As recognition of their rich nutrition value grows, fermented foods are enjoying somewhat of a revival, which means that they’re more easily available than ever. However, the process of fermenting foods has actually been around for millennia due to necessity. Let’s face it – fridges have only been commonplace since relatively recently – about 65 years ago.

You may have heard of some of these fermented foods – sauerkraut, kefir, kimchi, tempeh – but what are they? They are all names of relatively everyday foods such as milk, cabbage etc that are enhanced by the fermentation process, but more on those later.

So what is fermentation?

During fermentation, bacteria or yeast convert carbohydrates into acids or alcohols which act as natural preservatives that keep food edible for longer – and enable food to be eaten out of season. Happily, fermenting foods also improved the taste and had other positive side effects (eg: alcohol).

Why should I eat fermented foods? The benefits of fermented foods are numerous and can include:

• they produce butyrate which provide energy for the gut lining cells which can improve inflammation
• they support the absorption of calcium, iron and magnesium so particularly important for those keen to build bone density
• they support the immune system to reduce inflammation and potentially dampen allergies including reducing the duration and incidence of respiratory infections
• can contain prebiotics which are foods for your probiotics
• they often create and multiply probiotics
• improve lactose malabsorption in the case of kefir

Evidence suggests that – despite all the many stripping down and protective jobs our digestion does using stomach acid etc – fermented foods can reach our precious microbiomes, and exert positive health effects, in a similar way to probiotics.

Next time in fermented foods series: Kefir – what is it? And how to include fermented milk into your diet