What are Fermented Foods and What Health Benefits Do They Have?

Fermented foods are one of the big trends at the moment but really, they’ve been around for a long time. There’s a few reasons that people are turning to them but one of them is that there are health benefits they can bring and we all love getting good health benefits from what we eat!

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So let’s take a look at what fermented foods are, what health benefits they bring and what kind of thing you can have to get those benefits.

What are fermented foods?

Let’s start with a little bit of science to understand what’s happening. Fermentation is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohols and carbon dioxide or organic acids. It uses yeast, bacteria or sometimes both in ‘anaerobic conditions.

In other words, the food is left to steep until the sugar and the carbs within them change to bacteria boosting agents. These create bacteria known as probiotic bacteria and prebiotic bacteria, both of which are helpful for the gut microbiota we all have.

The list of the types of foods that can be fermented is pretty sizeable. Anything from meat to fish, sourdough bread, vegetables, dairy products to seeds and even things like apple cider vinegar are included in the list and with the process of fermentation, increase the benefits they bring from eating them.

Types of fermented foods

A few of the big groups of fermented foods can help you get some ideas of how to get this kind of ingredient into your diet.

Fermented vegetables

This group contains some of the most well-known fermented foods including sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles and even carrots. Usually, these foods have been fermented in vinegar and allowed to pickle either slices or as a whole vegetable.

Fermented fruits

These aren’t quite as well known but there are plenty of examples. Most of the time, fermented fruit tends to be used in syrups that are then added to other ingredients in recipes. They can be used in baking and even in types of alcohol.

Fermented drinks

Fermented drinks are a later addition to the range of fermented foods but are proving popular. Kombucha is one example and Kefir is another. Sometimes like Kvass was once the most popular drink in Russia and is now made around the world.

Kefir grains are used to make Kefir, a fermented drink

Yoghurt

Yoghurt would have a case for being the best known fermented food, even if people don’t associate the term with it. Yoghurt is made from fermented raw milk where the milk is heated with a small amount of yoghurt culture then allowed to cool and for fermentation to take place.

4 fermented foods for beginners

Let’s have a look at some examples of fermented foods to see how they might work for you.

Sauerkraut

Sauerkraut is one of the best known of the fermented foods and probably the easiest to find. It features in sandwich recipes like the Reuben, added to hot dogs or sausage dishes or sometimes just as a side dish. Canned versions are often founding the local grocery store and you can make it yourself with certain types of cabbage.

Plain yoghurt

Yoghurt is super easy for beginners to find, add to, and enjoy in their daily diet routines. There are a few things to keep in mind when you are choosing a yoghurt rather than making your own.

Try to stick to a plain yoghurt that you add your own fresh fruits to it. You do not want one that already contains fruit as there may be preservatives used for the fruits that could diminish the probiotic benefits of the yoghurt. You also want to stick to regular yoghurt and not Greek yoghurt as the traditional yoghurt does use a traditional fermentation process.

Kombucha

Kombucha has become a big name in the drinks world in recent times and is a simple fermented beverage you can even make at home. It takes tea, sugar, water and a culture base which can be altered to make unique flavours.

Miso

Miso can be found in powdered form in the Asian food section of most stores. You can also find block versions of miso or miso paste. This can be made into an easy to digest soup along with tofu and nori. They are also added to things like soy sauce to serve with different meats.

If you are out and about and need to get some fermented foods into your diet during the day, consider eating a sushi restaurant or hibachi as they will offer miso soup as well as other fermented foods.

Benefits of eating fermented foods

So that’s a few examples of the types and specific fermented foods you can add to your diet. But let’s get real – some of them are a little weird so what can be a good reason for eating them?

Ways fermented foods improve digestion

One of the main reasons we eat fermented foods is that they help to improve digestion and gut health. But how does this work? There are three main benefits we get for our digestive system from these foods and drinks.

Benefit 1: Adding good bacteria

One of the main ways that fermented foods improve digestion is by adding good bacteria to your body and fighting the bad bacteria. This good bacteria has an important role to play and is what helps break down foods, move foods through your system, and aid in the absorption of the minerals that you need to have in your system. Many nutritionists actually refer to fermentation being the first step in digestion.

This means by having fermented foods you are boosting your body’s own natural digestive processes and helping them along to aid in your full digestive process.

Benefit 2: Reduces inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract

When you have poor digestion, you will likely experience swelling. This swelling is due to inflammation in your intestines, stomach, and lower digestive system. The swelling is due to toxins in the system, backed up waste in the system, and the lack of absorption your system is doing.

