Algae: A Superfood

Algae has many distinct sizes, colors, shapes, and growth forms. Its cellular makeup can go from one cell to millions of cells, depending on the type. Colors can be blue-green, green, brown, golden-brown, fire, red, and yellow-green. Algae is a nutritional powerhouse greatly needed nowadays as our soils face a level of depletion that didn’t exist in the past. Both NASA and the United Nations uphold that algae contains 1,000 times more nutrients than any other fruit or vegetable.

Overall Algae Nutrition

Algae offers a wide array of nutrients (as listed at dr.axe.com) which vary depending on the type of algae/seaweed:

• Protein and amino acids, up to 60 percent protein by dry weight
• Vitamins A (beta-carotene), C (ascorbic acid), E and K
• Many of the B-complex vitamins, including B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B6 (pyridoxine), choline, biotin, niacin, folic acid, pantothenic acid and B12 (cobalamin)
• Minerals and trace minerals, including iodine, calcium, chloride, chromium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, phosphorus, sodium and zinc
• Omega-3 fatty acids, including EPA, DHA, GLA and ALA
• Active enzymes
• Phytochemicals like chlorophyll, fucoxanthin, and other plant pigments

Algae’s Health Benefits

Algae’s health benefits are numerous. Algae can help with weight loss, cancer, heart health, inflammation and pain, brain health, mitochondria health, cholesterol, heavy metal detox, and stem cell proliferation. The most consumed algae and seaweeds include: arame, bladderwrack, blue spirulina, chlorella, dulse, hijiki, kelp, kombu, nori, ogo, and wakame. 

On a Final Note

I enjoy consuming chlorella and spirulina tablets on a regular basis. They are easy to take along as a snack during the day instead of greens (as mentioned in a previous post) and clearly give a nice amount of nutrients. I also enjoy using Dr. Cowan’s Garden sea vegetable powder (to sprinkle on various dishes) and Oceans Alive, which contains two marine phytoplankton strains, high in nutrient density. Consuming various types of algae helps a great deal in getting the right amount of nutrients each day. Give it a try!

Until next time!

References

Asprey, D. (2023, June 28). Algae: Why this Superfood is an Insider Secret for Longevity. Dave Asprey. https://daveasprey.com/algae-why-this-superfood-is-an-insider-secret-for-longevity/

Price, A. (2016, November 23). Top 7 Algae Benefits that May Surprise You. Dr. Axe.    https://draxe.com/nutrition/algae-benefits/

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