Green Superfoods and the Power of Protein
by Lindsey Duncan, N.D., C.N.
As seen in Healthy & Natural Journal
I firmly believe in the power of green superfoods and use them extensively at my clinic in Santa Monica. The most common green superfoods include Chlorella, Spirulina, Blue-Green Algae, Wheat grass, Barley grass, Alfalfa and Kamut. All of these superfoods are powerful in their own right, with each substance containing comprehensive nutritional properties unique to their species. Microalgae, one of the oldest life forms on Earth, were the building blocks upon which all other life depended. These powerful plants have flourished on our planet for three and a half billion years, surviving severe change and transformation as Mother Earth aged and evolved.
The fact that algae species are still growing and thriving today lends serious weight to its hardiness, powerful genetic make-up and cellular superiority. Cereal grasses are also categorized as green superfoods, and though they are not as old as algae, their nutrient make-up is every bit as powerful.
Green superfoods are rich and potent sources of enzymatically alive nutrients that include vitamins, minerals, trace minerals, cell salts, antioxidants, fiber, protein, RNA, DNA, essential amino acids and more. Chlorophyll, the lifeblood of green superfoods, holds therapeutic wonders for humans due to its molecular structure closely resembling hemoglobin, the protein of human red blood cells. I use green superfoods in my practice to help boost and strengthen the immune system, increase energy levels, improve stamina, combat fatigue, add alkalinity to over-acid systems, improve mental powers and more. I have found green superfoods to be very effective in therapeutic doses for immune related health disorders such as Epstein-Barr Virus, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis, Mononucleosis, Candida and more. At Home Nutrition many of the clients I consult with complain of digestive and malabsorption problems. I have worked with thousands of individuals that have come to me on expensive supplement programs, yet were not feeling any positive effects. After working with them I discovered digestive problems, i.e., they were not absorbing and assimilating the expensive nutrients they were ingesting. I have found that this poses a difficult problem - the digestive powers of the body, having gotten off-track, may continue to go on underfunctioning.
Individuals that have chronic health disorders are in special need of nutrient support, yet in many cases are unable to properly assimilate these nutrients into the body. I have seen hundreds of clients that reported whole vitamin tablets passing undigested in their bowel movements. It is with these cases in particular that my use of green superfoods has brought me incredible results!
Barley, Grass Juice, and Wheat Grass Juice
- Best if taken from young plants 4" to 10" in height.
- Approximately 3 calories per gram.
- Approximately 16% crude fiber and 22% high-quality vegetable protein.
- Contains approximately 32 milligrams of potassium per gram.
- An excellent chlorophyll source.
- Helps to neutralize and remove toxins.
- Good natural source of calcium.
- A rich source of natural enzymes and antioxidants.
- Promotes peristaltic movement.
- United States-grown wheat and barley grasses have twice the nutritional level of green barley grown in Japan.
Kelp
- A sea vegetable.
- A naturally-occuring source of sodium, which helps a person maintain the correct water balance in the body and cells.
- Rich in natural chelated minerals (approximately 28%).
- Excellent source of fiber.
Dulse
- A sea vegetable.
- A naturally-occurring source of lithium, which helps a person maintain a sense of wellness and direction.
- Rich in naturally chelated minerals from the ocean (aproximately 28%).
- Good source of fiber.
- A fat-free food.
Clients that suffer from malabsorption, clients that lack an abundance of digestive discomfort, bloating and gas can all benefit from the nutrient-dense properties contained in green superfoods. Unlike synthetic vitamin and mineral tablets, superfoods are easily digested and absorbed by the human body. They contain perfect nutrients for people of all ages, but are especially beneficial to those battling chronic health problems and digestive disorders. I also strongly recommend them to all of my elderly clients as a superior method of supplementation due to the common decrease in digestive enzymes and stomach acids that the body experiences with aging. I consult with many individuals that complain of fatigue and low energy levels. I use green superfoods therapeutically with this type of health complaint, along with B vitamins and various other natural support nutrients. I see many parents, all of which are concerned about the sometimes poor dietary habits of their children. I always suggest that they supplement their children's diet with green superfoods. It is very hard to insure that children eat properly in our modern, fast-food world, and I like to counteract negative dietary effects with green superfoods. In fact, according to the National Center for Health Statistics, only nine percent of all individuals eat the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Green superfoods are a natural solution to the typical nutrient depleted diet of both children and adults.
