I podcasted on Kombucha in 2014, after reviewing the evidence. Here is my script/summary from 2014:



I would like to talk about Kombucha tea today, because there was a post circulating on facebook about  Kombucha tea not being safe for babies when moms are drinking it and nursing. People sort of freaked out because so many young healthy women drink Kombucha.

First of all, lets talk re what Kombucha tea is, for those of you who have seen this stuff on refrigerator shelves in the grocery store and have not taken the plunge to try it.

 Kombucha is a tea that is fermented with a starter called a Kombucha Mushroom. This is a lot like a sour dough starter, and often is shared from one person to another. Sugar is also added to the tea to fuel the fermentation process. 

So the story behind this fermented beverage being unsafe comes from a few cases of severe illness reported to the Iowa Dept of Public Health back in 1995. These were 2 women who became unconscious, and were in respiratory distress. They were found to have altered acidity in their blood. One woman died, and the other woman underwent cardiac arrest, but survived. They were from the same geographic region, and both had been drinking what sounds like a reasonable amount of Kombucha tea. They both were brewing it themselves, and they both used the same Mushroom.

At the time, the FDA investigated and could not identify specific pathogens in the tea that may have caused their illnesses.



Fast forward to 2013. I could hardly find any information or warnings re Kombucha until this article in 2013, in the Journal of Environ Health.

This article reviews the reports of these ill women in 1995. IT appears that they had recently increased the amount of Kombucha that they were drinking. They also had underlying illnesses that made them more susceptible to health problems from drinking very acidic beverages. They also may have over-fermented the tea, causing the tea to have a pH of under 2.5, which is not safe for some people.

According to this article, 

The main health concerns with making Kombucha are:

1.  Growth of pathogens in the tea, esp if not pasteurized. The Kombucha needs to be fermented to a pH of >2.5 but <4.2. If fermentation is over 4.5, they are more at risk for botulism

2. Excessive fermentation with a pH of under 2.5- this would be too acidic to drink for many people, esp if they are at risk for lactic acidosis. Just as a comparison, the pH of straight vinegar is about 2.2, Lemon juice is 2.0, and battery acid is 1.0.

3. If it is not pasteurized at the end of fermentation, it can develop mold, so the recommendation is to keep it refrigerated if it has not been pasteurized when purchased or made at home.

4. They suggest drinking no more than 4 oz a day because of the risk of acidosis. People who are immunocompromised should not drink it



So therefore it should be fine to drink if nursing, just limit the volumes. It would be safest to get a bottled version that has been pasteurized



I hope this helps

Anne







Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM

Clinical Professor, Dept of Family and Community Medicine

University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health

Director, UW Lactation Services

Medical Director, Mothers Milk Bank of the Western Great Lakes

Founder and President of The Milk Mob, www.themilkmob.org







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