Kefir Kommunity

Laughing it up with comedian RD David Grotto

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:44:00 GMT

It’s not often that you find a highly respected registered dietitian who’s bold enough to ask “Did someone step on a duck?” when blogging about beans…and get away with it.

David Grotto, RD, is just that man.

The author of 101 Foods That Can Save Your Life, blogger for WebMD and longtime national spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association (recently renamed The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics), Grotto is a Vince Vaughn lookalike from the Chicago suburbs who can spout off random-yet-useful factoids like, “A handful of tart cherries before bed can help you sleep better,” at the drop of a hat. When we caught word over Twitter that he was a fan of kefir, we just knew we had to interview him for our blog. Here’s what he had to say:

Lifeway: So, why do you like kefir so much?

David Grotto: “The thing I like most about kefir, as opposed to yogurt, is it offers the ultimate in convenience. It’s portable, easy to use: You just drink it, with no need to dirty – and then wash – a spoon afterwards. Not to sound lazy or anything. It’s nutrition and convenience rolled into one.”

Lifeway:What's your all-time favorite kefir flavor and why?

DG: “I’m “old school” – none of those newfangled flavors for me. I like to keep it traditional, like they used to serve in the old country. It’s Birthday Cake for me.”

Lifeway:Everyone seems to pronounce kefir differently – “KEE-fuhr,” “Keh-FEER.” How do YOU pronounce it?

DG: “I pronounce it ‘Key furtghddf.’ The last six consonants are silent.”

Lifeway: You’ve got three teenage daughters – that sounds crazy! Do they like kefir?

DG: “Indeed they do! They’re 17, 15 and 13 and two of them are lacto ovo vegetarians, which means they don’t eat meat but they do eat dairy and eggs. These girls are finicky, but my wife and I aren’t running a restaurant so we need foods that appeal to all three of them. Kefir works well within their dietary laws, plus it tastes delicious. They love the sweet tang. I feel assured not only as a dietitian, but as a dad, that I’m doing the best for my girls’ overall health, bones, immune health. We get a triple bang for the buck.”

Lifeway: What’s one of their favorite ways to enjoy it?

DG: “I’ll use it as a base for smoothies. They’re usually so busy, they don’t even have time to nuke something in the microwave. They need something quick. So I’ll whip up a blender-full of smoothies. We’ll throw in some soy or whey protein, nut butter – maybe pistachio or almond, some fruit juice, and whatever fresh fruit is lying around. Maybe bananas or peaches. I also use it to cook oatmeal, swapping out half of the liquid ingredients for kefir. It gives it a nice, creamy consistency. We also use it in baked goods: My wife made a rum cake for Christmas and used kefir, and it was very moist and tasty with a nice tang.”

Lifeway:What do you think of those Activia commercials featuring Jamie Lee Curtis?

DG: “I don’t watch them. Now if they featured Tony Curtis, that would be a different story.”

Follow David on Twitter @DavidGrotto

Top Five Healthy Winter Foods

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:20:00 GMT

For a lot of us, the winter months are an excuse to overindulge. Bathing suit season is far enough away to ignore for a little while longer, and all the best produce is out of season, right? Wrong! Eating Well Magazine recently released a list of Five of the Healthiest Winter Foods and we were happy to see some familiar names on the list!

Pomegranates topped the list this year. Heart-healthy, and rich in anti-oxidants, this exotic fruit has become a popular ingredient in lots of healthy foods recently. See how you like the sweet and tangy flavor of pomegranate in our Low-Fat Pomegranate Kefir. Try our Low Fat Pomegranate/Acai for the added yumminess of acai berries, or check out our Tart and Tangy Pomegranate Frozen Kefir for a dessert with a probiotic boost.

Dark leafy greens also made the cut. Rich in vitamins A,C and K, dark leafy greens are also a great source of calcium. No time to mix yourself a salad in the morning? Try kicking off your day with our Organic Green Kefir. Like all Lifeway Kefir, our Green Kefir is packed with 10 powerful probiotic cultures and loaded with vitamins, protein, calcium, and folic acid. With the added power of Phytoboost, our exclusive blend of health-promoting Phytonutrients, a serving of our Green Kefir is equivalent to a full serving of vegetables!

