Despite having revolutionized medicine and healthcare, men don’t always take care of themselves all that well. We tend to rely on our natural constitution to pull us through hard work and debauchery alike. Nevertheless, a few precautions and good habits can help out a lot. So, I thought I’d share a little recent victory along those lines.
Fifteen years ago, while on a trip with my stepdad who was visiting me in China, where I lived at the time, we stopped in a pleasant little provincial town called Yinchuan. Its nice, tidy streets and quiet modesty were a refreshing change from the stinking, hectic and crowded streets of Beijing, as was the clear blue sky above, devoid of the whitish cloud of smoke that typically hangs over Beijing. As Yinchuan is in the Gobi Desert, it reminded me of a southwestern US town, a likeness that was reinforced by the presence of dusty Mongol cowboys stopping by the local saloon. One I remember particularly well was sporting a glorious mustache, a white silk shirt and shiny black riding boots. He had a swagger and panache that drew the attention of the local ladies.
As the capital of Ningxia, Yinchuan is an old Silk Road town that in former days was largely populated by Hui, who are ethnic Han people who converted to Islam over the years. It is also the ancient capital of the Western Xia kingdom, which developed a flowering civilization that held its own for centuries despite being sandwiched between the Mongols, Tibetans and Han Chinese. It is a very culturally diverse region, featuring Mongols, Turks, Chinese, Tibetans and even a few scattered Indo-Aryans of Persianate extraction. Although it is largely unknown in the West, cultural exchange along the silk road introduced a great deal of Persian influence in China proper, which can be seen even today in Chinese music, dress, religion and art.
As it was a hot day, I went to buy some refreshments at a nearby store, and noticed an interesting drink called “suan nai” in Mandarin, which translates to sour milk. I thought it might be a customary local drink, so I bought a bottle. It was primitively packaged, covered only with wax paper held on by a rubber band. The girl at the store provided me with a straw, which I was to punch through the paper so as to drink the chilled concoction.
I wasn’t sure what to expect, so I was pleasantly surprised by the tart drink. True to its name, it was tangy and slightly sweetened, and turned out to be very refreshing. I didn’t know what it was called in English, so I simply assumed it was some form of thin yogurt, but it was much tastier than what I was accustomed to back home.
After I finally returned home, I looked in vain for a comparable product, but couldn’t find anything except the same old plain, thick yogurt that I never cared for much. Eventually, I gave up and forgot about it.
Years later, on my recent trip to the Baltic, I had the opportunity to sample a popular local drink known as “kefir.” Upon tasting it, I immediately remembered that sour milk I bought in Yinchuan. It was the same thing! What good fortune, I thought, to find the drink I’d given up on years ago, and so far from the Gobi Desert where I first became acquainted with it.
After coming back to Seattle once again, I was determined this time to find how to get the drink in the US. I found some in a local health food store, but it cost four times as much as milk and was of inferior quality. After diligently searching online, I discovered that all one needs to do to make kefir is obtain something called “kefir grains,” which can be ordered online. Soon enough I found some from a Polish-American woman who runs a goat farm and sells them online, and promptly placed an order.
Although it took me a week or so to get the ratio of milk to kefir grains and the fermentation time right, I figured it out in due course, and now I have a glass of the stuff every day. Not only is it enjoyable and cheap, but it’s had some pleasant health benefits as well.
Kefir grains are a gum-like substance that symbiotic colonies of bacteria and yeast exude, forming a matrix that protects and nourishes them. These microflora thrive in the presence of milk sugars, and within about 24 hours at room temperature they process milk, leaving it with a significantly higher vitamin and lower sugar content, along with a slight fizz and small amount of alcohol. In explaining to my children what it was, I called it “milk beer,” and that’s essentially what it comes down to.
Along with the vitamins come a number of other benefits. The bacteria, which are harmless to humans, compete with harmful microorganisms and aid in the digestive process. They boost immune function, reduce diabetes risk, and, as I’ve found, all but eliminate indigestion. For me, that’s been the most noticeable benefit. According to Baltic people, it’s also an effective hangover palliative. Ancient old men in the Caucasus – long known as a region with exceptional longevity – credit their long lives to daily doses of kefir.
However, there’s more to it than the mere health benefits. There is something rewarding about making one’s own food. In this day of the factory farm, processed foods and biological desert of pasteurized products, it’s encouraging to know that we can live and thrive without exterminating all the little critters who add to the raw ingredients. I have come to think of my little colony of kefir grains as a pet that I feed and who feeds me.
As a man in a profoundly strange, unnatural society, I find that engaging with nature even in such small, innocuous ways can go a long way to prevent the feeling of alienation from taking hold. And it seems that my body feels the same way.
