Jocotepec resident Tommy Arnold first learned about fermented foods seven years ago while living in his hometown of Dallas, Texas.
If food is medicine, Arnold was on a mission to discover the “right” foods to help him with some troubling gut issues, depression and anxiety.
“I was eating bread all the time – gravy, chicken fried steak, enchiladas,” Arnold says. “I’d have these little bouts of irritability every day, and felt a whole lot of anxiety at work and caring for my health-challenged relatives.”
While researching healing foods, Arnold says he came across information that basically said, “if you are depressed, you need to heal your gut.”
Arnold explains: “I learned that there is a nerve that runs from your gut to your brain and the two are constantly reporting to each other. If your digestion is messed up, your brain is not going to function at optimum levels.”
Arnold researched countless health-related books and articles that all pointed to the benefits of fermented foods and drinks, including cancer diet articles. “They all have you consuming fermented foods and drinks,” he says.
By 2001 Arnold was well-stocked with information and ready to start experimenting on himself. His first fermented drink was Rejuvelac, a non-alcoholic fermented liquid made from sprouted grains.
“I bought wheat berry grains, then soaked and sprouted them in water. The water ferments and make a probiotic drink.”
Later he discovered kefir water, ordering his first kefir grains online. Since then, kefir water has been his go-to beverage.
“Within two to three weeks of drinking kefir water I noticed that my allergy and sinus issues improved. I also felt my anxiety levels drop and felt more energized during the day. Plus, my acid reflux went away … I was more irritable when I didn’t drink it.”
As Arnold’s curiosity about fermented foods grew, he discovered plenty of recipes online and in books and videos. He started experimenting with sauerkraut and fermented vegetables – even fermented cabbage juice.
Arnold’s enthusiasm for fermented foods and beverages rubbed off on his partner Irene, and a few years ago, she started drinking kefir water. As a school teacher in Dallas, she would catch every virus and cold that passed her way. The first year of drinking kefir water, she noticed a significant drop in sick days, plus an end to sinus infections and colds. As an added benefit, she noticed that her hair and nails got thicker.
Tommy and Irene moved to Mexico in 2015. Seven months ago, they started volunteering at La Ola Orphanage in Jocotepec down the block from where they live. When the orphanage’s full-time cook needed to take time off, she asked if they could cook breakfast a few mornings a week. They took on the job and noticed that a six-year-old girl named Valeria was coming to breakfast every week with severe allergies and sinus infections, thus having to miss quite a bit of school. They were also hearing about Valeria’s rages and crying spells, which occurred on a pretty regular basis, both at home and at school.
Says Arnold: “After a solid week of seeing Valeria coughing and feeling miserable, we started bringing her bottles of kefir water. Surprisingly, she liked it.” The next week, they noticed that she didn’t have a sinus infection or phlegm issues.
“A few weeks after that, we noticed that her eyes and skin looked clearer, and she seemed calmer and a little more in control.”
La Ola’s house mother recently told Arnold that apart form one minor fit, Valeria has been very controlled for the past minth.
Arnold cannot be sure that the kefir water is helping Valeria, but believes it does.
“I take bottles over there and put them in the fridge so that she can drink them every day.” To make the kefir water more “child-friendly” he adds unsweetened Jumex fruit juice. “It’s as natural as you can get here. I make the kefir water sweeter for her than I would for me. Before drinking kefir water, she was drinking 2 to 3 boxes of sugared juice a day.”
Jars of fermented vegetables and beverages line Tommy’s kitchen counter. He continues to experiment with new concoctions such as ginger beer, coconut kefir water, papaya, and garlic in honey – “a great anti-fungal that knocks out colds.” Tommy says that there’s no need to refrigerate many of these foods as they create “their own little bio zone in the jar.”
Tommy confesses that he still enjoys some “bad” foods now and then. What helps him stay healthy is by consuming fermented foods and beverages, which help break down the “bad” fats and sugars. “If I go a week with consuming fermented foods – like when we drive to Dallas – by the end of the week I miss my kefir water, I miss my sauerkraut. We both can tell that we don’t feel as good as we usually do.”
On Sunday, October 9, Arnold will be one of three fermenting enthusiasts speaking at Open Circle in a presentation titled “FIZZ ED – The Lowdown on Fermented Foods & Beverages.”