Wheatgrassis the freshly sproutedfirst leavesof thecommon wheat plant(Triticum aestivum), used as a food, drink, ordietary supplement.Wheatgrass is servedfreeze driedor fresh, and so it differs from wheatmalt,which isconvectivelydried.Wheatgrass is allowed to grow longer and taller than wheat malt.
Like mostplants,wheatgrass containschlorophyll,amino acids,minerals,vitaminsandenzymes.Claims about the health benefits of wheatgrass range from providing supplementalnutritionto having unique curative properties, but these claims have not beenscientifically proven.[1]
Wheatgrass juiceis often available atjuice bars,and some people grow and juice their own in their homes. It is available fresh asproduce,intablets,frozen juice, andpowder.Wheatgrass is also sold commercially as a spray, cream, gel, massage lotion, and liquidherbal supplement.Because it is extracted from wheatgrasssprouts(that is, before the wheat seed or "berry"begins to form), wheatgrass juice isgluten free,but some dietitians recommend that those withceliac diseaseavoid it due to the risk ofcross-contamination.[medical citation needed]
History
editThe consumption of wheatgrass in theWestern worldbegan in the 1930s as a result of experiments conducted byCharles Schnabelin his attempts to popularize the plant.[2]By 1940, cans of Schnabel's powdered grass were on sale in major drug stores throughout theUnited StatesandCanada.[3]
Ann Wigmorewas also a strong advocate for the consumption of wheatgrass as a part of araw food diet.Wigmore, founder of theHippocrates Health Institute,believed that wheatgrass, as a part of a raw food diet, wouldcleanse the body of toxinswhile providing a proper balance of nutrients as a whole food. She also taught that wheatgrass could be used to treat those with serious disease. Both of these claims are believed by many reputable health institutes to be entirely unfounded by facts, and possibly dangerous.[4]
Cultivation
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Wheatgrass can be grown indoors or outdoors. A common method for sprout production indoors is often on trays in a growth medium such as a potting mix. Leaves are harvested when they develop a "split" as another leaf emerges. These can then be cut off with scissors and allow a second crop of shoots to form. Sometimes a third cutting is possible, but may be tougher and have fewer sugars than the first.[5]
Schnabel's research was conducted with wheatgrass grown outdoors inKansas.His wheatgrass required 200 days of slow growth through the winter and early spring, when it was harvested at the jointing stage. He claimed that at this stage the plant reached its peaknutritional value;after jointing, concentrations of chlorophyll, protein, and vitamins decline sharply.[6]Wheatgrass is harvested,freeze-dried,then sold in tablet and powdered concentrates for human and animal consumption. Indoor-grown wheatgrass is used to make wheatgrass juice powder.
Nutrition and health claims
edit| Nutrient | Wheatgrass juice | Broccoli | Spinach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein | 860 mg | 800 mg | 810 mg |
| Beta-carotene | 120 IU | 177 IU | 2658 IU |
| Vitamin E | 2900 mcg | 220 mcg | 580 mcg |
| Vitamin C | 1 mg | 25.3 mg | 8 mg |
| Vitamin B12 | 0.30 mcg | 0 mcg | 0 mcg |
| Phosphorus | 21 mg | 19 mg | 14 mg |
| Magnesium | 8 mg | 6 mg | 22 mg |
| Calcium | 7.2 mg | 13 mg | 28 mg |
| Iron | 0.66 mg | 0.21 mg | 0.77 mg |
| Potassium | 42 mg | 90 mg | 158 mg |
| Data on broccoli and spinach fromUSDAdatabase.[7]Data on wheatgrass juice from indoor grown wheatgrass.[3][unreliable source?] | |||
Proponents of wheatgrass make many claims for its health properties, ranging from promotion of general well-being tocancer prevention.However, according to theAmerican Cancer Society,"available scientific evidence does not support the idea that wheatgrass or the wheatgrass diet can cure or prevent disease".[8]
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Extracting wheatgrass juice with a manualjuicing machine. -
Wheatgrass juice
Nutritional content
editWheatgrass is a source ofpotassium,dietary fiber,vitamin A,vitamin C,vitamin E( Alphatocopherol),vitamin K,thiamin,riboflavin,niacin,vitamin B6,pantothenic acid,iron,zinc,copper,manganese,andselenium.It is also a good source of protein, with up to 8 grams per ounce if consumed in powder form or around 1 g in a "shot" of juice.[9][10]This protein content consists of at least 17 forms ofamino acids,including eight out of nineessential amino acids.[11]
The nutrient content of wheatgrass juice is roughly equivalent to that of dark leafy vegetables.
