Effect of Green Tea Kombucha Within an Energy-Restricted Diet on Cardiometabolic Risk Markers in Individuals With Excess Body Weight: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Green tea kombucha is a fermented beverage notable for its rich content of bioactive compounds, yet it remains underexplored. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of green tea kombucha consumption, in combination with an energy-restricted diet, on traditional cardiometabolic risk markers in individuals with excess weight. This is a randomized controlled clinical trial in which 59 individuals with excess body weight (BMI >27 kg/m2) were distributed into two parallel experimental groups: the control group, which followed an energy-restricted diet (-500 kcal/day), and the kombucha group, which followed the same energy-restricted diet + daily consumption of green tea kombucha (200 mL/day) for 10 weeks. At the end of the study, participants in the kombucha group showed a significant reduction in total cholesterol (p = 0.024), LDL-c (p = 0.035), VLDL-c (p = 0.011), triglycerides (p = 0.012), Castelli index II (p = 0.002), and uric acid (p = 0.027) compared to baseline. Both groups (control and kombucha) significantly reduced Castelli index I (p = 0.015 and p = 0.007, respectively) and HOMA-β (p = 0.019 and p < 0.001, respectively) after the intervention. Only the control group showed a significant increase in glycated hemoglobin (within reference values) compared to pre-intervention (p = 0.004). Furthermore, men in the kombucha group showed a significant reduction in glycated hemoglobin compared to men in the control group (p = 0.010). However, in the total sample (Δ = final - initial), no significant differences were found between the control and kombucha groups (p > 0.05) for any evaluated marker. In conclusion, the consumption of green tea kombucha, when combined with an energy-restricted diet, shows promising cardiometabolic benefits in individuals with excess body weight.