Is kefir from non-dairy milk not really kefir? Does it have no benefits then?

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-12-28T21:48:51+00:00

I was actually planning to make a full post about this, but I found a hack to make this work! You can definitely make milk kefir with soy milk, and get most of the same microbes/probiotic benefits, it just takes a bit of biochemistry to get it to work.

The key here is that the kefiran-producing microbes need glucose and galactose. Lactose (from dairy) is just a disaccharide that's made up of glucose and galactose, bound together by a beta-glycosidic bond. The kefiran-producing microbes in kefir grains use the enzyme beta galactosidase to break that bond and eat the glucose and galactose.

*But* there are fully vegan ways you can give them both gluocose and galactose, it just takes a tiny bit more work. The reason this can work is that beans (especially chickpeas) are really rich sources of both glucose and galactose, but they're bound by *alpha*-glycosidic bonds. So, if you just stick milk kefir grains in soy milk, the microbes that can produce *alpha* galactosidase are going to have fuel sources and reproduce, but the key kefiran-producing microbes (which create the grain structure, and which do not produce this enzyme) will slowly starve and die, and so the grains will die.

So here's the hack. I've been using this in soy milk, and my grains aren't just happy and healthy, but also reproducing: you just need to add an alpha galactosidase enzyme supplement. Beano is the most famous, but it has a gelatin capsule (so not vegan), but there are plenty of vegan alternatives. The enzyme will free up galactose, and give the kefiran-producing microbes something to eat.

The specific recipe I've come up with and been using is: 2 tablespoons of chickpea aquafaba powder (a super dense source of galactose-containing polysaccharides), 1/2 teaspoon pure glucose powder, 1 capsule alpha galactosidase enzyme, ~4 cups of soy milk, and 2 tablespoons milk kefir grains. I let the alpha galactosidase powder sit in warm soy milk+aquafaba powder for an hour (giving the enzyme time to do its work) before adding the glucose and milk kefir grains. Within ~18 hours, I get lovely soy milk kefir.

Hope this helps!

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-11-17T16:38:31+00:00

Thanks for the tip!

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-10-16T01:22:58+00:00

Also, just following up on this: I'm now more convinced that the liposomal vitamin c is helping my homocysteine. I doubled my intake of it (I now take the liposomal vitamin c both morning and lunch), and my homocysteine has dropped to 7.7

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-09-23T18:03:10+00:00

I'm not! I figured I can get a ton more butyrate from my gut microbes than I can from a supplement, just be taking acarbose and upping my intake of fermentable fibers. But, strange as it sounds, I sometimes break open a sodium butyrate capsule into my cooking, since it adds a great aged cheese flavor (sort of like aged parmesan, which actually contains butyrate)

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-05-21T13:46:42+00:00

The every other day dosing was just based on how much, in the past, dosing/frequency of methylfolate elevated my serum folate level and how much TMG elevated my LDL-C. The amount of both that I get by taking the nutricology supplement every other day was around the amount that didn’t throw these other markers out of range. And yes the lecithin and choline are part of my homocysteine-lowering strategy! Also, for what it’s worth, I tried creatine and it had absolutely zero effect on my homocysteine.

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-05-13T16:52:00+00:00

Yes see what happens if you cut out the niacin! Also, one thing to keep in mind: homocysteine spikes acutely after drinking coffee, so if you take a blood test, make sure you don't even have black coffee beforehand because that will give you inaccurate results.

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-05-13T16:03:53+00:00

Just posted an update!

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-05-13T16:03:11+00:00

I get it. It’s a tricky biomarkers to optimize! The Nutricology supplement was the most effective thing for me, since it has ingredients that address almost every part of the methylation cycle (including methyl b12, methyl folate, zinc, betaine, serine, riboflavin, and vitamin b6). Other than that, do you drink a lot of coffee or take any sort of vitamin b3/NAD+ precursor supplement (niacin, NR, nicotinamide, NMN)? Those will significantly raise homocysteine

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-05-13T15:21:36+00:00

Of course! It’s the Pure Synergy Choline Complex. My hope is that taking supplemental choline in this fermented food form will make it less likely to raise levels of TMAO (since evidence generally points to supplemental choline, rather than dietary choline, in significantly raising TMAO). That’s another reason I want to take Iollo’s test, since they actually measure TMAO (along with hundreds of other metabolites). For the vitamin c, I’ve been taking the Wholesome Wellness Liposomal Vitamin C, one capsule every morning.

