Spirulina: Spiral Along into Health

by Conrado Luis L. Reyes
Among the blessings humans have received from on high, the most important one is our resourcefulness. We have tamed the land, made innovations, and explored as much as we can about the sea and the stars.
From using every part of the pig, to building a house from nothing but some coconut trees, it’s safe to say that we Filipinos are one of the most resourceful people on Earth. Being an island country, the sea has always been an integral part of everyday life. It is one of our main sources of food, hydroelectric power, and of course hydration. Now, you can add nutrition to that list.
Spirulina is a blue – green algae that can be consumed by humans and other animals. The two species are Arthrospira platensis and A. maxima. Cultivated worldwide, Arthrospira is used as a dietary supplement or whole food1.
Spirulina may help regress and prevent cancer because some common forms of cancer are the result of damaged cell DNA and in vitro studies show that Spirulina enhances repair of damaged DNA. Furthermore, studies on animals with induced cancer report high levels of suppression of the malignancies after being fed whole Spirulina or treated with its water extracts3.
Chinese scientists have suggested that Spirulina can help prevent anemia because they have documented the presence of phycocyanin in Spirulina. This is a chemical that stimulates red blood cell formation much like the hormone erythropoetin (EPO) does2.
Another in-vitro study using a purified water extract from Spirulina called Calcium-Spirulan indicates that the algae has some anti-viral activity because it inhibited the replication of HIV-1, herpes simples, human cytomegalovirus, influenza A virus, mumps virus and measles virus2.
Euphoria wants every Filipino to have the potential to turn their lives around with our Green Gourmet Coffee Mix, made with the optimal amount of spirulina. Health is just a coffee cup away.
Source(s):
1Wikipedia: Spirulina
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirulina_(dietary_supplement)
2Much ado about spirulina
http://www.pchrd.dost.gov.ph/index.php/2012-05-23-07-46-36/2012-05-24-00-03-06/1564-global-program-to-fight-heart-ills-bared
3Physical Properties of Spirulina Phycocyanin Microencapsulated with Maltodextrin and Carrageenan
http://philjournalsci.dost.gov.ph/58-vol-147-no-2-june-2018/701-physical-properties-of-spirulina-phycocyanin-microencapsulated-with-maltodextrin-and-carrageenan