Other winter time super foods included citrus fruits loaded with vitamin C, immune system-boosting potatoes (yes, potatoes!) and low-calorie, high-vitamin butternut squash. Sounds like a feast to us!

What are your favorite healthy winter foods?

11.11.11

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 19:26:00 GMT

For eleven months, the pages on your calendar have flipped by, the stars have slowly been aligning, all to get us to this magical date: 11.11.11. The special date has been linked to everything from the purported 2012 Mayan Apocalypse to Jessica Simpson’s shotgun wedding. (Some might even consider them the same thing.)

Most people deem Nov.11, 2011 an extremely lucky date, numerically speaking – and we agree! We say, why wait until January 1 to start making some changes when 11/11/11 has such a better ring to it? Some ideas on how Lifeway kefir can help you achieve your New Year’s Resolutions:

If your New Year’s Resolution is: To lose weight

Why don’t you: Start drinking a glass of Lifeway kefir a day. Research shows that people who consume a lower-calorie diet that includes low- or non-fat dairy shed nearly twice as many pounds as those who only cut calories.

If your New Year’s Resolution is: Drink Less Alcohol

Why don’t you: Drink more kefir! We’ve even been to parties where the hostess served low fat pomegranate kefir in chilled martini glasses!

If your New Year’s Resolution is: To reduce stress

Why don’t you: Drink more kefir. New research out of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center suggests that probiotics – the good bacteria that make kefir so healthy – might be capable of delivering neuroactive compounds to help improve psychological health. The theory behind this new wave of medicine lies in a potential connection between gut microbes and the nervous system. Kefir also contains tryptophan, an amino acid that helps the body relax (think of the feeling you get after eating a big Thanksgiving dinner…that fatigue is from the turkey, which is rich in the same amino acid.)

If your New Year’s Resolution is: Feed my child healthier food.

Why don’t you: Pick up some Probugs™. Our line of creamy, organic whole milk kefir with fun characters and flavors appeals to even the most finicky of eaters. With a no-spill spout and easy-to-grip package, Probugs™ are great for tiny hands and even better for growing bodies. High in bone-building calcium and energy-sustaining protein, kefir contains 10 live and active cultures (friendly bacteria) that help little bellies stay calm and developing immune systems healthy. Plus, kids love the funny names and goofy characters, Orange Creamy Crawler and Sublime Slime Lime.

If your New Year’s Resolution is: Start recycling

Why don’t you: Buy from eco-conscious companies, like Lifeway Foods. We buy local, which means less packaging and fewer miles being traveled. And most of our packaging and production materials are either biodegradable or recyclable. We also buy renewable energy credits to offset the electricity used in our production facilities; our credits are equivalent to planting 335 acres of trees. And at our headquarters, even our office furniture is recyclable!

What’s your 11.11.11 resolution?

Special K in Your Kefir

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 16:14:00 GMT

Fans of Drs. Mehmet Oz and Nicholas Perricone may be familiar with Vitamin K after hearing these medical superstars lavish their praise. Also known as the clotting vitamin because of its role in blood clotting, vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin that may also maintain strong bones. Found in leafy green vegetables like kale, spinach, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower, as well as cereals, soybeans, and other veggies, Vitamin K is also made by bacteria that line the gastrointestinal tract.

The vitamin is so essential that all newborns in the U.S. and Canada customarily receive vitamin K injections just after delivery. That’s because babies are born without bacteria in their intestines and cannot receive enough vitamin K from breast milk.

Vitamin K2 is a bone-building metabolic byproduct of vitamin K. K2 helps move calcium from your blood to your bone if you're calcium deficient, according to Dr. Oz. In fact, Vitamin K-deficient individuals have actually been shown to have a 30% increased risk of hip fractures than those with higher intakes. It’s created in the body by naturally occurring bacteria inhabiting the intestines, and can be found in an exotic food called natto, a Japanese fermented soybean dish. Sound too funky? You can also get K2 from low-fat cottage cheese, chicken, and certain cheeses.

