What is raw apple cider vinegar

Raw Apple Cider Vinegar: Learn How to Make This Elixir at Home

Apple cider vinegar is one of those ingredients that never goes out of fashion. It’s used in cooking, cleaning, for self-care, as a health tonic and much more. It’s health benefits are numerous and while the store-brand stuff is great, perhaps it’s time you learned how to make apple cider vinegar at home.

Why Make Apple Cider Vinegar At Home?

While making apple cider vinegar doesn’t require any special cooking skills, you will need patience to let it ferment. Aside from it being a fun activity, you’ll end up with an incredibly flavourful apple cider vinegar that tastes like nothing you’ve had before.

Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar

There are two types of apple cider vinegar: the raw variety and the filtered/pasteurised vinegar. We are interested in the former for its medicinal properties.

Raw apple cider vinegar, which is to say the uncooked, unfiltered vinegar that still contains the mother (that’s the good bacteria), is beloved by health nuts. Its many health benefits include improving digestion, aiding in weight loss, curing candida and even soothing a sore throat (if gargled).

Beauty-conscious foodies will be glad to know apple cider vinegar is also great applied as a toner after washing the face, as this gives the skin a smoother texture. Rinsing shampooed hair with apple cider vinegar also gives a nice shine.

Here’s a really cool recipe from Holistic Fashionista that doubles as a health tonic you can drink every morning:

Check out these other incredible uses for apple cider vinegar.

How To Make Apple Cider Vinegar at Home

Prepare yourself ahead of time and procure sterilised jars, lids, a bit of cheesecloth and rubber bands. Try this quick recipe:

1 lb (453g) organic apples
3 teaspoons of sugar
Enough spring water to cover

Wash the apples and chop them into quarters (skin and all). Place the apple pieces in a large jar. Sprinkle in the sugar and fill the jar with enough spring water to cover the apples. Cover the jar with cheesecloth and a rubber band (which will allow the gas to escape).

Stash the jar in a dark cupboard anywhere from two to six weeks, depending on the desired strength. Strain to remove the solids and you’ve got the ultimate homemade apple cider vinegar.

This method for making apple cider vinegar is also successful:

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Homemade Raw Apple Cider Vinegar Recipe

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No ferment could be easier than homemade raw apple cider vinegar! The result is one of the best natural remedies featured in 5 Health Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar & 50+ Unique Ways to Use It!

Each fall, where I live, in the Pacific Northwest, there is one good fruit that always goes to waste: apples!

No matter how much people love them, there are still too many. Apple branches hover over their fallen fruit, destined to decompose and feed the scavengers.

My solution? Gallons of homemade apple cider vinegar!

No ferment could be easier. The result is delicious and healthy!

How do you make homemade raw apple cider vinegar?

Many people save up their apple scraps! If you don’t have a bounty of free or inexpensive apples, apple cider vinegar (ACV for short) can be made from apple cores and peels.

Or, whole chopped up apples can be used.

Either way, we combine apples with sugar or honey and water, place the ferment in a warm spot, and wait about 6 weeks.

The hardest part is the waiting.

How much ACV does each batch make?

This recipe produces about 3-1/2 cups of ACV.

But not a lot of measuring is required, so you can make a really big batch without too much more work. You’ll just need more apples and more time to chop them.

Or, you’ll need to save up more cores and apple peels.

Feel free to double, triple, or quadruple this recipe!

Does ACV keep well?

Yes! Once your ACV is made, it is true vinegar, a preserved product. Apple cider vinegar lasts indefinitely at room temperature.

What are some tips to ensure my apple cider vinegar will turn out well?

The most important tips follow:

• As with all ferments, make sure your cutting board, knives, and jars are clean and sterile.
• Keep your ferment warm. Use either a seed mat, a yogurt maker, or, as you’ll see in the photos below, your Instant Pot with steamer insert on the Yogurt setting.

A seed mat is the best option for multiple jars, but any warm spot will do.

Does raw apple cider vinegar have any documented health benefits?