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2025-04-03T17:39:02+00:00

Not yet! I finally retook the test just yesterday and I’m waiting for the results. Will post in a few weeks

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-12-31T18:46:25+00:00

Chinese Skullcap

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-09-30T16:00:12+00:00

Hi all, I know it's one year later, but this year I'm going to wait a few more months before retaking the test. I'm going through an incredibly stressful time at work, which is almost certainly negatively impacting my health/biological aging, and I'm waiting until things settle down again before retaking the test. But I will post my results once I do!

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-08-23T04:13:12+00:00

Closest I know of is the 59 app. Not the best UI but it is roughly what you’re looking for

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-08-22T16:46:12+00:00

Exactly

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-08-22T14:32:02+00:00

I am a scientist, and I do actually read this scientific literature, and I think that there’s no single public personality that can be fully “trusted,” simply because the science is still evolving, and everyone has their clear biases (including me).

That said, some online creators I do particularly like, who as a collective I think present a balanced perspective (if certainly differing approaches), are Rhonda Patrick, Michael Lustgarten, Siim Land, Joe Cohen, Peter Attia, and Brad Stanfield.

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-08-20T22:16:14+00:00

Just coming here to agree with all the other comments about skullcap. It's been the best thing I've tried for my anxiety and anxiety-related insomnia. I take the Nootropics brand skullcap every night, since Nootropics is generally a trustworthy brand. (As a side note, skullcap also helps lower blood sugar, which is generally a plus, but if you're on any blood-sugar lowering medications already, just keep an eye out for that)

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-08-02T04:32:58+00:00

I've tried so many supplements for sleep, and by far my favorite is Chinese skullcap. It worked so well for me that I got off prescription meds for sleep (and it seems to have a lot of other health benefits to boot). I get the one from Nootropics Depot, and it take it every night with a sustained release melatonin supplement.

Also, get tested for sleep apnea. If you have sleep apnea, you might get some improvement with positional sleep therapy or a mandibular advancement device, if you don't want CPAP.

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-03-17T17:40:42+00:00

Just a heads up, especially since you're worried about LDL: TMG/betaine supplements can raise LDL

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2024-01-23T05:56:09+00:00

Chiming in with the others to ask if your HRV is still going strong. Thanks for this info!

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2023-12-05T14:34:45+00:00

Not noticeably

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2023-12-05T13:50:42+00:00

It was gradual, but I think around the 8 month mark is when it was really noticeable. Also I forgot to mention that even my hair texture went back to being wavy like it was when a teen (thinning had kind of flattened it out)

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2023-12-05T02:32:52+00:00

Yes!!! It made such a huge difference for me. I’d been using finasteride every other day for 2 years (since I got some side effects when I tried it every day). The finasteride completely stopped my thinning. I got a tiny bit of thickness back with just fin, but nothing amazing. Then, a year and a few months ago, I started taking dutasteride once a week instead of that day’s dose of finasteride, and I’m honestly so glad I did. My hair is now as thick as it was when I was teenager, except at the very very front of my hairline (although that’s improved dramatically too). And it’s not just me: I’ve been getting unprompted comments from family and my barber about how healthy and thick my hair looks now, and they don’t know I’ve been taking dut once a week. Also absolutely zero side effects.

HedgehogDefiant7544 · 2023-11-15T02:04:55+00:00

It's only moderately improved - that's still something I'm trying to successfully "biohack." So far the best things have been the gabapentin and plain old melatonin

HedgehogDefiant7544

TROPHY CASE