Kombucha for healthy living: evaluation of antioxidant potential and bioactive compounds.

Tea is a beverage consumed by people of all walks of life. Kombucha is prepared by fermenting tea which causes alterations in the composition and concentration of the beneficial compounds. In order to know the changes that have occurred upon fermentation, both tea and Kombucha were subjected to various in vitro antioxidant analyses as well as HPLC analysis. The results of the in vitro antioxidant analyses indicate that tea scavenges free radicals mainly due to its hydrogen donating ability, while Kombucha acts mainly by electron donation, metal chelation and NO radial scavenging activities. The HPLC analysis of Kombucha showed an increase in concentrations of Epicatechin, Epigallocatechin gallate and Gallocatechin gallate as well as the presence of Gallocatechin which was absent in Black tea. All these results indicate that the beneficial effects of tea are enhanced upon fermentation to Kombucha, thus supporting the daily consumption of Kombucha. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]