Thursday, June 5, 2008
Wheat Grass Juice
According to most businesses that sell wheatgrass products, this green liquid extracted from sprouted grain is high in vitamins A, B, C, and E, as well as many amino acids, such as lysine, tryptophane, and phenylalanine. And wheatgrass is 70% chlorophyll (the stuff that makes plants green).
Wheatgrass distributors and health-food advocates claim that it is practically a fountain of youth and has numerous health benefits, such as:
neutralizing toxins and carcinogens in the body
improving blood sugar disorders
helping prevent tooth decay
increasing hemoglobin production
keeping hair from graying
improving digestion
reducing high blood pressure
aiding in the prevention and curing of cancer
These sources also propose that one ounce of wheatgrass juice is equivalent in vitamins, minerals, and amino acids to two and a half pounds of green vegetables.
However, holistic health expert Dr. Andrew Weil points out that there's no evidence to support the claims. Says Dr. Weil:
"I don't recommend its use other than as a source of minerals and vitamins. If you like wheatgrass and it appeals to you, fine. Drink it. But I don't think it's a substitute for 2.5 pounds of vegetables. Besides, I don't like the way it tastes.
In our experience, a straight shot of wheatgrass juice tastes like lawn clippings. For a tastier vitamin drink, try mixing it into a smoothie."
* I agree with Dr. Weil on this - a shot of wheatgrass does taste like lawn clippings. I also agree that it would be best mixed with other fruits to cover up the taste. There are many reasons for eating sprouts. In addition to providing the highest amount of vitamins, minerals, proteins and enzymes of any food per unit of calorie, sprouts deliver them in a form which is easily digested. In fact, sprouts improve the efficiency of digestion. Sprouts are also very fresh and colourful.
Sprouting at home takes only a few moments a day and can produce a good portion of your daily requirements of the nutrients you need from fresh produce. The hassles are minor, the costs are low, and the freshness is wonderful. It is a very effective way to add raw foods to your diet. If you can supply a jar, some screen or netting, and rinse the sprouts twice a day, you can grow delicious organic sprouts in 4 to 6 days, even less time depending on your setup.
Growing your own sprouts means having fresh organic vegetables every day from a square foot of counter space. Common seeds for sprouting include alfalfa, fenugreek, peas, lentils, radish and red clover. Mung beans have been sprouted in Asia for thousands of years, but they require more equipment and time than other seeds. Other seeds include broccoli, cabbage, mustard seed, garbanzos, and quinoa.
Benefits of sprouting
Growing sprouts is economical. Seeds can multiply 8-15 times their weight. Depending on what you grow, you can get away with spending 25 cents for a pound of fresh sprouted indoor-grown organic greens.
Sprouts are nutritious. They are baby plants in their prime. They have a greater concentration of vitamins and minerals, proteins, enzymes, phytochemicals, anti-oxidants, nitrosamines, trace minerals, bioflavinoids and chemo-protectants such as sulphoraphane and isoflavone which work against toxins, resist cell mutation and invigorate the body's immune system than at any other point in the plant's life even when compared with the mature vegetable.
Sprouts are organic. No pesticides, fumigants or synthetic fertilizers. No
chemicals.
Sprouts can be grown anytime anywhere. Growing sprouts is easy and takes only a few minutes of care per day. Just add water. No special lights are required. 1 pound can grow in only 12 inches of space depending on how you are setup.
Sprouts are fresh, LIVING foods. No loss of nutrients sitting in warehouses or on grocery store's shelves.
Sprouts are easily digestible. Because they are baby plants, their delicate cell walls easily release elemental nutrients. Abundant enzymes make them easy to digest even for those with a weak digestion.
Growing sprouts offers you versatility. You can have more varieties of salad greens than on the grocery store shelves. Including buckwheat lettuce, garlic chives, baby sunflower, golden alfalfa, Chinese cabbage, purple turnip, curly kale, daikon radish, crimson clover, and more. Your salads will come alive.
Growing sprouts is ecologically sound. No airplanes, fuel or oil was consumed to deliver this food to you. No synthetic fertilizers or petroleum-based pesticides.
There have been a few recent news stories regarding salmonella contamination in sprouts. These have been combined with warnings from the Food and Drug Administration that sprouts could be contaminated with food poisoning bacteria and advising the very old, the very young, and those with compromised immune systems to avoid raw sprouts.
Most people knowledgeable in sprouting feel that these stories were far overblown because it made interesting news - it's the original "health food might be bad for you" story.
What can you do to be extra safe in your sprouting?
Use certified organic seeds. Organic certification assures that seeds have been grown and handled in a manner which helps minimize possible sources of contamination. Manure used on organic fields, for example, must be composted for a long period of time. Composting has been shown to reduce or eliminate pathogens in manure. Organic farmers are also required to use rodent/bird proof storage for seeds destined for consumption.Also refrigerate finished sprouts. Ideally you want to eat them the day they are mature or soon thereafter. *See the videos posted re sprouting and wheatgrass.
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Healthy Eating
Me with my mom in the garden 40+ years ago
