halle Berry and Gwyneth Paltrow

Kombucha is made by adding bacteria and yeast to sweet tea and fermenting the mixture for 10 to 40 days to produce a fizzy, sweet-and-sour probiotic drink

Lady Gaga and Kourtney Kardashian are fans of kombucha, which is said to prevent cancer, stimulate the immune system and improve digestion and liver function

Reading Time:4 minutes

Kombucha can be made at home, but it’s best to learn how to do it safely, to avoid contamination. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 3:15pm, 22 Jan 2022Updated: 3:21pm, 22 Jan 2022

Do you want to stay young and healthy even if it means drinking a fermented tea that tastes like sweet-and-sour vinegar? Then kombucha is for you.

Celebrities including Lady Gaga, Zoe Kravitz, Kourtney Kardashian, Gwyneth Paltrow and Halle Berry have been obsessed with the probiotic-packed fermented drink in recent years.

Kombucha is produced by combining sweetened tea with “Scoby” – an acronym for symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast – and leaving it to ferment for 10 to 40 days, depending on the type of tea, the ratio of ingredients, temperature and taste preference.

A mushroom-like film formed from the yeast and bacteria appears on the surface, which is why kombucha is also known as “mushroom tea”. That film can be used to start fermenting a fresh batch of kombucha.

Lisa Lam of Taboocha, Hong Kong’s first kombucha brewery which she launched in 2014 with her sister Patricia. Photo: Lisa Lam

The acetic acid found in vinegar and other acidic compounds, low-level alcohol and gases are produced during fermentation, making it carbonated.

It has been quietly consumed for centuries in China, Russia and Japan, but its popularity has soared of late. Devotees say its health benefits range from preventing cancer and stimulating the immune system to improving digestion and liver function, as well as bringing about hormonal balance.