Yes, the acetic acid found in apple cider vinegar has been shown to affect obesity, skin pH, and digestion:

• One study showed that daily intake of vinegar might contribute to weight loss.
• Another study found that ACV improved blood sugar and insulin levels.
• Apple cider vinegar hair rinses help restore the scalp’s and hair’s natural pH balance. (Most hair products aren’t the right pH for the scalp and hair, usually too far on the base side of the pH scale. DIY ACV-based conditioners are slightly acidic.)
• Regarding digestion, apple cider vinegar improves digestion by increasing stomach acid production. ACV may also help the liver to detoxify. (Source.)
• ACV can have multiple antimicrobial effects against various microbial species. (Source.)

How to consume my apple cider vinegar?

• Here’s a basic apple cider vinegar drink recipe. This beverage can be enjoyed before meals or at the start of each day.
• You can also enjoy switchels: Try Mixed Berry Switchel and Strawberry-Basil Switchel.
• Enjoy as a hot beverage to fight colds in this Apple Cider Vinegar, Honey, Garlic and Lemon Drink.

Note: Apple Cider Vinegar should not be consumed undiluted or applied to the skin undiluted.

What are some common uses for raw apple cider vinegar?

Apple cider vinegar is used not only for hair rinses and to amend the stomach pH. Here are some additional recipes you may enjoy:

• Make Hot and Spicy Tonic to boost the immune system.
• Use it to neutralize phytic acid in grains.
• Enjoy in bath water for a detox bath and to benefit skin health. Learn how here.
• For use after shampoo, make a DIY hair rinse here.
• Find Sunburn Relief Spray here.
• Here are some tips and recipes for cleaning your home with apple cider vinegar.
• Use apple cider vinegar if you raise goats. Here’s how.

Homemade Raw Apple Cider Vinegar Recipe

Fill your Mason jar(s) 3/4 of the way with apples or apple scraps.

Stir sugar or honey into warm water until dissolved.

Pour sweetened water over the apples. Leave 2 to 3 inches of room at the top of the jar.

Cover with cheesecloth, thin fabric, or coffee filter and a rubber band or Mason jar screw-top lid.

Set in a warm, dark place for 2 weeks. Use either a seed mat, a yogurt maker, or your Instant Pot with steamer insert on the Yogurt setting (as pictured above). You can also simply place it on a warm surface and cover with a tea towel. The smell is wonderful during this process!

After 2 weeks, strain out the solids, pressing on them gently to extract extra liquid.

(Taste the vinegar at this point. It is super delicious!! It’s basically a fermented apple cider!)

With the solids removed, you will be able to ferment in a smaller jar. Cover with fresh cheesecloth.

Set the fermenting cider in a warm, dark place for about 4 weeks.

The apple cider vinegar is complete when it has a strong apple cider vinegar smell and taste. Allow to ferment longer, if not.

Also, don’t be alarmed if you notice a mother culture forming on top. This is normal!

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Can Apple Cider Vinegar Fix Constipation, Bloating And Gas?

Apple cider vinegar is often touted as a cure for all manner of ills, many of which are myths. Discover what the science says, and some little known, but important risks!

A viral meme on Facebook recently claimed that gargling warm water and vinegar would eliminate the currently circulating coronavirus, a wild claim that was quickly shut down by medical professionals. But it’s perhaps not so surprising to read about such nonsense.

After all, this popular folk remedy for everything from gas to brittle hair has been used to treat anything from wounds to thirst, and even respiratory diseases in the past. Even the Romans used to soak bread in vinegar, believing that eating vinegar aided digestion.

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However, apple cider vinegar is very much a fringe topic in research, and there aren’t many studies on its uses for health. Furthermore, existing studies often looked at very small groups of people which means the results are less scalable to the overall population. So let’s see what the science really says about vinegar and digestion.

Apple cider vinegar for gas

Question	Scientific reality
Does apple cider vinegar help with gas?	Probably not
Does apple cider vinegar cause gas?	Probably not

Is apple cider vinegar good for gas? Some websites tout apple cider vinegar as a miracle cure-all, but there is absolutely no scientific evidence that taking apple cider vinegar for digestion problems is effective.

In our attempt to verify this myth, we found a 2007 study that investigated whether apple cider vinegar could improve the symptoms of gastroparesis (delayed emptying of food from the stomach into the intestines), a problem that affects people with type I diabetes.

