What Is Spirulina—and How Do I Use It?
Any number of aesthetically pleasing pastel foods —
like some mermaid toasts, rainbow ice creams, and even Starbucks' own Unicorn
Frappuccino — use spirulina to provide those signature blue and green shades.
(Not all of them, though; there's still plenty of good ol' fashioned food
coloring out there.)
Related: Can We Please Stop Turning All Our Food into Unicorns?
But spirulina is more than just an Instagrammable
color boost to otherwise unremarkable foods. This blue-green algae is a
complete protein source. It's also low in fat and sodium and jam-packed with
antioxidants. Researchers from the United Kingdom and Greece have suggested
that spirulina "may even have anticancer, antiviral, and antiallergic
effects."
Although spirulina has obviously gotten the GOOP
treatment, it has also been a key part of a program to combat malnutrition in
India and has been used as a dietary supplement for NASA astronauts.
Buy It: If you're not being fitted for your space
suit, you'll have to acquire your own spirulina, either in tablet or powder
form.
Some people mix spirulina powder into their smoothies
and shakes, but after trying and failing to down more than one well-blended
glass of it, I opted to take my spirulina in capsule form.
It may have been because I knew what to expect (or
what I was hoping to expect?), but after a few days of taking 3,000 milligrams
of spirulina, I felt more energetic, slept more soundly, and think that maybe
even my weekly allergy shots were less itchy afterward.
What I did not expect was the green poop. Because
spirulina is rich in chlorophyll — duh, just look at it — your poop will look
like you have killed and eaten the Jolly Green Giant. It's not as immediately
terrifying as, like, looking into the toilet after you drink beet juice, but it
can be a surprise if, like me, you weren't prepared for it.
Regardless, a nutritional supplement has never been more enjoyable than
the time I swallowed my spirulina with a mouthful of Unicorn Frosé.
What Are The Health Benefits?
✔ High
protein content
Spirulina is made up of 65% protein. This is an
extremely amount of protein high for a plant, and one of the reasons it is
becoming more and more popular as a supplement. It also contains sources of all
nine essential amino acids. It’s an easy, healthy way to boost your protein
intake, and a great source of protein for vegetarians. Furthermore, this
protein is highly absorbable.
✔ Contains
essential fatty acids
Spirulina is especially high in omega 3 fatty acids,
and also has a significant amount of omega 6s and omega 9s.
✔ High
in chlorophyll
This helps to flush out toxins from the blood. It also
helps to boost your immune system.
✔ Source
of iron
Spirulina is a fantastic source of iron, meaning it is
excellent for women during pregnancy. 100g of spirulina contains 158% of your
daily iron requirements.
✔ High
in betacarotenoids
Beta carotenoids (antioxidants) help your immune
system and help clear your skin.
✔ High
in Calcium
Spirulina is also very high in calcium, which means it
is excellent for growing children to help their bones and teeth develop. It
contains over 26 times the calcium in milk.
✔ Source
of many micronutrients
It is also a great source of many other micronutrients, such as vitamin
B6, vitamin C, vitamin D and vitamin A. It is also a source of potassium,
chromium, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, manganese, selenium and zinc.
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