I make my own kombucha, my 14 year old son would rather drink that than soda now. I have about 6oz first thing every morning on an empty stomach. It is not for everyone eitheryou love it or hate it lol.

Maybe you reacted to the yeast in the drink.

Try doing a search for "herxheimer reaction" along with "kombucha". It could be that the probiotics from the kombucha initiate a die-off of the bacterica already present in the digestive system. The toxins released from the dying bacteria may be responsible for the intestional woes.

I had this problem with Synergy as well -- multiple times. Felt like food poisoning. After months of testing we finally found it was the tea. I will not drink it again. It was not an initial reaction for me either -- happened every time I drank it for six months.

That happened to me the first time I drank it years ago. I've been drinking GT's or my own brew for years and it's never happened since.

i know people love that stuff, but... it's never gone down well for me. combine that with the awful taste and i just don't get it. you want gut bacteria? eat some kimchi, yogurt or kefir. you want tea? drink tea. ne'r the twain shall meet.

OMG! I just drank not even a 3rd of a bottle of Synergy Gingerade and had to run to the restroom. After reading all the comments above I think this brand mighy have to review their recipe. Don't really know why but definitely this is not a coincidence most of the people has had more or less the same simptoms. No bueno!

I tried brewing my own kombucha from home 2 months ago. I followed the instructions to the letter, and used a starter kit bought from a store. After I brewed my first batch, I let it ferment to carbonate. When I drank it, it tasted great. But a few hours later, I became violently ill and was bedridden for days. Anything I ate would be rushed through me within 2 hours, so I stopped eating anything that didn't help relieve my symptoms. I threw up about 4 times the first night, and I'm not sure if the strain from that caused my neck pain, or something else. I wrote a bit about it in my last blog post at: soluble-fiber[dot]com/2015/08/03/what-you-need-to-know-about-home-brewing-kombucha/ - because of this, I'm sworn off kombucha for good!

The idea that k. is causing a detox reaction that is good for you while simultaneously giving you diarrhea and upsetting your digestion that can last for days seems a little hard to beleive. I only ever get that kind of reaction when taking probiotics like S. bouardii. More likely your digestion and immune system thinks it is being invaded by pathogens (putting all that yeast and bacteria into your small intestine which generally is somewhat sterile compared to the large instenstine). Perhaps eating rotten food will give you the same kind of "toxin" release and a side dose of botulism. If you are constipated that intestinal purge might not be a bad thing but if you generally have good digestion then get the shizzles and nausea and by drinking kombucha I don't really see the point. I think I'll pass and just eat kimchee and yoghurt like usual to get the probiotics without all the yeasts and do a good juice fast once or twice a year for the "toxin" release. I'll trust my gut on this one.

Synergy (GT's) changed their scoby culture it seems in the last couple of years and ever since it's given me diarrhea if I drink it in too large a quantity. I don't recall the dates precisely but they had to pull their product from the shelves (variable alcohol content) and then when it was available again, I noticed the change. I read the label and noticed that they now listed a patented strain of Bacillus Coagulans. Perhaps it helps them control and meet regulations? Well, due to my experience with "Activia" yogurt, I figure these bugs are aimed at most SAD eaters who get constipated, not me who is not only regular but tends to loose stools even. See this article, that's about what I figured. I only drink about a quarter of a bottle at a time now and save the rest for later or to use as a starter for sourdough, sauerkraut, etc.

Totally happened to me! I only had about 3-4 oz, too. The worst part is I'm breastfeeding and my little girl had some horrible toots and an impressively explosive poop right around the time I was a-running to the bathroom.

Your body is going through detox. This is common with consumption. Especially if you are plugged up and/or have some intestinal issues. The probiotics are eating the bad bacteria in your gut and this is the reaction. For most people, it's a good thing. However, for some, Kombucha may not be right due to biochemical individuality. I do suggest you continue and see if the effects diminish, because it could actually be doing wonders for your body.

I hear lots of great things about kombucha but I have to attest that it doesn't agree with my stomach either. I tried the synergy brand and REGRETTED it later on (diarrhea, terrible cramping). it works great for some but clearly not all.

This is a great problem as I'm usually stopped up. Problem is its expensive to get synergy drinks, really like the ginger one. Even when having to go, if I get the urge from kombatcha, my consistency is like rock balls.

Happened to me when I tried probiotics for the first time 2 days ago... Stomach now only feeling normal.

I buy Yogi's Kombucha decaf, and it works in my gut fine, no diarrhea problems (and consider that I have IBS-D).

In the US the evidence supports skepticism toward commercial brands. I know some are excellent, but with these traditional foods/beverages home-made seems the tastiest and healthiest way to go.

YouTube is full of videos by people who've been making the food/beverage forever. You can see and hear whether or not they know what they're doing and whether it's something you want to get involved with.

I brew my own water kefir. Since it's fruit-based, I've had no problems at all but I did follow the advice to start very slowly. Thanks to the kefir, I'm now able to eat yogurt without problems (never could before) so I'm planning to make yogurt at home also.

EDIT: Sheesh! I don't know why I said water kefir is fruit-based. It's brewed in a sugar-water solution or juice and the sugar is consumed during fermentation. Fruit can be used to flavor the kefir in a secondary fermentation.