Commercial production of spirulina is estimated to reach 220,000 tons by the year 2020. Japan is the largest producer of spirulina, as well as the largest consumer, however its use is growing in India, as well.
For instance, the organization Antenna India provides spirulina “sweets” to children at risk of malnutrition and offer low-cost spirulina to women in self-help groups, who can then sell the superfood for profit while raising awareness about malnutrition.
Research has shown that children who received a spirulina supplement daily five days a week for two months had better nutritional status and improved intellectual status compared to those who did not.
This food is so nutritionally dense, in fact, that NASA and The European Space Agency are researching the benefits of incorporating spirulina into astronauts’ diets on spaceships and on Mars.
Even beyond nutrition, spirulina offers multiple advantages to the environment and those who cultivate it. For instance, producing spirulina requires 10 times less water than other vegetables, and harvests occur year-round. And according to Antenna India, compared to soy, spirulina has a 20-fold greater harvest of protein per acre.
Further, spirulina is easy to grow and reproduces itself with a rapid growth rate of about 30 percent a day. It offers benefits for workers, too, especially compared to other traditional jobs, such as working on rice paddies. According to development professional Amy Sheppey:
“The women cultivating spirulina are paid a fair wage – about double in comparison to rice paddy workers – and the job is much less physically strenuous.
What’s more, the work is not dependent on good weather conditions and the women are not left vulnerable through intermittent employment. Considering spirulina’s numerous benefits, I question to this day why it is not used more widely across the development sector.”
Enhance Your Immune System, Reduce Inflammation, and Fight Chronic Disease with Spirulina
The health benefits of spirulina are vast and appear to impact virtually every area of your body. For instance, spirulina shows great potential for people with cardiovascular disease, in terms of creating better lipid profiles, controlling hypertension, and increasing blood vessel elasticity.
Animal studies suggest spirulina can also protect your liver, probably as a result of its high antioxidant properties and its ability to synthesize or release nitric oxide, and in a study of three antioxidant-rich diets (blueberries, spinach, and spirulina) spirulina was found to have the highest neuroprotective effect, possibly due to its ability to squelch free radicals and reduce inflammation.
Spirulina has also been shown to benefit such wide-ranging conditions as arsenic poisoning to allergies. According to one study, patients treated with spirulina reported relief of symptoms commonly associated with allergic rhinitis, such as nasal discharge and congestion, sneezing, and itching. In fact, there are scientific studies supporting spirulina’s potential usefulness in preventing and/or treating the following health conditions:
- AMD (Age-related macular degeneration)
- Type 2 diabetes
- Cardiovascular disease, including hypertension
- NAFLD (Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease)
- Liver health and decreased damage from heavy metal exposure
- Cerebrovascular disease (including stroke)
- Nutritional diseases, such as iron-deficiency anemia, pernicious anemia (B12 deficiency), vitamin A deficiency, and kwashiorkor
- Neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
- Protection from HIV11 and other viruses
- Reduced allergy symptoms
- Cancer protection
- Radiation protection
- Bone marrow and blood health (especially during use of anticancer drugs)
- Strengthening immune defenses15 and modulating inflammatory response
- Reduced pain sensitivity by inhibiting prostaglandins, which contribute to pain and inflammation
- Reduction of arthritis symptoms
- Protection from the damage of ionizing radiation
Source : Naturalnews.com
