How to take apple cider vinegar

Apple cider vinegar is great for supporting digestion and, as Liz says, is something of a health cure-all!

The cider vinegar stimulates our stomach to produce more acid, which is needed both to breakdown and absorb nutrients from food. Apple cider vinegar has also been proven to reduce the ‘bad’ forms of cholesterol, the sticky sort that can lead to heart disease.

Apple cider vinegar is also great for your gut health and contains fresh apple, which is then fermented into a vinegar by adding an acetic acid bacteria.

Drink it

Whether you’re making your own or buying yours from a shop, add a few teaspoons to a glass of water and drink on an empty stomach about 15 minutes before eating, especially before protein heavy meals.

Looking for a brand to buy? We love Willy’s Apple cider vinegar. The sustainably farmed apples are pressed into an unfiltered and probiotic cider vinegar to help boost the immune system and even help troubled skin. 

Willy’s ACV, willysacv.com, £6.95 for 500ml

Make apple cider vinegar at home

You can make your own apple cider vinegar at home. Once made, the cider vinegar will keep for up to a year!

Ingredients:

• 3 organic eating apples
• 2 tbsp raw honey
• 500ml filtered water at room temperature

Equipment:

• 2 large sterilised jars
• 2 pieces of muslin cloth
• 1 elastic band

Step 1: Cut the apples into quarters, reserving the core and the pips. Put everything in a sterilised jar – it should come up to about halfway.

Step 2: Add the honey and water and stir well – you can top up with more apple is there’s any room.

Step 3: Cover with muslin, secure with the elastic band and leave for one to two weeks, then stir twice a day using a wooden spoon. It should begin to bubble a little and start to smell of alcohol. This is the beginning of the fermentation process. When this happens, move on to the next step.

Step 4: Strain though a nylon sieve into a large clean jug, then transfer to the second sterilised jar. Cover with a clean piece of muslin and secure with an elastic band. Leave for 3-4 weeks. You will begin to see a film form in the jar. Taste it after about a month. If it needs a little longer, leave it, or if it’s too strong add a little filtered water to dilute the taste. When to your liking, strain through a plastic sieve into another clean sterilised jar or bottle.

Chew Apple Cider Gummies

If you’re not a fan of the taste of liquid apple cider vinegar, try the New Nordic Apple Cider Gummies. They are sugar-free, provide the gut-boosting benefits of apple cider vinegar and taste great! We absolutely love them at the Wellbeing studios and are our go-to sweet treat to keep our guts happy. Just take two a day in connection with a meal to reap the benefits.

New Nordic Apple Cider Gummies, newnordic.co.uk, £17.95 for a jar of 60.