Another type of individual that benefits greatly from green superfoods is the athlete - professional or otherwise. I recommend green superfoods to all of my physically active clients due to their important needs for protein, i.e., muscle food. Pound for pound, green superfoods provide the easiest to digest and most biological available protein of any food on earth. Green superfood protein content ranges from fifty to seventy-five percent, with absorption percentages at ninety percent. In comparison, beef contains eighteen percent protein, dried skim milk contains thirty-five, soybeans contain forty and eggs contain forty-five percent protein. Keep in mind that the protein absorption of this comparison category falls far below the ninety-percentile range.
As a nutritionist, using green superfoods with clients in a clinical setting since 1985, the benefits and results I have experienced with these powerful nutrients continue to amaze me... benefits which may not make it into the medical journals for another twenty to fifty years. Research into the power of green superfoods has only just begun in this country, but significant research has already been done in Japan and Taiwan. (See Chlorella: Gem of the Orient, by Dr. Bernard Jensen, PH.D., for a summary of some of the research performed.) Myself and the four staff nutritionists at Home Nutrition personally use and recommend a combination green superfood formula, preferring to take advantage of the unique nutritional benefits offered by each individual superfood. The Formula also contains cruciferous vegetables, syner-gistic herbs and digestive enzymes to further facili-tate digestion and absorption.
In closing I strongly recommend that green superfoods be included in people's diets precisely because they are concentrated, vegetarian sources of live nutrients. Green superfoods exemplify nature and creation at its finest, using the magic of photosynthesis to transform energy from the sun, water and carbon dioxide into simple carbohydrates and oxygen to help create a powerhouse source of easily digested vegetarian nutrients.
Sources
Healthy Healing by Linda Rector-Page. Nutrition News, Vol. 5, No. 8
I firmly believe in the power of green superfoods and use them extensively at my clinic in Santa Monica. The most common green superfoods include Chlorella, Spirulina, Blue-Green Algae, Wheat grass, Barley grass, Alfalfa and Kamut. All of these superfoods are powerful in their own right, with each substance containing comprehensive nutritional properties unique to their species. Microalgae, one of the oldest life forms on Earth, were the building blocks upon which all other life depended. These powerful plants have flourished on our planet for three and a half billion years, surviving severe change and transformation as Mother Earth aged and evolved.
The fact that algae species are still growing and thriving today lends serious weight to its hardiness, powerful genetic make-up and cellular superiority. Cereal grasses are also categorized as green superfoods, and though they are not as old as algae, their nutrient make-up is every bit as powerful.
Green superfoods are rich and potent sources of enzymatically alive nutrients that include vitamins, minerals, trace minerals, cell salts, antioxidants, fiber, protein, RNA, DNA, essential amino acids and more. Chlorophyll, the lifeblood of green superfoods, holds therapeutic wonders for humans due to its molecular structure closely resembling hemoglobin, the protein of human red blood cells. I use green superfoods in my practice to help boost and strengthen the immune system, increase energy levels, improve stamina, combat fatigue, add alkalinity to over-acid systems, improve mental powers and more. I have found green superfoods to be very effective in therapeutic doses for immune related health disorders such as Epstein-Barr Virus, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis, Mononucleosis, Candida and more. At Home Nutrition many of the clients I consult with complain of digestive and malabsorption problems. I have worked with thousands of individuals that have come to me on expensive supplement programs, yet were not feeling any positive effects. After working with them I discovered digestive problems, i.e., they were not absorbing and assimilating the expensive nutrients they were ingesting. I have found that this poses a difficult problem - the digestive powers of the body, having gotten off-track, may continue to go on underfunctioning.
