INFO

ADVANTAGES SEAWEED:

* Improves skin, smooth & firm the skin.

* To stimulate the production of new cells and heal skin cuts

* Strengthen the system abdomen and protect the thyroid gland

* Adjusting weight and hormones

* Anti-bacteria, remove toxins

* Prevent Cancer / Tumors

* Improve the function digestion/ Digestion and treat gastric

* Prevent anemia and Provide energy

* Eliminate constipation and reduce high blood pressure

* Improve skin and hair problems; reduce wrinkles & place black, Cellulite and acne.

* Helps increase metabolism and Provide satiety and diet

* Breast solidify, muscle and buttocks

* Lowering cholesterol levels in the body

* Soften feet cracking

* Strengthen bone joint, avoid arthritis and osteoporosis

* Increase Blood Circulation, reduce pain and rear shoulder

* Increase Tues cartilage, ligaments and muscle.

Oprah.com


A staple in Asian diets since ancient times, seaweeds are among the healthiest foods on the planet, packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. And now we know they're great for the waistline, too: A 2010 study found the algae can reduce our rate of fat absorption by 75 percent, thanks to its inhibitory effect on a digestive enzyme called lipase. (Scientists at Newcastle University are about to begin clinical trials on a "wonder bread" made with alginate fibers and designed to speed weight loss.) Here are four briny plants to sample, all available at Whole Foods or edenfoods.com. 

Wakame (Undaria pinnatifida)

Pappardella-like leaves with a salty-sweet zest 

Nutrition Perks 
Nutritionist Gillian McKeith, PhD, author of the You Are What You Eat Cookbook, calls wakame the woman's seaweed because it is loaded with osteoporosis-preventing calcium and magnesium and acts as a diuretic (which helps reduce bloating). Wakame's pigment, fucoxanthin, is known to improve insulin resistance, and a 2010 animal study found that fucoxanthin burns fatty tissue. 

Kitchen Prep 
Soak the leaves in cold water until tender, then enjoy them in a cucumber salad, dressed with rice vinegar, sesame oil, and soy sauce. To make miso soup, add wakame, tofu, and a few tablespoons of miso paste to a kombu stock (see below). 

Nori (Porphyra species)

Papery sheets with a mild earthy taste 

Nutritional Perks
Among the marine flora, nori is one of the richest in protein (up to 50 percent of the plant's dry weight), and one sheet has as much fiber as a cup of raw spinach and more omega-3 fatty acids than a cup of avocado. Nori contains vitamins C (a potent antioxidant) and B12 (crucial for cognitive function) and the compound taurine, which helps control cholesterol. 

Kitchen Prep 
For a snack, toast strips of nori in the oven at low heat. Or cover a sheet with cooked brown rice; add a layer of sliced carrots, celery, or avocado, and a dash of wasabi. Roll it up and dip in a sauce of tamari, toasted-sesame oil, ginger, and rice vinegar. 

Kombu (Laminaria japonica)

Leafy kelp with a full-bodied, savory flavor 

Nutrition Perks 
Kombu is prized as a source of iodine, which is needed to produce the two key thyroid hormones that control metabolism. The kelp is also rich in fucoidan, a phytochemical that acts as an anticoagulant; a 2011 study found that kombu contains properties that stop clots from forming in blood vessels—which may make it a promising subject for cardiovascular research. 

Kitchen Prep 
To make a flavorful broth called dashi (the chicken stock of Japan), simmer a strip of dried kombu in water for five minutes. And next time you cook beans, throw a kombu leaf in the pot; the plant's glutamic acid renders the beans more easily digestible and less gassy. 

Arame (Eisenia bicyclis)

Long, thin, sweet-tasting strands 

Nutritional Perks 
Arame provides a good amount of potassium, a mineral known among athletes for preventing muscle cramps. Research has shown that arame has antiviral properties, too, and even an antiobesity effect: In a 2010 experiment, researchers discovered that mice on a high-fat diet experienced less weight gain when their food was supplemented with arame powder. 

Kitchen Prep 
Soak the strands in cold water for five minutes. To make a summer salad, toss them with pasta, sautéed mushrooms, tomatoes, basil, and olive oil. Dress up any cooked grain with chopped arame. Or add to stir-fried vegetables; arame pairs well with turnip and squash. 