Apple cider vinegar is a product of fermentation

When food doesn’t move swiftly from the stomach to the intestines, it causes a lot of symptoms, including bloating and abdominal distension — this makes this study a good candidate to investigate whether ACV works for bloating.

The researchers found that apple cider vinegar actually made the symptoms worse, calling into question the credibility of recommending apple cider vinegar for indigestion and gas.

Taking vinegar for gas may have a placebo effect at best, but apple cider vinegar digestion remedies probably won’t work.

Apple cider vinegar for constipation and bloating

Question	Scientific reality
Does apple cider vinegar help with bloating?	Probably not
Does apple cider vinegar cause bloating?	Probably not

Proponents of apple cider vinegar claim that it acts as a mild laxative, speeding up gastric movements to move food along and out of the body, but there is simply no evidence supporting this claim. That’s right, there are no studies evaluating the effectiveness of apple cider vinegar for constipation.

Constipation is defined as fewer than three bowel movements a week, and while occasional constipation is common, some people experience chronic constipation due to underlying medical conditions. It’s not unusual to feel bloated when constipation strikes.

Vinegar is a condiment, not a digestive cure-all

Fortunately, constipation can often be resolved by simple lifestyle changes, not ACV. Drink more water, get daily exercise, and make sure you consume at least 30g of fiber every day. What’s more, all these changes will naturally contribute to overall wellbeing and a healthy environment for your gut bacteria!

To date, no direct links between ACV and constipation relief have been found in published scientific articles.

Apple cider vinegar for detoxing and digestion

Question	Scientific reality
What does apple cider vinegar do to your stomach?	Probably nothing much, stomach acid is stronger
Is apple cider vinegar good for your stomach?	It’s not good or bad, but the acidity can burn your oesophagus and damage teeth.
Is apple cider vinegar good for digestion?	Apple cider vinegar is not a suitable or effective replacement for your stomach’s natural enzymes and gastric juices.

Advocates for apple cider vinegar claim it helps ‘detox’ the body. The truth is that you don’t need a detox because your body does it naturally when you follow a healthy lifestyle. Your gut is actually a happy, healthy, and efficient system on its own, and it is nourished by fibre, prebiotics, and probiotics from food or supplements.

They also claim that ACV enzymes could help you digest food. However, apple cider vinegar doesn’t contain digestive enzymes. Your stomach produces its own digestive enzymes, creating an environment for digestion that is about 100 times more acidic than apple cider vinegar.

Vinegar is made by a fermentation process. Yeast is added to water and crushed apples. The yeast feed on the sugars in the liquid and ferment it into alcohol. This alcohol is then converted to acetic acid by bacteria. The end product is a liquid with at least 4% of acetic acid, the key ingredient that produces the tangy, sour taste of vinegar.

Your gut bacteria also help break down food. Nourish them with plant foods and dietary fibers to support a healthy colon.

Is apple cider vinegar good for your stomach?

What causes acid reflux and how to solve it?

So, to answer the question, «what does apple cider vinegar do to your stomach», the answer is probably nothing much. As with many other claims, there is no published scientific evidence supporting the use of apple cider vinegar for stomach reflux issues.

Apple cider vinegar for Irritable Bowel Syndrome

There are no published scientific papers supporting the use of apple cider vinegar for IBS. That is the long and short version. In essence, there is no evidence that consuming apple cider vinegar will do anything for irritable bowel syndrome.

Furthermore, as previously discussed, there are specific risks that you incur by consuming apple cider vinegar as a «cure» — like digestive tract burns. Or you could simply be spending your money on supplements that have no real medical benefit.

Apple cider vinegar and weight loss

A handful of experiments have associated ACV intake with weight loss in overweight and obese people. However, these studies are early and there is insufficient evidence to produce a consensus in the scientific community. Weight loss, if any, is probably mediated by its effect on blood lipid levels.

A link between weight loss and gut bacteria?

Another study found that ACV caused weight loss in rats and was associated with changes in their gut bacteria: less Firmicutes and more Bacteroides. Multiple studies in humans have found a link between a low BMI and a low Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio in the gut. It remains unknown whether ACV can indeed cause such an effect in humans.

