Many say that glucuronic acid is the most important factor while others believe that acetic acid plays a role also. It is quite possible that several of the factors have to be present at the same time to make K.T. the beneficial remedy it is - similar to the way many medicinal plants work. Since we are lacking long-term studies and tests, it is my strong opinion that we should always have an ongoing culture using the standard recipe and that any experimentation should be done parallel to that. Since we don't know what adding new bacteria like acidophilus, substituting or supplementing black or green tea with other teas having high amounts of essential oils or using flavoring agents like ginger will do to the culture long-term, we can only go by what we know about microorganisms and their behavior. Whenever several different populations of microorganisms co-exist, you often have survival of the fittest or survival of the ones that get along the best.
Many times there is a rather delicate balance between the different organisms and the environment.
Change any of the factors and the individual populations of the various organisms may be affected - temporarily or permanently. Usually they live together happily and harmoniously without causing any harm. Some of them are opportunistic microorganisms that may be dangerous if they were given free reign. But the environment including our body defenses and other microorganisms hold them in check. Pretty scary when you see the list for the first time.