Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
- Undeniable Benefits of Water Kefir
- Critical Differences Between Milk Kefir and Water Kefir
- Powdered Starter vs Live Kefir Grains
- Beneficial Microbes in Water Kefir
- Beneficial microbes in Milk Kefir
- Most Beneficial Water Kefir Made with Fresh Coconut Water
- Other Benefits of Milk Kefir Compared with Water Kefir
- References
Comparison of the diversity and number of probiotic strains in dairy kefir versus water kefir. This is a key measure of how beneficial these fermented foods are to the gut microbiome.
My recent article comparing the probiotic potency and overall health benefits of kefir versus yogurt spawned a lot of emails to my inbox with questions about how water kefir fits into the mix.
After a bit of reflection on the subject, I came to the conclusion that the topic really deserved its own blog post, so here we go!
Which is really better, water kefir or milk kefir? Or, are the benefits between the two basically the same?
The truth is that water kefir is really not a good substitute for milk kefir even if you have a milk allergy.
Milk kefir, made with either dairy milk or coconut milk, far surpasses water kefir in probiotic potency. The benefits of milk based kefir exceed those of water kefir no matter if the water kefir is cultured with fruit juice, vegetable juice, coconut water, or filtered water and a whole sweetener.
Before you go throwing away your water kefir grains, however, let’s be clear on the benefits of water kefir which makes a fantastic base for homemade soda among other culinary uses.
Undeniable Benefits of Water Kefir
Water kefir, just like milk kefir, utilizes a beneficial culture of microbes that consume the simple sugars in the juice, coconut water or sugar water base to create a plethora of probiotics. The water kefir culture’s use of the sugar means that there isn’t much sugar left in the final product. This is good news for those with Metabolic Syndrome in that water kefir doesn’t add to problems with blood sugar fluctuations or feed those sugar cravings.
In addition, the fermentation process releases additional vitamins and minerals. Best of all, there aren’t any additives, chemicals or artificial anything in a kefir soda made with properly fermented water kefir. It even turns out a bit bubbly just like conventional sodas and can be bottled to add further effervescence. Water kefir can also be used as a base for dairy-free smoothies, popsicles, and homemade jello.
Water kefir can be added to non-dairy milks like almond milk too. Use 1/4 cup water kefir to 2-3 cups non-dairy milk, mix and serve. Extra water kefir grains may be used as starter culture for fermenting vegetables.
While the benefits of water kefir are clear and well established, this fermented beverage doesn’t hold a candle to milk kefir made with either dairy milk or coconut milk.
Critical Differences Between Milk Kefir and Water Kefir
According to Donna Schwenk, author of Cultured Food for Life, water kefir is her least favorite fermented drink. She says that she has never experienced the same health benefits from water kefir that she did from homemade milk kefir.
Why?
The most likely reason is that there are only 10-15 strains of good bacteria and good yeasts in water kefir made with live grains. This compares with the 30 to 50 in homemade milk kefir made with live grains. This video which shows the difference between dairy kefir grains and water kefir grains based on the live cultures that I use in my kitchen.
Powdered Starter vs Live Kefir Grains
Milk kefir grains and water kefir grains are not interchangeable which is why I always recommend obtaining them from reputable sources I list in my healthy shopping guide. I can’t tell you how many emails I’ve received over the years from folks trying to ferment milk into kefir with water kefir grains they got from a friend (or vice versa) only to find themselves frustrated with repeated failure or inconsistent results.
What about milk kefir made with a one-time use powder? Be aware that, like water kefir, this is also not as beneficial as milk kefir made with live grains.
There are only 10-15 beneficial microbial strains in milk kefir made with powder compared with kefir made with live grains, not to mention it is more expensive too! Use live grains for making milk kefir – they are cheaper and the result is far healthier!
Let’s compare milk kefir vs water kefir strain by strain. See the lists below.
Beneficial Microbes in Water Kefir
- Lactobacillus brevis
- Lactobacillus casei
- Lactobacillus hilgardii
- Lactobacillus hordei
- Lactobacillus nagelii
- Leuconostoc citreum
- Leuconostoc mesenteroides
- Acetobacter fabarum
- Acetobacter orientalis
- Streptococcus lactis
- Hanseniaospora valbyensis (yeast)
- Lachancea fermentati (yeast)
- Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast)
- Zygotorulaspora florentina (yeast)
Beneficial microbes in Milk Kefir
Compare the number of probiotics in water kefir above to the more than double the strains in milk-based kefir made with live grains listed below.
