No, I don't recall straining anything when I used her starter. John G is referring to the kefir grains, which are a bit different. From what I understand ( and I am no expert ) the grains are a little better because they have more strains of flora, and you can use them forever ( provided you care for them properly ). The Body ecology is made from a starter- I'm not too sure the advantages of that, unless it is in ease of use. I'm a bit afraid of the grains myself because It sounds a bit tricky to master to me. I'm sure I could get used to it though- lol. I hope you have good results with hers. I used it for about 6 months quite a while back, but then I became allergic to it ( like I do most things :-) It' hard to say if it would have helped because it takes quite a long time, and many efforts to get over this when it's gotten so bad, such as in my case. I just keep trudging along :P