I”M CONCERENED ABOUT THE SUGAR. CAN I USE HONEY INSTEAD OF SUGAR FOR WATER KEFIR?
It is imperative that sugary kefir grains [SKG] grow well, to produce a health-promoting beverage. The only way SKG will grow well is if they are fed on sucrose or cane sugar [table sugar] solution. Honey or fruit juices do not provide the correct form of sugar for the organisms to create new grain, for honey and most fruit juices are mostly fructose. The organisms require sucrose, a two-sugar or disaccharide, so that they can break it down into its two basic forms or single-sugars [mono-saccharides], glucose and fructose. Specific organisms use the glucose to create new grain [growth]. If sugar content or sugar-type is a concern, then the following information should ease your mind. The organisms of good growing SKG utilize most of the sugar, more than 80% in fact. What is left in the final beverage is mostly fructose, some of which is converted to a myriad of compounds, most of which can be classified as heath-promoting. So what is left is in fact a form of honey, for honey is mostly