In recent years, some sources have measured the number of strains even higher at 50-70 species!
- Bifidobacterium breve
- Bifidobacterium lactis
- Bifidobacterium bifidum
- Lactobacillus acidophilus
- Lactobacillus brevis
- Lactobacillus casei
- Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus
- Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. delbrueckii
- Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. lactis
- Lactobacillus helveticus
- Lactobacillus kefiranofaciens subsp. kefiranofaciens
- Lactobacillus kefiri
- Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei
- Lactobacillus plantarum
- Lactobacillus rhamnosus
- Lactobacillus sake
- Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris
- Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis
- Lactococcus lactis
- Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. cremoris
- Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. dextranicum
- Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. mesenteroides
- Pseudomonas
- Pseudomonas fluorescens
- Pseudomonas putida
- Streptococcus thermophilus
- Candida humilis (yeast)
- Kazachstania unispora (yeast)
- Kazachstania exigua (yeast)
- Kluyveromyces siamensis (yeast)
- Kluyveromyces lactis (yeast)
- Kluyveromyces marxianus (yeast)
- Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast)
- Saccharomyces martiniae (yeast)
- Saccharomyces unisporus (yeast)
The only benefit probiotically of water kefir compared with milk kefir is the absence of Streptococcus thermophilus.
Jordin Rubin, author of Restoring Your Digestive Health warns about this particular probiotic strain as studies have shown that people who suffer from autoimmune diseases run the risk of aggravating the symptoms of their disease if they consume more than two cups of yogurt or kefir per day that contains Streptococcus thermophilus.
Most Beneficial Water Kefir Made with Fresh Coconut Water
If you choose to make water kefir, note that making it with fresh coconut water is likely the best scenario according to Donna Gates, author of The Body Ecology Diet given that you will obtain a kefir that is rich in potassium and enzymes and contains sulphurated proteins that assist the body in cleansing.
Note that many sources claim that coconut water contains monolaurin, which is anti-fungal, however, this is not true according to my research. Monolaurin is in the fat of the coconut, not coconut water.
Other Benefits of Milk Kefir Compared with Water Kefir
Besides a superior probiotic boost, milk kefir also contains calcium and magnesium in high amounts which are absent in water kefir.
And, there are potential problems when brewing water kefir to make sure to watch out for. If you suffer from candida issues or diabetes, note that unless you are extremely careful to ferment the water kefir properly, there can be too much sugar remaining which could actually harm you rather than help. Properly brewed water kefir really should taste only mildly sweet. It is a slightly sweet but mostly sour flavor that does take a bit of getting used to at first.
If you want sweeter water kefir, brew for the full length of time until the sweetness is gone and then mix with plain juice. Use as little juice as you can get away with to attain the level of sweetness desired.
Note also that it is best to refrain from using 100% juice when making water kefir as you will end up with an alcoholic beverage! For more on making water kefir sodas with juice or sugar-sweetened water, check out this article and my how-to video on the subject.
So, what to choose? Water kefir or milk kefir?
The good news is that you don’t have to … you can make both even if you have a dairy allergy!
References
(1) Microbiological study of lactic acid bacteria in kefir grains
(2) Distinct actions of the fermented beverage kefir on host behavior, immunity and microbiome
(3) What is Bifidobacterium? How to get it?
(4) Modern perspectives on the health benefits of kefir in next generation sequencing era
More Information
How to Make Dairy Kefir (recipe plus video how-to)
How to Make Kefir from Coconut Milk (recipe plus video how-to)
They put dairy milk kefir and coconut milk kefir in the same category, although one is animal base and the other vegetable. Would you please explain and list the bacteria and yeast content in each
I’ve a question it’d be extremely appreciated if you could get back to me. How much sugar content does Milk kefir contain after the fermentation process (final product) ? As I’m suffering from candida yeast infection and would like to know which would be a more appropriate option (milk or water kefir) thank you.
Very interesting! I make water kefir because I am vegan. What is your source for species of pro-biotics that you listed? Love to read more in-depth science on the subject. Thanks! Your kefir sounds like it rocks. Love to get mine to be so awesome! Diversity of sugars is key it sounds like.
If water kefir is not a substitute to milk kefir then what alternative do people with dairy allergy have? I don’t usually have a big issue with dairy until I started drinking milk kefir (organic pasteurized non-homogenized milk). Was told by my chiropractor during a visit that I actually have a huge patch of milk rash on my neck and shoulder area.