As the fermented foods, and the probiotics and bacteria from those foods, start to work in your system you will experience relief from inflammation. This means relief from stomach cramps and pain and relief to your body as a whole.

Benefit 3: Reduces blockages and helps the smooth movement

Blockages and buildup of food and waste can cause severe issues including leaky gut, chronic disease of the digestive system and IBS related systems. Beneficial bacteria from fermented foods can release these blockages and break them down. This helps to clean out the colon, move waste out of the system, and prevent buildup later from additional issues. This improves the overall health of the gut microbiome.

You must keep introducing good bacteria into your system regularly in order to maintain the release of blockages and buildup and maintain a regular flow of your body digestive tract.

Ways fermented foods can help with weight loss

Another big area that has helped boost the popularity of fermented foods is their association with weight loss. Now they are no magic trick that will instantly cause you to lose weight but with good balanced eating, they can help. Here’s a few examples of how.

Benefit 1: Removes those digestive blockages

The first way that fermented foods help with weight loss is by removing digestive blockages in your path, similar to the benefit mentioned above. This will help reduce IBS related issues, swelling, inflammation, and retention issues.

As these blockages are removed, and your colon is cleared out, you will start to notice a drop in weight. This will be a larger drop at first and then move to a smaller amount since your colon will be cleaned out and your digestive tract will be moving on a routine basis.

Benefit 2: Helps absorb more vitamins and minerals

One of the problems with weight loss is when you are taking minerals or vitamins that are geared to help your body with weight loss and your body is ignoring them. If your body does not have a clean colon and digestive tract, you may be facing an issue of absorption issues because the system is already overloaded.

When the system is clear, the fermented foods can help your cells start to absorb at a normal rate which increases the absorption rate for vitamins that help with the weight loss issue.

Benefit 3: Reduces fatigue

As your body and digestive start to clear, and the good bacteria from fermented foods begins to work, your fatigue will be reduced as well. You will find that you are able to sleep better, able to feel more energized, and your body is not as sluggish.

This is because the toxins and the waste is removed on a routine basis and not building up in your system causing your system to slow down and fatigue to set in. You will also find that you have bursts of energy when you do eat better foods, like superfoods. You will notice that protein powders work better as well.

Bonus benefit: Reduced tension and anxiety due to improving gut health

If you experience symptoms of anxiety and stress, you may find relief from adding fermented foods to your diet. There is a direct relation to your gut health and your anxiety or tension.

If you have poor gut health then you likely will experience an irritable stomach that can cause discomfort throughout the day. This discomfort may also lead to inflammation that causes more discomfort. These issues combined can lead to tension in the body and anxiety.

Fermented foods can reduce this chain of events by assisting in digestion and cutting down on inflammation that leads to the tension your body may be feeling.

How to add more fermented foods into your diet

As you can see, there’s a bit of a theme to the least benefits that you get from eating fermented foods but that’s a good thing because it means there are consistent results you can see.

But I’ll admit, they aren’t the easiest foods to get into your diet. Some of them are a bit weird, some don’t taste amazing. Some just look strange! So here are a few ideas on how to get them into your diet.

Use the Foods in Different Ways

One of the easiest ways to add more fermented foods to your diet is to use the foods in different ways.

For example, you can make yoghurt yourself and you may know that you can eat it directly. What you may not consider is that you can use yoghurt in many different ways. You can use it in cooking to replace certain condiments like mayo. You can also use it as a spread.

Many fermented foods are like this and have multiple uses that can be used in multiple meals. Plus it is an easy way to extend the shelf life of an ingredient.

Try Making Them Yourself

One of the ways you can discover methods to add more fermented foods to your diet is to try making them yourself. As you create your own fermented foods, you will naturally start to expand on how you make them, the types of foods you use, and the methods you plan on using them.

This method of adding more fermented foods to your diet may take longer than other options, but it will also benefit you by building your knowledge of the foods and how to use them in your diet, store them in your home, and give yourself a sustainable line to the foods you do like.

Go to Tastings

When you are looking for ways to add more fermented foods to your diet, you may already know that trying new foods is a method. What you may be concerned about is how to try those new foods to determine if you want to add them and how.

One way to do this is to go to food tastings. Once you start researching health food stores in your area, you will find many stores that offer food tastings that feature fermented foods. You may also find these stores offering classes on fermented foods to educate people on what is available.

Take advantage of these to learn what you like, new flavours, new methods, and how you want to add them.

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