The benefit of wheatgrass
By Stephen Allen
and Greg Spaulding

Part one of two

Wheatgrass juice. That little cup of dark green juice pressed from young wheat plants can be found at virtually any heath store and juice bar. In recent years, wheatgrass juice has become one of the more popular diet foods available.

However, many people cringe at the thought of consuming one ounce of this "miracle food" and will instead turn to their coffee and pastries. Whether it’s because of its pungent taste, or its seemingly undesirable color, chances are most of you have never consumed wheatgrass juice. I’m here to tell you that whether you’ve never thought of sampling it, you just flat out refuse to give it a try, wheatgrass juice is extremely beneficial not only as food, but as an overall tonic for various ailments.

Wheatgrass is grown through a process known as sprouting. Sprouts are "complete foods" because they contain all other essential dietary nutrients, along with the enzymes to help assimilate them. They are easily digested and enter the bloodstream quickly. The nutrients in wheatgrass juice are completely assimilated by the human body in 20 minutes. For this reason sprouts are "quick energy" foods. Wheat sprouts contain four times more folic acid, and six times more Vitamin C, than unsprouted wheat or ordinary grass.

Humans can’t eat straight wheatgrass because the strong cellulose makes it too woody and fibrous for the long and complex intestines in humans. Grass eating animals, however, ( cows, horses, goats, etc.) have short intestines.

Wheatgrass juice benefits the blood cells, bones, glands, hair, kidneys, liver, muscles, spleen, teeth, and other body parts. Wheatgrass juice protects the lungs and blood from air and water pollution, cigarette smoke, toxins, and heavy metals.

Wheatgrass juice is a safe, effective, and an extremely potent aid to weight loss. It works by suppressing appetite, and by stimulating metabolism and circulation.

Wheatgrass is an energizer. The vitality obtained from wheatgrass juice is remarkable. Two ounces of fresh juice equals 3 pounds of organic vegetables in vitamins and minerals, or the equivalent of two cups of coffee. You’ll feel refreshed and energized throughout the day.

Wheat grass has only about 10-15 calories per teaspoon. It has no fat or cholesterol. It has nearly a gram of protein per teaspoon, and includes all eight of the essential amino acids, as well as 13 of the remaining 16. The amino acids it doesn’t contain are easily made within the body.

It contains Vitamins A, B1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, and 12; C, E and K. A teaspoon of wheat grass contains around 15mg of Calcium, 8mcg Iodine, 3.5mcg Selenium, 870mcg Iron, 62mcg Zinc, and many other minerals. There are four other special components of wheat grass, which make it particularly valuable. These - not in any particular order - are:

• Superoxide Dismutase (SOD)

• P4D1

• Muco-polysaccharides

• Chlorophyll.

SUPEROXIDE DISMUTASE (SOD), (an anti-cancer factor): There are three enzymes known to have significant anti-oxidant activity. One of these is Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), which is present in wheat grass.
It has been found that cancerous cells have a deficiency or a complete lack of SOD. So, if you supplement your diet with wheat grass you will almost certainly be helping your body to avoid, or deal with, cancerous conditions. Anti-oxidants have the ability to mop up free radicals and so reduce or avoid cell mutation. Mutation is part of the first stage of cancer formation. Part two continues next week Just what are these ‘anti-oxidants’ we hear so much about these days - such as Superoxide Dismutase? During normal metabolism (i.e. activity of the cells) our body produces waste products with active atoms attached - looking for something to combine with. These are ‘free radicals.’

Free radicals do not stay in existence for long - because they are so active. In other words, they want to combine with something - fast. In fact, unchecked, they can cause havoc - and they produce degenerative changes.

These degenerative changes include:

• Cell mutations - which can lead to cancer, and

• Aging processes - such as the dreaded wrinkles!

And can include illnesses such as:

• Parkinson’s disease.

The more anti-oxidants we have in our system, the faster the free radicals can be safely de-activated. So, anti-oxidants are an ‘anti-aging’ and health-promoting influence. They reduce cell mutations, artery damage, skin wrinkles, and other changes indicative of aging.

P4D1

This is a ‘gluco-protein’ present in wheat grass, which has three main properties:

Firstly, it appears to act in a way similar to anti-oxidants as far as cell mutations are concerned. It stimulates the renewal of RNA and DNA - the creative matter of the body. This means that cell deterioration and mutation will be slowed down or avoided. Therefore, there will probably be benefits from using wheat grass to avoid - or even during - degenerative diseases.

Secondly, it appears to reduce inflammation - some say in a more powerful way than cortisone (and without the side-effects, of course). Some remarkable cures have been observed with wheat grass for people with inflammatory conditions such as arthritis.

A third property of P4D1, is that it is also thought to be able to help the body attack cancer cells, by helping to make the walls of the cancerous cells more open to attack by the body’s white blood cells. This adds to the anti-cancer properties of SOD (see above).

MUCO-POLYSACCHARIDES

These are a combination of complex and simple sugars which appear to stimulate the body’s repair mechanisms. Enhancing these mechanisms is important, because the body is constantly repairing and replacing damaged cells. If you can do this better, it means you will ‘age’ better. Muco-polysaccharides appear to have a particular affinity to help repair damaged heart and artery tissue.

Spirulina also contains muco-polysaccharides, by the way; it is these, which form the cell walls of spirulina, rather than the much tougher cellulose, which normally forms the cell walls of plants.

CHLOROPHYLL

Chlorophyll is the remarkable substance to which we all owe our lives. This is because chlorophyll has the ability to capture the sun’s energy and lock it into plants in such a way that we can use it to sustain our own lives.

Chemically, chlorophyll is almost identical to hemoglobin - the substance which transports oxygen from the Lungs to the tissues of the body. Out of about 50 atoms in the compound, only two are different. The main difference is that at the centre of chlorophyll there is a magnesium ion; whereas hemoglobin has iron in the same place.

The action of chlorophyll is so important, that two Nobel prizes were awarded for research on the compound.

Chlorophyll’s health properties were observed as early as 1950, when Offen Krantz reported the healing of long standing peptic ulcers after the application of chlorophyll.

The benefits of chlorophyll fall into three main categories, purifying, anti-inflammatory, and nourishing.

Purifying: Chlorophyll has an anti-bacterial effect on wounds, and an anti-yeast effect in the digestive tract. It appears to counteract many toxins in the body.

Inflammation: It has the effect of reducing inflammation. Thus it can be used to help counteract the effects of arthritis, stomach ulcers, colitis, sore throats, and other inflammatory conditions.

Nourishing: It builds blood - after all, it is almost identical to hemoglobin (see above); it helps promote intestinal flora, and assists Liver cleansing.

The benefits of wheatgrass juice could possibly be rhetorically summarized by Ben Franklin’s quote of "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". So, as you read this article, optimistically you will start to see that wheatgrass isn’t all bad. The properties of wheatgrass juice, combined with a sensible diet and exercise, can be advantageous in the improvement of your health, along with the prevention of illness.

Stephen Allen is the owner and proprietor of House of Fitness located at 530 East Los Angeles Blvd., Suite 102. Stephen can be reached at 805-529-1029.