Cabbage, pickles, fennel—if it’s teeming with healthy bacteria, it’s good for the gut.

Look Alive!

Not all fermented foods are created equal—here are the ones that give your gut the maximum amount of goodness

By Peta Bee

Do you know your kimchi from your kefir, or the benefits of apple cider vinegar versus sourdough? Fermented foods containing live beneficial bacteria help to boost the diversity of the gut microbiome and according to studies, can enhance everything from immune function and digestion to cognitive function and mental health.

Making your own sourdough bread or fermenting your own kefir—a sour-tasting liquid made using water or milk and kefir “grains,” bacteria and yeast—is laborious, which is why the global market for fermented products, worth almost $50 billion, is predicted to nearly double over the next ten years.