FUNCTIONAL AND HEALTH-PROMOTING PROPERTIES OF WATER KEFIR
in: Innovative Approaches in Medicine and Health Sciences III, Hicran Yıldız,Oruç Yunusoğlu, Editor, Livre.net , Lyon, pp.195-215, 2025
- Publication Type: Book Chapter / Chapter Other Book
- Publication Date: 2025
- Doi Number: 10.5281/zenodo.18120726
- Publisher: Livre.net
- City: Lyon
- Page Numbers: pp.195-215
- Editors: Hicran Yıldız,Oruç Yunusoğlu, Editor
- Open Archive Collection: AVESIS Open Access Collection
- Süleyman Demirel University Affiliated: Yes
Abstract
Water kefir is a promising multifunctional fermented beverage with significant potential to improve human health due to its rich microbial diversity and metabolite profile. Current evidence demonstrates that water kefir possesses probiotic and prebiotic properties, strong antioxidant activity, antihyperlipidemic and antidiabetic effects, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory mechanisms, and notable gastroprotective capacity. These health benefits are driven by the dynamic metabolic interactions among LAB, AAB, and yeasts, resulting in the production of bioactive compounds such as organic acids, EPS, SCFAs, bacteriocins, GABA, and antioxidant metabolites. Although findings are encouraging, most studies to date are preliminary, conducted in vitro or in animal models. There is a clear need for standardized clinical trials, strain-specific functional characterization, and integrated omics based approaches to validate the therapeutic potential of water kefir in humans. As interest in natural, microbiome-supportive fermented foods continues to grow, water kefir represents a valuable candidate for developing next-generation functional beverages with targeted health applications