Vitamin B12is not contained within wheatgrass or any vegetable, as vitamin B12is not made by plants; rather it is abyproductof themicroorganismsliving on plants or in the surrounding soil.[12]There are some claims[13]that analysis of wheatgrass have found B12in negligible amounts; however, there are no reliable sources cited to back up the claim. An analysis of wheat grass by the USDA National Nutrient Database reports that wheatgrass contains no vitamin B12.[7]
Pets
editWheatgrass is also cultivated for feeding to petcats.Wheatgrass, along with shoots of other common grains such as oats, rye and barley, is sold for this purpose, including under the namecat grass.Many cats enjoy eating grass and wheatgrass is considered safe and healthy for them. It may provide nutrients and improve digestion by addingfiberto the diet. Eating wheatgrass may also provide mental stimulation. However, it is recommended to limit the quantity allowed, to avoid indigestion.[14]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^"Wheatgrass".WebMD.
- ^Murphy, Sean (13 October 2002)."Wheatgrass, healthy for the body and the bank account".ABC Landline.Archived fromthe originalon 2 December 2002.Retrieved6 October2006.
- ^abMeyerowitz, Steve (April 1999)."Nutrition in Grass".Wheatgrass Nature's Finest Medicine: The Complete Guide to Using Grass Foods & Juices to Revitalize Your Health(6th ed.).Book Publishing Company.p.53.ISBN978-1-878736-97-0.
- ^Jarvis, William (15 January 2001)."Wheatgrass Therapy".The National Council Against Health Fraud.Archivedfrom the original on 21 June 2018.
- ^"4 Ways to Grow Wheatgrass".wikiHow.Retrieved11 December2013.
- ^"Site Dedication and Construction Preliminaries, 1921-1923".Ahr-kc.Retrieved2013-04-19.
- ^ab"USDA Nutrient Database".Retrieved6 November2007.
- ^"Wheatgrass".American Cancer Society.November 2008. Archived fromthe originalon May 2, 2015.RetrievedFebruary 10,2017.
- ^"wheat grass Nutrition Facts & Calories".SELF Nutrition Data.Retrieved31 January2021.
- ^Ipatenco, Sara (24 December 2012)."How Much Protein Does Wheatgrass Have?".SFGate.Retrieved31 January2021.
- ^Bodla, Ramesh."A study on wheat grass and its Nutritional value".ResearchGate. Food Science and Quality Management.Retrieved31 January2021.
- ^Melina, Vesanto, MS, RD & Davis, Brenda, RD: "The New Becoming Vegetarian", pages 186–187. Healthy Living Publications, 2003.
- ^"Nutrition Facts".Nutritiondata.self.Retrieved2013-04-19.
- ^Wigfall, Corrine (11 October 2023)."Is Wheatgrass Good for Cats?".Cats.Retrieved20 July2024.
External links
edit
- Bar-Sela G, Cohen M, Ben-Arye E, Epelbaum R (2015). "The Medical Use of Wheatgrass: Review of the Gap Between Basic and Clinical Applications".Mini Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry(Review).15(12): 1002–10.doi:10.2174/138955751512150731112836.PMID26156538.
- Shermer, Michael(August 2008)."How Anecdotal Evidence Can Undermine Scientific Results [aka 'Wheatgrass Juice and Folk Medicine']".Skeptic (column).Scientific American.299(2).Archivedfrom the original on 2018-06-21.Retrieved10 June2018.Alt URL
- Dunning, Brian(9 November 2006)."Skeptoid #6: Wheatgrass Juice".Skeptoid.Retrieved26 October2020.
[A] shot of wheatgrass juice offers far less nutrition than a single 5-cent... vitamin pill, and at about 100 times the price.