Super Health Foods

You can supplement your regular diet with super health foods that not only provide complete nourishment but also have healing and rejuvenating properties

If you aren't one of those health freaks, the number of super health foods flooding the market might take you by surprise-more so when you come across their exotic names and claims.

Health foods can be defined as complete nutrition. However, super health foods also act as a food supplement, providing all necessary nutrients and keeping you fit and adds to your overall well being. Many of them have been introduced in recent times and all their healing and rejuvenating properties are not even well charted.

There are many brands of health foods in the market, but the choice for super health foods is limited to six products: spirulina, ginseng, wheatgrass, alfalfa, tofu and Manchurian mushrooms.

Spirulina

A highly nutritious form of algae, spirulina has been lauded by Japanese scientists as a panacea for various health conditions and as the solution to world's hunger problem. Research is also being conducted on its use as food supplement for astronauts.

Believed to be one of the first forms of life on earth that originated nearly 3.5 billion years ago, spirulina is a veritable powerhouse of nutrition that has been in use since the prehistoric times, especially among the Aztecs and the tribes near Lake Chad in Africa. "United Nations' World Food Conference has declared spirulina as the best food for tomorrow. Many New agers believe that spirulina is actually the manna, which the Hebrews ate in the desert.

Research has proved that 1 kg of spirulina is equivalent to 1,000 kg of assorted vegetables. It also has six times more protein than eggs and 20 times more than milk. It is the richest source of iron and beta-carotene, as well as vitamin B12 and has every essential amino acid besides enzymes and minerals.

Spirulina helps prevent heart problems, diabetes and anemia, and fights free radicals. This wonder algae also helps overcome stress and improves stamina and immunity. It is still used as a survival food during severe drought conditions by tribes at the southern edge of the Sahara desert.

Spirulina is easily available in India under many brand names, the most prominent being Lucky Laboratories' Sunova Spirulina, Transtech's Progen and Berko Cyanotech's LifePlus Spirulina. The other brand names under which spirulina is sold are Natoxid, Multinals and Super Inspiro. It is available as powder, flakes or tablet. Organic spirulina is available with Kavita Mukhi's alternative store Nature Option in Mumbai, India.

Ginseng

A group of closely related herbs that grow in China, Siberia, Korea and North America, ginseng is the single most famous and widely used herbal food supplement. Chinese medicine, which continues to be popular, attributed to it not only healing properties but also an ability to invigorate and prolong life.

Ginseng is a shrub with a very large root system. It contains two groups of glycosides-paraquat and panaxin—which help the body correct itself. Though it is not known to cure any specific diseases and many western scientists still attribute its effectiveness to power of suggestion, it is considered one of the complete food supplements for overall well being.

Considered a yang (male) plant, ginseng is said to have aphrodisiac properties. The root has been processed into a variety of palatable forms such as capsules and tea.

Research on ginseng by scientists has shown that it also acts as a stress reliever. As a result, ginseng is being promoted as an adaptogen—an agent that increases overall resistance to the adverse effects of stress.

Though no Indian company is marketing pure ginseng, Dabur, the ayurvedic pharmaceutical company, makes ashwagandha, or the Indian ginseng due to its similar properties, under the brand name Stresscom.

Wheatgrass

If there is a power drink, it must be wheatgrass juice. With chlorophyll, beta carotene, more than 80 minerals, 18 amino acids and many vitamins, research has shown that 1 kg of wheatgrass matches the nutritional value of 22 kg of ordinary garden vegetables.

Wheatgrass is generally consumed as juice, which is a complete food with regenerative and protective qualities. Its regular use improves perception and increases mental and emotional calmness. It aids in digestion, prevents graying of hair, skin diseases, asthma, arthritis and diabetes. In fact, because of its blood purifying qualities, wheatgrass is used in the treatment of leukemia and some other forms of cancer.

The normal dosage of wheatgrass juice is 25 to 50 gm twice a day on an empty stomach. It can be extracted from wheatgrass in a juicer. One disadvantage is that it cannot be stored and has to be consumed immediately. Wheatgrass can also be chewed and the pulp discarded. Though it is difficult to find wheatgrass or its juice in the market, some rare clinics do sell wheatgrass capsules.

You can easily grow your own wheatgrass at home. All you have to do is soak wheat in a jar of water for 12 hours, drain out the water and leave the moist seeds as they are for another 12 hours. Next, spread a one-inch layer of soil in a tray, spread the seeds, sprinkle water, cover it with another tray and leave for three days. Uncover the tray, sprinkle water, and leave it in direct sunlight for five days at the end of which you'll have five to eight inches tall wheatgrass.