Potential Health Benefits of Spirulina 2014

DXN SPIRULINA TABLETS

INTRODUCTION

Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina)
Description Arthrospira platensis (hereafter referred to as `Spir-ulina') is a uni-cellular microalgae which grows in fresh water, in salt water, as well as in brackish bodies of water. It grows best in a highly alkaline environment of pH 10-12. Such conditions currently exist in certain lakes in Sub-Saharan Africa and formerly in Mexico and Cen-tral America. Spirulina has been used as a food source for centuries, and is still commonly consumed in Chad and surrounding countries in Africa; in fact, Spirulina has served as the sole source of nutrition in some African communities in times of famine, during which entire native populations have existed eating only Spirulina for over a month at a time.
Current Use Spirulina has become popularly known as a superfood due to the great diversity and concentration of nutrients it contains. It is the most nutritious, concentrated whole food source found in nature. Spirulina is marketed throughout the world as a food supplement or as an
Key words Spirulina Arthrospira platensis Immune system Cardiovascular system Anti-viral action Cancer prevention
active ingredient in functional foods and beverages. It has attained considerable acceptance for the health bene-fits it bestows on consumers in Europe, North America, parts of Asia and Oceania. Spirulina's concentrated nutri-tion makes it an ideal food supplement for people of all ages and lifestyles.
Composition Spirulina is about sixty percent complete, highly digestible protein; it contains all essential amino acids; Spirulina contains more beta-carotene than any other whole food; it is the best whole food source of gamma linolenic acid (GLA); it is rich in B vitamins, minerals, trace elements, chlorophyll, and enzymes; and it is abun-dant in other nutrients, such as carotenoids, sulfolipids, glycolipids, phycocyanin, superoxide dismutase, RNA, and DNA. Table 1 shows the typical nutrient content of a commercially available Spriulina product.
United Nations and NASA Interest Due to its wealth of nutrients and health benefits reported by consumers, Spirulina has been subjected to research throughout the world. In 1974, the United Nations named Spirulina one of the best foods for the future. (1). The UN continues to study Spirulina's potential; in 2008 the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report on Spirulina proclaimed that there is a need for both national governments and inter-governmental organizations to re-evaluate the potential of Spirulina to fulfill both their own food security needs as well as a tool for their over-seas development emergency response efforts. (2) It is interesting to also note that scientists from the US Space Program at NASA have studied Spirulina as a potential food source for space travel and settlement of space sta-tions due to its remarkable nutrient profile (3)

Spirulina