Weight Loss Course _ Lesson 5: Nutritional Herbs
Thursday, June 16th 2011 @ 1:03 PM (not yet rated)
When you want to lose weight nutrition is everything.
Why?
When you eat nutrient dense foods, you give your body what it needs.
When your body is being nourished, the blood sugar levels will be stabilized, you’ll have reduced cravings and the weight will come off much easier.
So what are the herbs with nutrition?
These are the green herbs that are often used in smoothies – the barley grass, alfalfa and wheatgrass.
These herbs are nutritional powerhouses, providing a wide range of amino acids, vitamins and minerals that help to satisfy the body and reduce cravings and addictions. These green foods help satisfy the body.
Alfalfa:
Alfalfa, a member of the pea family of legumes, contains eight essential amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins. Its leaves are rich in minerals, including calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron, and zinc.
The herb, a good source of chlorophyll, also contains beta carotene which is the precursor to Vitamins A, C, D, E, and K as well as B1 and B6. It contains minerals calcium, potassium, iron and zinc.
Alfalfa ‘s richness in vitamins, minerals and other nutrients play a vital role in the strength and growth of our bones and in the maintenance of a healthy body.
Benefits of Alfalfa
Alfalfa has been used by the Chinese since the sixth century to treat a variety of health conditions. It is considered the richest land source of trace minerals. Herbalists consider alfalfa to be a good general tonic, mostly because of its reputation of being an excellent source of vitamins, minerals, and protein.
Alfalfa also consists of active medicinal properties such as isoflavones, sterols, and other plant phytoestrogens such as saponin glycosides that may help lower cholesterol.
Alfalfa can help the rid the body of excess fluid, relieve constipation, boost a sluggish appetite, relieve disorders in the digestive tract and help control diabetes.
For all these reasons, alfalfa is worth considering as part of a weight loss and weight maintenance program. Afalfa can be taken as a powder, capsule or liquid.
Contraindications:
Alfalfa should be avoided by those who take prescription warfarin(coumadin) and any other anticoagulants. Alfalfa counteracts with these medications.
Alfalfa may be harmful to those who suffer from autoimmune disorders like lupus, those who have clinically inactive lupus or have a family history of this condition should not consume alfalfa in any form.
Barley Grass
This is another potent ‘green’ food that provides balanced nutrition to the body. Barley grass powder is easily digested and helps make the body more alkaline.
Claims about this ‘green’ food are that it can supply all the nutrients the human body needs from birth to old age. The use of barley grass powder has been endorsed by many health experts, such as Dr. Yoshihide Hagiwara, President of the Hagiwara Institute of Health in Japan.
Barley grass contains high amounts of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, cholorophyll, enzymes and other beneficial nutrients.
These include beta carotene, Vitamins C, B1, B2, B6 and B12. It also contains high amounts of calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, zinc and organic sodium.
Benefits of Barley Grass
It helps to alkalize the body, acts as a free radical scavenger, is anti-bacterial, neutralizes toxins, purifies the liver, lowers cholesterol, helps diabetics, relives intestinal disorders and much more.
Contraindications
Barley grass does not have any known contraindications, so it is safe for everyone to use.
Wheatgrass
Wheatgrass has been juiced for decades for its energizing juice. The sprouts have been juiced since the early 1970s.
Wheatgrass is rich in minerals, containing 92 minerals needed by the body. It is also a complete protein with 20 plus amino acids, high in enzymes. The juice is 70% cholorophyll which will oxygenate the body.
Fresh wheatgrass juice is very potent and detoxifying to the liver, so it should be taken on an empty stomach.
For this reason, wheatgrass juice is best consumed in small quantities for a limited amount of time. The wheatgrass powder is often combined with other green powders available at health food stores. These formulas are meant to be used on a regular basis, helping the body in overall health.