Individuals that have chronic health disorders are in special need of nutrient support, yet in many cases are unable to properly assimilate these nutrients into the body. I have seen hundreds of clients that reported whole vitamin tablets passing undigested in their bowel movements. It is with these cases in particular that my use of green superfoods has brought me incredible results!
Barley, Grass Juice, and Wheat Grass Juice
- Best if taken from young plants 4" to 10" in height.
- Approximately 3 calories per gram.
- Approximately 16% crude fiber and 22% high-quality vegetable protein.
- Contains approximately 32 milligrams of potassium per gram.
- An excellent chlorophyll source.
- Helps to neutralize and remove toxins.
- Good natural source of calcium.
- A rich source of natural enzymes and antioxidants.
- Promotes peristaltic movement.
- United States-grown wheat and barley grasses have twice the nutritional level of green barley grown in Japan.
Kelp
- A sea vegetable.
- A naturally-occuring source of sodium, which helps a person maintain the correct water balance in the body and cells.
- Rich in natural chelated minerals (approximately 28%).
- Excellent source of fiber.
Dulse
- A sea vegetable.
- A naturally-occurring source of lithium, which helps a person maintain a sense of wellness and direction.
- Rich in naturally chelated minerals from the ocean (aproximately 28%).
- Good source of fiber.
- A fat-free food.
Clients that suffer from malabsorption, clients that lack an abundance of digestive discomfort, bloating and gas can all benefit from the nutrient-dense properties contained in green superfoods. Unlike synthetic vitamin and mineral tablets, superfoods are easily digested and absorbed by the human body. They contain perfect nutrients for people of all ages, but are especially beneficial to those battling chronic health problems and digestive disorders. I also strongly recommend them to all of my elderly clients as a superior method of supplementation due to the common decrease in digestive enzymes and stomach acids that the body experiences with aging. I consult with many individuals that complain of fatigue and low energy levels. I use green superfoods therapeutically with this type of health complaint, along with B vitamins and various other natural support nutrients. I see many parents, all of which are concerned about the sometimes poor dietary habits of their children. I always suggest that they supplement their children's diet with green superfoods. It is very hard to insure that children eat properly in our modern, fast-food world, and I like to counteract negative dietary effects with green superfoods. In fact, according to the National Center for Health Statistics, only nine percent of all individuals eat the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Green superfoods are a natural solution to the typical nutrient depleted diet of both children and adults.
Another type of individual that benefits greatly from green superfoods is the athlete - professional or otherwise. I recommend green superfoods to all of my physically active clients due to their important needs for protein, i.e., muscle food. Pound for pound, green superfoods provide the easiest to digest and most biological available protein of any food on earth. Green superfood protein content ranges from fifty to seventy-five percent, with absorption percentages at ninety percent. In comparison, beef contains eighteen percent protein, dried skim milk contains thirty-five, soybeans contain forty and eggs contain forty-five percent protein. Keep in mind that the protein absorption of this comparison category falls far below the ninety-percentile range.
As a nutritionist, using green superfoods with clients in a clinical setting since 1985, the benefits and results I have experienced with these powerful nutrients continue to amaze me... benefits which may not make it into the medical journals for another twenty to fifty years. Research into the power of green superfoods has only just begun in this country, but significant research has already been done in Japan and Taiwan. (See Chlorella: Gem of the Orient, by Dr. Bernard Jensen, PH.D., for a summary of some of the research performed.) Myself and the four staff nutritionists at Home Nutrition personally use and recommend a combination green superfood formula, preferring to take advantage of the unique nutritional benefits offered by each individual superfood. The Formula also contains cruciferous vegetables, syner-gistic herbs and digestive enzymes to further facili-tate digestion and absorption.
In closing I strongly recommend that green superfoods be included in people's diets precisely because they are concentrated, vegetarian sources of live nutrients. Green superfoods exemplify nature and creation at its finest, using the magic of photosynthesis to transform energy from the sun, water and carbon dioxide into simple carbohydrates and oxygen to help create a powerhouse source of easily digested vegetarian nutrients.
Sources
Healthy Healing by Linda Rector-Page. Nutrition News, Vol. 5, No. 8