And that is why I chose to share my little kefir story with the rest of you.
{ 37 comments… read them below or add one }
Well done, sir. I know your feeling.
I have a small house with a small yard, and in the back I’ve built several raised beds. The okra that I grew there last year produced enough for a full meal once a day for months, and it was quite satisfactory to me to be eating (organic, non-pesticide, non-fertilized) okra straight from the garden. For somebody who’s lived in cities all my life, growing my own produce is both a treat and an almost meditative experience.
Kudos to you, sir.
How good is kefir’s shelf life? Only as good as milk?
Very interesting; I have heard of the beverage before, but figured it would be impossible to procure in the States.
We should get back to the “men’s health” topic more frequently. I’m sure we all have some tips to share.
Recently, I’ve replaced nutrasweet and splenda with stevia in my coffee, tea and even some baked items – it has a negligible effect on blood glucose.
And of course, let’s not forget the vitamin supplements. For the last two years I have been very disciplined about taking Vitamin C, D and zinc daily, and I now hardly ever get sick, even when everyone around seems to be hacking and shivering. Fun fact: the concentration of zinc in the prostate is literally 1,000 times greater than anywhere else in the body. Last month I started taking Selenium too, not sure if the benefits from that will be discernable or not, but I doubt that I was getting it from my daily diet.
Because of the acidic content, it’s significantly better than milk’s, which is why prior to refrigeration and pasteurization it was more commonly drunk than raw milk. It’s also much easier for lactose intolerant people (most of the world) to drink than raw milk, because it’s fermented and the lactose is converted to other compounds.
As for keeping, though, I recommend refrigerating it after fermentation — it tastes better cold (to me at least).
“Despite having revolutionized medicine and healthcare, men don’t always take care of themselves all that well. We tend to rely on our natural constitution to pull us through hard work and debauchery alike.”
Don’t forget that women are sows at the trough of health care resources.
Saying that they are hogging the trough would be insulting to boars and we all know that men have to fight for scraps in terms of health care resources. Men also get dirty looks and derision FOR taking care of themselves.
We also all know that it is harder overall to be male than female and that if more than half of health care resources should go to one biological sex or the other, it should go to males.
Hmm, kefir eh?
In the ever increasing likelihood that I, and many of us, will be left to fend for ourselves, or purposefully fending for ourselves, the ability to produce kefir may certainly come in handy.
Small gardens, a few small animals (chickens, etc), and fruit trees/plants will be a necessity. Not to mention moonshine… I might just have to add kefir to the list.
Thanks Welmer.
Glad to hear of your health fix.
A while back I started making my own yoghurt.
Nothing fancy. Just get some yoghurt from the supermarket, put a little in a litre of milk and let it stand in a warm place until set. Then I get enough yoghurt to last several days. Leave a little bit over to cure the next batch with and onwards we go – yoghurt without all the added sugar at a fraction of the cost of what it costs in the stores.
Simple. Delicious. Healthy.
Isn’t kefir called buttermilk in English? I seem to recall seeing it in regular US stores, though I could be mistaken. I drink it sometimes here in Norway, where it is also available in every grocery store. We also call it sour milk or culture milk.
Thanks for this, Bill.
My contribution to manbiotics: vitamin D.
Dr. John Cannell on vitamin D.
Indoor living and industrial food cause the majority of human illness.
Zinc and the B-complex vitamins as well. A lot of modern food is deficient in both. Use zinc with care, as it has an inverse-U dosage curve – low zinc means lower immune response, but too much zinc will also suppress the immune system.
+1 on Vit-D. It is known to increase immunity to influenza, and is better all around than a flu shot.
Iv been Drinking Kefir for years , After my poisoning. My Body weight was 130 I had lost 140 lbs . I went In to Kaisers male health program .
One of the few in the Country, I discovered Kefir grains .
Iv had them for almost 12 years now . They grow quick . and can be given away to friends and family .
Male health is important . I learned , Id often throw myself under the bus for the family .
Add a little anti -freeze and you have a male that is full of stress and guilt . This is a recipe for death .
feminist are little witches , They will poison a male at the drop of a dime . Always ask questions about your health . The best program for male health may not be HHS . In my case friends and other men saved my life .
Kefir and Galatians( snow tear drop flowers ) are two things to keep around if your in a battle with a feminist cult . Iodine and that oil that makes you puck aslo.
If you start feeling bad ask a trusted friend to advise , My Brother helped me out simple by identifying the problem ,witch I could not see .
W F this is a great topic . Male health . I always use a cynical point of view when addressing my health . Feminist Cults are nasty . Removing the Male from the family is easy “diminish his health “. An emaciated male is no threat .
