QUESTION: FREEZING AND HEATING PROBIOTICS

Can you freeze or heat probiotics or does this make them less effective? I was thinking of making kefir ice cream and also warming up sauerkraut or kimchi.

ANSWERED BY BY MISHABAE MAHONEY, NTP, LMT

Sauerkrauts are best considered a live raw food. Raw sauerkraut can contain a mixture of over 13 different species of gut-friendly bacteria. Heating it would kill the microorganisms that have such a great probiotic effect. Kefir ice cream, however would work. Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilis as well as other live cultures such as L. acidophilus enter a dormant state during freezing, returning to an active state when they come in contact with body heat after ingestion. I like the idea of Frozen Kefir treats. Yum! Best ~Mishabae Mishabae Mahoney, NTP, LMT FULL BIO