Seaweed can fight the flu virus

(Daily News, Thursday - October 23, 2003)

    

Tokyo (Japan) - A Japanese researcher claims, members of the team found a substance from seaweed against influenza virus are more effective and less side effects than existing drugs. The material that stops viral reproduction process might also effective against other diseases such as Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and researchers hope this discovery will lead to the creation of new flu drugs.

   

ALGAE:

According to Skin expert, this is an active substance used to normalize the skin’s moisture content and provide suppleness to the epidermis. Used to add vital oligo-elements and increase surface hydration. There are different types of algae but the most used is Blue Green Algae (eucheuma cottonii) in skin treatments. Seaweed eucheuma cottonii is often used as well as it does a really good job of soothing skin and adding a great protective barrier for skin. Blue green algae (eucheuma cottonii) seaweed is great skin moisturizers. It's non-irritating and non-comedogenic. Rich in protein, minerals and vitamins. It has an excellent moisture-absorbing properties. It has firming, anti-irritant and water-binding properties as well.

RESEARCH PAPER 1: 

The edible red seaweed Eucheuma cottonii is abundantly cultivated for carrageenan production. This study investigated the effects of dietary E. cottonii polyphenol-rich extract (ECME) on breast cancer. In vitro assays showed that ECME was antiproliferative against oestrogen-dependent MCF-7 and oestrogen-independent MB-MDA-231 human breast-cancer cells (IC50 values of 20 and 42 μg/ml, respectively) but was non-toxic to normal cell lines. The ECME (150 and 300 mg/kg BW) was fed to female rats and, after 4 weeks, rat mammary tumour was induced using LA7 cells (inoculated subcutaneously). The ECME inhibited tumour development and erythrocyte lipid peroxidation in the cancer-induced rats, dose-dependently. It showed anti-oestrogenic effects on the rat estrous cycle and serum hormone levels. Electron microscopy and histopathology observations confirmed apoptosis in the rat mammary tumours. The polyphenol-rich ECME was tumour-suppressive via apoptosis induction, downregulating the endogenous oestrogen biosynthesis, and improving antioxidative status in the rats.

Apoptotic effects in oestrogen dependent and independent human breast cancer cells. ► The anti-estrogenic properties in female mammals. ► Breast tumour prevention and suppression using sustainable cultivated seaweeds.

Farideh Namvara, f, Suhaila Mohameda, , , Samaneh Ghasemi Farda, Javad Behravane, Noordin M. Mustaphab, Noorjahan Banu M. Alitheenc, Fauziah Othmand., Polyphenol-rich seaweed (Eucheuma cottonii) extract suppresses breast tumour via hormone modulation and apoptosis induction. Food Chemistry., Volume 130, Issue 2, 15 January 2012, Pages 376–382.

RESEARCH PAPER 2: 

Wounds are unavoidable events of life and arise due to agents that induce stress or injury. Wound has been a menace the world over and healing is a survival mechanism and represents an adaptation to the maintenance of normal anatomical structure and function. The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential wound healing properties of ethanolic and aqueous extracts of echeuma cottonii. A two centimeter diameter of skin excision wound was made on normal rats. Treatment with honey (100 mg/kg body weight)  was used  as positive control and untreated rats as the negative control groups. Inflammation and proliferation phases of wound healing including wound contraction, re-epithelization and granulation tissue development  were monitored. This study showed that both  seaweed  extracts increased the rate of wound contraction  compared with the positive and negative control.  Ethanolic extract of E. cottonii was more effective than the aqueous extract by 20% (P<0.05). Histopathological findings showed the  ethanolic extracts enhanced epithelization and tissue granulation significantly compared with both control groups. E. cottonii possesses several antioxidant compounds, which may be responsible for the accelerated wound healing. The present study demonstrated that these seaweed extracts accelerated healing better if not comparable with honey.

Samaneh Ghasemi Fard, Rosalina Tan Roslan Tan, Ajwad Awad Mohammed, Goh Yong Meng, Sharifah Kharidah Syed Muhamad, Karim Alwan AL-Jashamy, and Suhaila Mohamed., Wound healing properties of Eucheuma cottonii extracts in Sprague-Dawley rats., Journal of Medicinal Plants Research Vol. 5(27), pp. 6373-6380, 23 November, 2011.

Figure 1: Seaweed in Open Market

Friday, April 15, 2011

IS EATING SEAWEED GOOD OR BAD?