Belladonna , anti-freeze and cyanide along with Bug sprays and weed toxins are often employed by the Feminists as tools to disable the male . I spent Many years trolling the Feminist pages under a female avatar .
I can tell you the talk is of plenty of How to poison your abusive Mate . I’m always suspicious now . . ( abusive means he went to work and neglected her feelings )
Some years after my emaciation . I dated a women that would drop a Adivan in my coffee to slow me down . She thought this to be Normal .
It took me 40 years to start to believe the Tales men where telling .
I can’t stress enough the need for better male health care clinics and Just plain common knowledge of symptoms .
Stress kills , workaholics die , always watch your buddy’s back because he will be watching yours .
They have done studies in grease about this and have Male health care Clinics you can get a blood test . Its more common then anyone would think for a male to be poisoned by his spouse . We have all had at least one friend we had suspected this was his fate .
Talk of male health is not unmanly its a necessary in today’s world .
I guess you could put them in a similar category, but what you can get in stores here that goes by buttermilk is quite different. As for the kefir you get in grocery stores, even in Europe, what I’ve learned is that factory produced kefir is made with “starter,” and doesn’t have the full range of natural microflora, so it lacks some of the nutritional benefits. If you want the real thing, getting some kefir grains and making it yourself is the way to go. Fortunately, it’s very easy. I just fill a quart (about a liter) mason jar about two-thirds full with milk and kefir grains and leave it overnight with the cap loose. I let it sit for longer or shorter times depending on how strong I want it to be (longer is more tart, but has a lot more folate). It’s perfect with cereal for breakfast.
Kefir is fermented Milk . Its a yeast product . Micro biotics attach to the yeast and make a grain that looks like small cauliflowers .
Small amounts of alcohol are present . If you have a problem with alcohol
I use Blueberry extract to flavor the Milk . Coconut Milk can be used also , Cheese and fermented meats can also be made from this grain if the starters are used .
pepperoni and such meats are often called . Korean Hard meats . Also Guys it does ferment other thing for entertainment.
I prefer the alcohol made from kefir over sugar alcohols because of its health benefits .
It grows like crazy . Soon gallons of milk will be needed . So learning how to make kefir cheese and other things will be needed .
I have had mine for 12 years , only killed them once . High heats will kill them . But , you can revive them with yeast and probiotics .
The taste is harsh and must be gotten used to but, Just do it its health benefits will be noticed almost within weeks .
And trust me there are hard to kill , so don’t listen to the bull on straining with a stainless steel strainer .
Iv left them in the fridge for months without problems . Just add water and milk . and rinse them with Luke warm water once and a while .
Try Kefir Milk with some sugar and chocolate its great . Let ferment for a day or two and enjoy .
I also make my own alcohol , sausage , Noodles , and grow my own Vegetables because Im so paranoid . If I could raise a cow in my garage I would .
any tips in how to make the stuff?
My contribution is a small spoonful of baking soda in water at night. Helps drive your urinary pH up, thus bathing the prostate in soothing alkaline urine as opposed to the typically acidic urine from western diets.
To Joeb:
Have you ever considered a goat ? They require less space than a cow.
Thanks for sharing, Welmer. Definitely going to try this.
Agave is also a good sweetener. I use it in conjunction with stevia in my coffee. It’s deliciously sweet, the best tasting of all the sugar substitutes, but it just doesn’t rush thru your system the same way. You can try Agave and Maple syrup on your tongue and feel the difference. The Maple syrup produces a whole body rush. The Agave just tastes sweet and “stays on your tongue” so to speak.
It will produce a gradual increase in your blood sugar but it is safe for many diabetics. Someone with a very serious condition might want to be careful or ask their doctor.
Natália ….Id still have to hide it from the City .Maybe :Is a goat like a dog . Id have to check on that . A goat might be Ok there Mean and smell Just like me .
RedPillPaul… Put it in the milk over night at about 80 deg or so the next day its done . Strain the grains out and add flavoring its like yogurt .
AQUAPONICS: FISH AND VEGETABLES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBspR2p0YYM
Jaego,
Agave syrup (nectar) is basically high-fructose corn syrup masquerading as a health food. Agave nectar is a whopping 90 percent fructose, almost — but not quite — twice as high as HFCS. Agave nectar is not good for you at all. Read this article. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-jonny-bowden/debunking-the-blue-agave_b_450144.html
Greetings from Mongolia!
I had never heard of kefir grain, but I thought your travels might interest you in the popular countryside drink here, airag:
http://www.mongolfood.info/en/recipes/airag.html
My Mongolian friends believe it does have certain health benefits.
I admit I only occasionaly partake, as it is pretty bitter when purchased at the stores, but I have had some really good tasting samples in the countryside.