Kefir is an excellent source of Vitamin K, along with calcium, magnesium, Vitamin B12, and probotics. According to kefir fan Dr. Perricone, kefir also contains lactoferrin, which stimulates new bone growth while preventing further breakdown of existing bone tissue. In addition, kefir lines the GI tract with healthy bacteria, crucial for vitamin K2 production.

For more information, see our article: The 411 on Vitamin K

Note: Certain individuals need to be very careful with regards to their Vitamin K intake. If you are on Warfarin (Coumadin), or any other prescription blood thinners, you must ask your doctor about your Vitamin K intake, as it can interfere with medication.

Kefir Satisfies America’s Top 12 New Year’s Resolutions

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 16:17:00 GMT

Happy 2011! We’ve got great news to usher in your new year: According to USA.gov, the most popular New Year’s resolutions are:

Drnk Less Alcohol

Get a Better Education

Save Money

Get Fit

Lose Weight:

Manage Debt

Manage Stress

Quit Smoking

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Take a Trip

Get a Better Job

Volunteer to Help Others

Would You Eat Cheese Made From Breast Milk?

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 13:20:00 GMT

We’re all for conserving resources here at Lifeway – our kefir bottles are recyclable and our plants use renewable sources of energy - but we’re not quite sure what to make of this new dairy trend.

It’s breast milk cheese.

Ease the Formula-to-Milk Transition with Kefir

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:46:00 GMT

We recently heard from a mother about her success with weaning her two-year-old off of formula. Well, at first, there was actually zero success. Her little boy fussed and cried when she tried to hand him a sippy cup full of milk, and was forever reaching for the bottle. She was almost at the end of her rope when another mom told her her secret for a smooth formula-to-milk transition: Kefir!

Everyone's Green With Envy For New Green Kefir With Phytoboost

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 16:15:00 GMT

You love our strawberry-banana whipped into a smoothie, crave our low-fat pomegranate by the bucket-full and can’t enjoy your oatmeal without a little vanilla mixed in. Now we’ve got a new product for you to get hooked on: Fruit-flavored Green Kefir with Phytoboost. Available in mouthwatering Kiwi Passion Fruit and Pomegranate Acai Blueberry,Green Kefir features a special blend of Phytoboost phytonutrients that give you the disease-fighting antioxidant power of 10 green vegetables, plus green tea extract.

Cinnamon Banana Kefir Ice Cream

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 21:19:00 GMT

Mmmmm….check out this easy recipe from Kristin Pizzi, who blogs over at EatOxygen.com

She just blended one cup of Lifeway Plain Lowfat Kefir with a banana, a packet of PureVia sweetener and cinnamon to taste, then froze the concoction over night. The result: A creamy, sweet, banana bread batter-tasting frosty treat.

Check out the recipe here.

Anyone else have any ideas for creative kefir recipes?

Santa Issues Statement To Media: “No More Milk, Please.”

LifeWayKefir LifeWayKefir — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 21:11:00 GMT

During a standing-room-only media conference held today at the Hard Rock North Pole, Santa Claus shocked reporters when he announced he will no longer be accepting glasses of milk left by the fire this Christmas.

“Enough with the milk, already!” Claus bellowed. “Many people don’t know this, because I tend to keep my health matters pretty private, but I’m lactose intolerant. Just a few sips are enough to throw my GI system totally off-kilter for the night. I usually pour it in a dish and feed it to Donner and Blitzen because I’m on an eco-kick and hate to see it go to waste. But this year, I’m standing up for Number One and asking children and parents across the globe, ‘Could you please lay off the milk?’ The truth is, I prefer kefir.”

A hush fell across the room as reporters glanced at each other, silently mouthing, “What’s kefir?!”

Noticing their confusion, Claus clarified, “Kefir is a cultured dairy drink that offers 10 strains of live and active cultures, also known as ‘good bacteria.’ I’ll only drink Lifeway kefir, manufactured in suburban Chicago. It’s a nice stopping point for me and the ‘deer, located exactly halfway between India and Hawaii.”