The problem is likely because you are consuming pasteurized milk which is incredibly allergenic. Fermenting it into yogurt or kefir helps, but the proteins are still denatured from the violent pasteurization. Why not try raw milk kefir? It would be much less likely to trigger a problem. That said, if raw kefir is still an issue, then try coconut milk kefir instead. https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/video-coconut-milk-kefir/
This is highly inaccurate. Milk Kefir has been studied longer, so there are more papers on it. However I would recommend in the future that you research a bit deeper instead of simply re-posting the opinion one person who obviously has a bias against water kefir.
Try this for the usual strains found in a healthy and “legacy” strain. This woman was likely referring to a freeze dried powder and that hardly counts.
Strains of bacteria and yeast found in Water Kefir Grains (and kefir itself)
Bacteria
Species Lactobacillus
L. acidophilus
L. alactosus
L. brevis
L. bulgaricus
L. casei subsp. casei
L. casei subsp. pseudoplantarum
L. casei subsp. rhamnosus
L. casei subsp. tolerans
L. coryneformis subsp. torquens
L. fructosus
L. hilgardii
L. homohiochi
L. plantarum
L. psuedoplantarum
L. reuterietc
L. yamanashiensis
Species Streptococcus
S. agalactiae
Sr. bovis
S. cremeris
S. faecalis
S. lactis
S. mutans
S. pneumoniae
S. pyogenes
S. salivarius
S. sanguinis
S. suis
S. viridans
Species Pediococcus
P. damnosus
Species Leuconostoc
L. mesenteroides
Species Bacillus
B. subtilis
B. graveolus
YEASTS
Species Saccharomyces
S. bayanus
S. boullardii
S. cerevisiae
S. florentinus
S. pretoriensis
S. uvarum
Species Kloeckera
K. apiculata
Species Hansenula
H. yalbensis
Species Candida
C. gueretana
C. lamica
C. valida
*does not contain C. albicans – the yeast associated with human yeast infections and ‘candida’ in
general
Species Torulopsis
T. insconspicna
*does not contain T. glabrata, also associated with yeast infections and ‘candida’
Furthermore, Bifidobacterium psychraerophilum/crudilactis has been verified recently as well as Dekkera bruxellensis.
The more that water kefir is studied, the more wonder is revealed.
Of course Donna Gates and her “Kefir Powder” haven’t done much for this, because only a small percentage survive the processing.
Water Kefir (and milk Kefir to some degree if fed ONLY on grass fed non- pasteurized milk) will increase in diversity depending on it’s exposure to different environments and sugars.
I have a culture that has travelled with me and I have fed it coconuts from Costa-Rica, Hawaii, Phillipines, Thailand and Bali it has been exposed to dozens of environments and organic sugar sources from around the world. (It is currently only available to buy in Bali). Understanding this culture is fundamentally important to understanding the micro-biome and in turn the macro-biome which is rapidly losing it’s diversity.
Let me know if you need more clarification.
Best Regards,
Solomon
Do you know much about JUN probiotic drink?
Yes, I have a post about it and how-to video here: https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/how-to-make-jun-tea-kombucha-champagne/
I accidentally bought water kefir grains at the store. I used to make the ginger ale ferment (sometimes adding in turmeric root). I’m thinking I could use these grains along with the ginger bug mixture. What do you think?
Is there really pseudomonas in the kefir I ferment every day. I started making kefir to boost my immune system about a month ago. I was just diagnosed with pseudomonas. How could there be lethal bacteria in kefir?
But in your writing above you state that:
“Note that many sources claim that coconut water contains monolaurin, which is anti-fungal…” – (therefore if would impair many of the probiotic) – “… however, this is not true according to my research…” (please post references to your “research”) – “…Monolaurin is in the fat of the coconut, not coconut water.”
But than you suggesting here above that:
“If you have a dairy allergy, make your milk kefir with coconut milk.”
???
Coconut milk has the pulp and fatty parts… so, as you also state, it would contain monolaurin with the known undesirable effect of killing/impairing the probiotic.
Monolaurin disrupts the outer coating of harmful bacteria, viruses, and fungi. It does not disrupt beneficial microbes which is why coconut milk can be successfully cultured into kefir or yogurt.
Water kefir may not have as many beneficial bacteria, but it tastes a lot better then milk kefir to me. I tried the milk kefir for almost a month thinking I would get used to it and I just couldn’t take the sour taste. I found myself avoiding it altogether. The water kefir is easy on my taste buds.