Wikipedia actually has it associated with kefir:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumis
As nothing else grows here, the Mongolian diet is pretty much entirely based on meat and diary.
In fact, I believe many of the central asian countries share similar types of food, because that pretty much all they have.
One more thing I would like to share is back in the US, I used to have reoccuring mild allergic reactions after having too many diary products.
Despite my increased diary intake here for the past year, I have never once had anything approaching the allergies I had in the States.
Anyway, interesting post!
@Natália
I noticed the stress in your name. What is your maiden/first language?
It’s important to get kefir that’s made from raw milk from organic or at least naturally-fed animals. Some people can metabolize raw milk products even if they can’t handle pasteurized.
This site gives the names of some, not all raw milk dairies. http://www.realmilk.com/real-milk-finder/ You can get goat kefir as well as cow kefir. Amos Miller of Bird-in-Hand, PA, offers mild, medium, and strong cow kefir as well as goat kefir and a remarkable array of other products.
Note that because of harrassment from the “authorities” many raw milk farms operate on a membership basis – you pay a little something every year to belong so you can buy their products.
You don’t have kefir widely acessable in America?
Here in Baltics it is everywhere, very shop, every restaurant, every little cafe.
You are truly a miserable nation.
Guess what you have in stores but we do not?
Soy milk.
I always liked cherry extract juice with tea(be careful with dosage as even a tiny bit too much can be bad for your organs), blueberries and echinacea .
Honestly though, I got rid of my microwave for the last year+(took some convincing as I am a student that lives at home) and used a convection oven for reheating food. I rarely got sick, and when I did it didn’t last long. You guy’s should try it for a couple of months and see how much it helps your health.
How long do the grains last, if not used? Indefinitely?
Abusing your girlfriend is vile and disgusting and isn’t even a joke. Abusing your boyfriend? There’s an app for that, but it’s cute so it’s ok
http://games.yahoo.com/blogs/plugged-in/controversial-app-lets-beat-boyfriend-183000993.html
I heard about the benefits of Kefir a couple of years ago. A friend of mine had nasty Allergies related to Asthma every Spring and Fall, in addition to this, she was lactose intolerant. After getting a Kefir culture and drinking it for about a year, her Allergies have stopped and she can now eat dairy products without the very sore stomach she used to get. She also gets fewer colds which is a benefit as she is in the health care industry.
@MongolToby – Airag! I have several Mongol-speaking friends and tried it when out eating with them, and as soon as Bill mentioned suan nai I started wondering if it was the same thing. I loved airag!
Bill, would you mind posting the details on how you made it (what kind of milk you used; how many kefir grains in the jar of milk; what temperature it should ferment at), so that we readers can give it a try too? It sounds fantastic.
Indian cooking with curry is a way to use Kefir also . I live on the great lakes so fish is a part of a natural diet and one of the best ways to become healthy again if recovery is needed .
My favorite fish is an eel we call lawyers or eel pugs soaking in Kefir and tandoori spice in the bbq is nice . Plus there are about 50 different recipes for fish like one the great lakes .
And nothing like fish and chips with a beer on Friday with some good friends . If anybody is in the northern Ohio area and wants some Kefir grains I can grow some and send it by mail or some means .
Hey joeb, what part of northern Ohio you in? I grew up in Solon. I think the schools there have a “snow day” today.
Well, I had no idea there are eel in the Great Lakes. Growing up I only heard of Lake Erie having perch and walleye, and you couldn’t eat too much of it (not more than 1-2 a week) because of mercury levels!
To Dale: I am Brazilian, Portuguese is my first language. The stress you noticed means the stronger sylabe in my name is ” tá”.
Big Red: Thanks. I’ll have to look into it more. It is fattening like any sugar, but it doesnt spike the blood sugar like HFCS, White Sugar, etc. Cocaine isn’t that bad for you either – if you chew the leaf and get it slow.
Mongol Toby: A woman I worked with told me that now that most of us here are bottle fed and not breast fed, we have lost enzymes that were passed down Mother to Baby for countless ages. Perhaps real Kefir is a way of getting some of them back.
My husband has prostate cancer. I make sauerkraut for the probiotics. He isn’t a big fan of raw sauerkraut. He likes it cooked, German style, but that kills the good bugs. He might like Kefir. He likes buttermilk and yogurt. He eats such a good diet and seemed so healthy. The prostate cancer was a shock.
Excellent story. For those who are into yogurt, I recommend trying to get their hands on Indian yogurt, to culture your own. It is thicker than supermarket yogurt and easier to propagate.
Just heat milk to a boil, and turn it off and cover it, and wait for it to come down to the point where it is warm but not hot. Stir in a small amount of yogurt and leave it in a warm place overnight. Use whole milk.