Kefir and Health: A Contemporary Perspective

Abstract

Kefir and its related products are renowned nutraceutical dairy products produced through fermentation of yeasts and bacteria naturally present in grains of kefir. The nutritional attributes of this self-carbonated beverage are due to presence of vital nutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins, minerals, vitamins, and some nutraceutical components. Antimicrobial activity, better gut health, anticarcinogenic activity, control on serum glucose and cholesterol, control on lactose intolerance and better immune system can be achieved through its regular consumption. Moreover, on the one side kefir is good dietetic beverage, and of particular interest of athletes, and on the other side the whole kefir is good for feeding small babies and pre-schoolers for good tolerance against disease and quick weight gain. Lots of works have been done on kefir from a health point of view. This study summarizes all the data that have been compiled to date. The purpose of this review is to gather information about microbiological, chemical, nutritional, and therapeutic aspects of kefir and kefir-like products to provide justification for its consumption. This review leads us to conclude that kefir begins a new dawn of food for the mankind.

A review: chemical, microbiological and nutritional characteristics of kefir

“…Lactic acid, acetic acid, pyruvic acid, hippuric acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, diacetyl and acetaldehyde were generated during the fermentation process. These compounds impart the taste and aroma to kefir (Ahmed et al, 2013). Kesenkas et al (2011) reported that the contents of lactic acid, citric acid, pyruvic acid and acetic acid were 107.80-282.40, 1.79-5.08, 0.17-0.45 and 0.38-0.66 mg/kg, respectively after 28 d of storage.…”

Comparison of chemical, rheological and sensory properties of kefir produced by kefir grains and commercial kefir starter

“…Several health promoting and therapeutic effects have been attributed to kefir with the most important ones being antimicrobial, antitumor, cholesterol lowering and immune-stimulating impacts. The claimed effects are related to bioactive components, mainly exopolysaccharides and bioactive peptides, present in kefir after the fermentation process (Farnworth, 2005;Ahmed et al, 2013). The composition and properties of kefir and the concentration of bioactive components, as well, depend on milk type but also on the applied culture type (Öner et al, 2010).…”

Microorganisms in functional food supplementation: A review

“…Lactic acid bacteria lactic produce various products, such as dairy beverage, fermented milk and yogurt (Table 1). Lactic acid bacteria, Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus produce yogurt (Ahmed et al, 2013;Altay et al, 2013). The fermented milk is also produced by other lactic acid bacteria such as Lactobacillus casei and Bifidobacterium animalis.…”

“…Functional foods are a trend for industry for healthy eating and consumers' interest as a new alternative to prevent diseases such as allergies, intestinal problems and cardiovascular diseases among others (Ahmed et al, 2013;Altay et al, 2013). These functional foods are based on microorganisms' use that affect consumers' health positively, in the form of fermentation process and/or in the use of microbial biomass (Corona et al, 2016).…”

“…The microorganisms present in kefir grains are non-pathogenic bacteria and yeasts (Magalhães et al, 2010;Nalbantoglu et al, 2014). In general, fermentation process has been shown to preserve food with modification of physicochemical properties of foods but also provide impact on the raw material functional quality (Ahmed et al, 2013;Altay et al, 2013). Microorganisms are also used for the production of enzymes, pigments, vitamins, polysaccharides and prebiotics (non-digestible ingredients that benefits the host health by stimulating the bacteria in the gut) (Magalhães et al, 2010;Rodrigues et al, 2016).…”