Apple cider vinegar and diabetes

Fascinatingly, some early studies indicate that ACV was effective at controlling blood glucose levels in diabetic rats. A small handful of studies have been done in humans, and the main conclusions were that ACV is more effective at controlling blood glucose in healthy individuals than in pre-diabetic or diabetic individuals.

Apple cider vinegar will not protect you from COVID-19

For the general population, these findings change nothing. ACV is not currently recommended for diabetes due to the lack of information on how it affects blood sugar levels, and it should not be used as a substitute for medication.

Is apple cider vinegar a probiotic?

Some websites claim that apple cider vinegar helps digestion and the ecosystem of bacteria in your gut (also known as the microbiome) because it is a prebiotic and probiotic.

Prebiotics are sources of sustenance for “good” bacteria, and probiotic is the name given to the actual “good bacteria”.

However, to claim that ACV is both a prebiotic and a probiotic is not really true. Prebiotics are specific food particles that pass through the stomach undigested and are munched on by gut bacteria in your intestinal microbiome.

Prebiotic?

Apples (the fruit) and ACV are a source of prebiotic dietary fibre known as pectin, but you’ll get much more pectin from the fruit than a thimble of ACV. Not to mention that whole apples contain a range of phytonutrients that are equally beneficial for your body and gut microbes.

Probiotic?

Apple cider vinegar will still contain bacteria if it’s «raw» or «live», but that doesn’t make it a probiotic. Only a handful of bacteria and yeasts have earned this title thanks to their proven effects on human health.

Question	Scientific reality
Is apple cider vinegar a probiotic?	No
Will apple cider vinegar affect probiotics?	Unclear. Many probiotics are able to survive stomach acidity. ACV is much less acidic.
Does apple cider vinegar kill probiotics?	Probiotic bacteria can be more or less resistant to acidity. Take them separately to be safe.
Is apple cider vinegar a probiotic?	Only if it’s raw. Please try yoghurt or kefir instead.

Some sources claim that the acetic acid in ACV (which is the common ingredient in all vinegars, not just ACV) is good for your gut because it kills the harmful bacteria. This is a common misconception. As we mentioned earlier, your stomach acid is much more potent that acetic acid.

Your body is a complex system. Eating or drinking anything with the aim of ‘disinfecting’ or ‘detoxifying’ yourself is a very bad idea.

By the way, you naturally harbour trillions of bacteria, many of which live in your gut microbiome. Fibre, prebiotics, and probiotics positively alter your gut microbiome by subtly encouraging the growth of beneficial bacteria, such that these bacteria out-compete other species and grow in population.

Antibiotics, which are designed to fight off acute infections, indiscriminately wipe out huge populations of both “good” and “bad” bacteria. That’s why prolonged use of antibiotics is discouraged.

Should I drink apple cider vinegar or take supplements?

ACV is acidic enough to damage your teeth. That’s why most people who drink it dilute apple cider vinegar with warm water. Interestingly, the supplements market, which is poorly regulated, often touts ACV tablets as having extremely high concentrations of acetic acid.

Your digestive tract wants real food, not vinegar

A scientific study inspected these tablets and found that they contained drastically less (up to 10x less) acetic acid than advertised! This is actually a relief, as any concentration exceeding 20% is strong enough to cause acid burns in your digestive tract, which increases the risk of esophageal cancer. This alone is fair warning against any purported apple cider vinegar digestion benefits.

Side effects of apple cider vinegar

Consuming large amounts of ACV is associated with a variety of side effects, such as low potassium and blood sugar levels:

Apple cider vinegar can decrease potassium levels in people taking certain heart medications and common diuretics.

ACV may also interact with diabetes medications (insulin or insulin-stimulating medication) and harmfully lower blood sugar and potassium levels.

The final word on ACV

Do yourself a favour and ignore exhortations from the internet to use apple cider vinegar for stomach gas, or any other apple cider vinegar bloating remedies.

Apple cider vinegar isn’t the only myth we’ve debunked. If you’re considering doing a colon cleanse or following a blood type or lectin-free diet, please check out our articles.

If you want some real science, take the Atlas Microbiome Test and discover what you should eat for gut microbial health based on actual research. Our test was developed by scientists and doctors based on the most up-to-date findings in this field.

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