If you wanna help it, Kelp it!

It is large seaweed and belongs to the brown algae family. Kelp grows in a habitat of shallow coastal waters and grows quickly. It is a popular dietary supplement and is used as a vegetable. It has been an essential component of East Asian diets. It has several vitamins, minerals, other organic substances and is a rich source of dietary fiber. Its nutritive value is enormous.

Nutrition: There are different types of kelps and their nutrient profile may vary greatly. It is an excellent source of calcium, iron, magnesium, iodine, and potassium. It also contains a complex chain carbohydrate called fucoidan. It is also an excellent source of vanadium, antioxidants, phytonutrients, amino acids, omega-3 fatty acids and fibers.

Kelps are healthy:

How do they do it?

1.       Excellent source of protein:  It is beneficial for boosting amount of protein in the body as it contains more than 15 various amino acids. Proteins are very beneficial for the body.

2.       Has anti-inflammatory property: It contains a huge amount of anti-oxidants which might help to get rid of inflammation. Fucoidan a component in kelp was tested on a rat model. It alleviated the inflammation in brain and spinal cord cell study. It even prevented neuron loss.

3.       Might improve blood flow and RBC production: A test conducted on rats showed that fucoidan infusion alleviated the clotting in bleeding rats. It’s supplement also alleviated the activity of blood clotting in mice.

4.       Kelp is an antioxidant: Kelp is an excellent source of anti-oxidants. Fucoidan has anti-oxidant properties and hence has the potential to be used as a natural anti-oxidant.

5.       Excellent source of iodine:  Iodine is a vital nutrient for our body and its deficiency might lead to varieties of problems like hypothyroidism and goiter. Kelp contains a huge amount of iodine and is considered the world’s most potent source of naturally occurring iodine (5). Iodine promotes the healthy growth of the babies, helps support a healthy thyroid even helps maintain a healthy brain.

6.       Might promote bones health: Kelp is rich in vitamin K. This vitamin is essential for the body as it helps in creating denser bones. If anyone on antibiotics lately, you might need to increase your vitamin K intake to avoid vitamin K deficiency. Kelp may provide almost a quarter of a daily requirement of vitamin K. Low molecular weight fucoidan also helps in the development of bone health.

7.       Might aid weight loss:   Kelp has fat blocking capacity as it contains natural fibers in it like alginate. A study published in Food Chemistry found that alginate could help block fat absorption in the intestines by 75 %. A study of xanthigenis a type of kelp has shown to reduce weight in 151 non-diabetic obese women.

8.       Blood sugar control: Kelp is a source of vanadium. Vanadium is a trace mineral that enhances insulin signalling and blood sugar balance. Oral vanadium supplements given to 14 type 1 diabetic patients for 30 months alleviated fasting blood sugar levels by 30%. Powdered seaweed pills alleviated sugar levels in a study of 20 subjects with type 2 diabetes taken daily for 4 weeks. It alleviated post-meal blood sugar levels, serum lipid levels etc.  

Words of Caution!

Excessive kelp means excessive iodine these might lead to thyroid hormone imbalance.

Kelp plants carry the risk of heavy metal poisoning, so be careful while using it.

Might show an allergic reaction.

Stevia- The wonder herb for Diabetics

Stevia is a green leafy herbal plant. It comes from the Stevia rebaudiana plant, which is a member of the chrysanthemum family. It is a native to South America and has been used since hundreds of years because of its extremely sweet leaves.  It is very sweet but the interesting thing about this leaf are It doesn't add calories.

 Constituents in it:

There are many components in it but the most potent glycosides in the Stevia leaf are called Stevioside and Rebaudioside A.  

Healthy life with stevia: 

Stevia as a sugar substitute/anti-diabetic:  Stevia has the ability to regulate blood sugar levels in the body. Thus, it can be an alternative to high calorie sugar. It can be the best option for diabetic patients who are on carbohydrate-controlled diets. Some people believe that quitting sugar completely is easier than reducing its amount because of its addictive effect. Artificial sweetener may not be the best alternative but stevia as a natural sweetener can be worth trying. It might be a sweet news for the diabetic people. An article published in Journal of Dietary Supplements showed promising effects of stevia on diabetic rats. Rats were treated with 250 -500 mg of stevia everyday which significantly alleviated the blood sugar levels and balanced triglycerides, insulin resistance. The U.S department agriculture estimates Americans consume more sugar and when advised not to consume it more by health care professionals because of various ailments, consumers turned to sugar like extract. This led to a rise in the sugar substitute market. No wonder why Stevia takes central stage in the highly growing and lucrative natural sweetening agent market.

 

Prevents heart diseases by alleviating cholesterol: High LDL, high blood pressure and many are responsible for heart diseases. Stevia helps in alleviation of bad cholesterol, triglyceride and LDL levels. A study of 2009 showed that stevia extract had positive effect on overall cholesterol heath. Researchers concluded that extract effectively decreased elevated serum cholesterol levels, including triglycerides and LDL (“bad cholesterol”), while increasing good HDL cholesterol.

Helps in preventing cancer: Abundant anti-oxidants and other constituents like kaempferol, quercetin, chlorogenic acid, isoquercitin and isosteviol present in stevia makes it an ideal dietary supplement for various cancer prevention including pancreatic cancer. Quercetin and kaempferol in stevia prevent the formation of free radicals thereby preventing the cells from mutating healthy cells into cancer cells. In 2012, stevia was revealed to be connected to breast cancer reduction. After the observation, it was confirmed that stevoside enhances cancer apoptosis and reduces certain stress pathways in the body that contribute to cancer growth.

Aids weight loss: It is 30 to 40 times sweeter than sugar without adding similar calories. It is often recommended for a balanced diet. Major reasons for being overweight includes, physical inactivity paired with high and frequent intake of foods that are filled with refined sugar, prolonged sitting etc. You can use high quality stevia extract in moderation in place of health hazardous table sugar. It helps you to reduce not only your overall daily sugar intake, but also your caloric intake. People can eat cake, cookies etc without worrying about weight.

Promotes skin health: It is even helpful for skin for promoting its overall health. Conditions like eczema and dermatitis can be treated using this. It even acts as an anti-bacterial agent when used topically.

Other benefits: There are many other health benefits of adding stevia into your diet like it prevents osteoporosis, it possesses immune-modulatory actions, anti-inflammatory, antihypertensive, anti-diarrhoeal, anti-hyperglycaemic and diuretic properties.

Side effects:

It’s a common conception that herbal preparations come devoid of any side effects. Although frequency and intensity of side effects are low people should be cautioned about it as herbal preparations are generally taken for long term and for chronic illnesses as compared to acute illnesses. Stevia does not have major side effects but have some varieties which might be unsafe and may show some side effect.

People might show allergic reaction. Some have complained that they faced problems like headaches, occasional dizziness, bloating and cramping after consuming stevia.

Conclusion:

Stevia is an excellent additive and a sweetener with minimal side effect as compared to artificial sweeteners and sugar.

REFERENCES:

1.       http://agris.fao.org/agris-search/search.do?recordID=US9315674

2.       https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09735070.2009.11886351

3.       https://benthamopen.com/contents/pdf/TOOBESJ/TOOBESJ-2-101.pdf

4.       https://www.ajol.info/index.php/tjpr/article/view/14700

5.       https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/09637480903193049

6.       https://patents.google.com/patent/US5262161

7.       https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0163725808001927