Seaweed has been flying off the store shelves in recent weeks in China, Russia and many other countries - metaphorically speaking, of course. Why? Because people believe it can protect them against nuclear radiation - what everyone seems to be afraid of these days.

Yes, it is true - most types of seaweed such as nori, wakame, dulse, kombu, arame and other sea vegetables, contain large (though variable) quantities of iodine 127 - a trace element that our bodies need. This is the "good iodine" used in potassium iodine pills and in iodized salt, which have also sold out in many places. This good iodine helps protect our thyroid gland by giving it what it needs so that it won't take up the radioactive kind if we happen to be exposed. It's a bit like giving your puppy a tough rubber toy to chew on, so it won't eat your carpets (as mine did recently).

But then there is the other point of view. Can seaweed - especially seaweed harvested in the Pacific ocean near Japan, itself be absorbing the radiation that is being released into the sea from the Fukushima power plant? Such fears are making some people wary about eating seaweed. I have a friend who used to order seaweed salad every time we ate out, who has even started taking the nori wrap off her sushi. Several countries such as Australia and Indonesia, have halted or restricted seaweed imports from Japan in case it is contaminated with radioactive iodine.

True, seaweed can in theory absorb the dangerous iodine-131 from nuclear waste as well as all those good minerals and other substances that give it such a healthy reputation. Unfortunately, the seaweed can't tell the difference between the safe kind of iodine and the unsafe kind. But don't get too nervous. Remember, the ocean is a big place, not all seaweed comes from the ocean near Fukushima (even Japan imports seaweed from other countries as well), and many seaweed farms in the disaster area have (sadly) been wiped out by the tsunami. On top of all this, much of the iodine-131 in seaweed would usually have degraded before it reaches our plate.

What I am saying is that the risk of dangerous doses of radioactive iodine from your seaweed salad or miso soup or sushi are pretty small. But also, you shouldn't eat huge amounts of those wonderful sea vegetables thinking that they will protect you if nuclear radiation does come your way in air currents, water or food. This is not a case of "more is better." Too much "good" iodine can be toxic to your body.

Health Benefits Of Eating Seaweed

Posted by Brad on Aug 14, 2012 in food related.

The Different Seaweed Benefits

Scientists just recently confirmed that seaweed benefits are true. This is because they found out that they are the plants on earth that have the widest range of minerals. These plants have all minerals which are available in the food humans eat. That should be a good reason why everyone should eat the plant. They are rich in minerals like iron, B-vitamin folate, magnesium, calcium and many others. The seaweeds are used by some people in the preparation of soup, side dishes and even salads. The people who have tasted it say that they taste good. The sea weeds which are eaten are deep green Kombu, chewy red dulse, toasted nori and many others.

A good source of nutrients

Aside from being a good source of minerals it is also a good source of amino acids. This is what makes it very important food stuff for vegetarians as they will get nutrients they need.

Helps in weight management

The sea weed is a good food to take when you want to take control of your weight. This is because the sea weed has only up to 20 calories per serving and has no fat. Therefore there will be no fat deposition. It is also high in fiber which makes a person feel full when eating a meal. This is a good factor as it will prevent eating junk and snacking all the time.

Can be a good substitute for salt

Seaweed has a high salty flavor which could be used in processed foods and also snacks instead of salt. This will be very advantageous because it helps reduce the chances of someone developing high blood pressure which could result to heart attacks and even stroke.

Helps in regulating blood sugar level

Seaweed is a good product when you are looking for ways to balance blood sugar. It has fiber which is very soluble and hence can slow down the rate of digestion and absorption. This will help balance the blood sugar.

It is good for digestion

This is another one of the seaweed benefits that is not well known. The soluble fiber found in this seaweed is good for digestion. Fiber prevents constipation and facilitates in effective bowels movements.

Countries like Korea and Japan have been using seaweed for sometime because they already discovered its health benefits. The cultures that used to eat this plant in the olden times showed no signs of medical conditions like obesity, Alzheimer’s disease or even diabetes among many others.

There were also less instances of breast cancer. It also helped prevent birth defects as the infant would get all the nutrients needed for healthy growth. It has a high level of folic acid which is very essential in the breakdown of a chemical that poses great risk called homocysteine. The chemical is the one responsible for damaged blood vessels and also stroke.

It is also a good stress reliever as it is high in magnesium, vitamins and Pantothenic acid. These are very important parts of the adrenal glands which helps someone to cope with stress. The seaweed benefits are countless. You will enjoy a healthy life from it.