Not All Wheatgrass Products are the Same

Dear Readers,

I've been asked many times how different this wheatgrass product that I endorse versus the many options available in the market today. Aside from the fact that it is very convenient to take, tastes relatively well, and costs less per drink, it really is more nutritious due to its inclusion of the roots. This is made possible through its patented Indoor Organic Aeroponic Cultivation (IOAC) technology.

Read on ...

Indoor Organic Aeroponic Cultivation (IOAC)

IOAC is patented, award-winning cultivation method recognized in Malaysia and Geneve, Switzerland. In this cultivation method, wheatgrass is grown indoors in a fully automated and sterile laboratory. This allows us to have full control over the moisture, temperature and indoor growing environment of the wheatgrass to ensure optimal growing conditions. Aeroponic farming means that our wheatgrass is grown in the air without the use of soil or water as a base as in traditional farming or hydroponics. This allows the roots to grow and stay sterile making it possible for the company to process and include the roots of wheatgrass in every sachet of wheatgrass powder. All essential minerals and nutrients that the regular wheatgrass absorbes from the soil, is mixed with the water that is misted evenly on to the farm 8 times every day to ensure that each tray of wheatgrass gets equal amounts of moisture and nutrients. Artificial sunlight is provided by special lights that simulate the same lighting properties as natural sunlight.

Aeroponic farming is also employed in IOAC to intentionally subject the wheatgrass to stress from the absence of soil and low temperatures maintained in the farm. These conditions force the plant to produce ABSCISSIC ACID which is an essential enzyme that is highly effective in fighting cancer cells or can help prevent cancer formation. This plant hormone turned enzyme can only be found in the most amounts in Easy Pha-max Wheatgrass.

One pound of fresh Easy Pha-max wheatgrass with leaves and roots goes into every 2g sachet of wheatgrass powder. This is the most amount of fresh wheatgrass per serving that you will find anywhere in the market. The fresh wheatrgass is dried and processed through centrifugation and turned into a fine powder for ease of consumption and the convenience of our consumers. No other product matches this amount on a per peso basis. Don't be fooled 8-)

To Your Good Health,

Wheatgrass Man

Why Going Vegetarian Supports the Environment

Dear Readers, I'd like to share this article from Hewo.Com. It is a very relevant topic as Global Warming is becoming a major agenda in governments worldwide. And with upcoming movies like 2012, this is REALLY a becoming a serious issue. I am not a vegetarian, well not just yet. But I try as much as possible to avoid meat to the best of my abilities. I believe this has helped me a lot in my quest for good health. Read on ...

"Since Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth short documentary movie came out in 2006, it has awakened people to the alarming Earthly facts, especially the hot cake topics surrounding global warming. We talk about industrial pollutions, drastic changes of weather patterns, deforestation and a whole lot more of big scale issues. But, there could be one issue that people might have overlooked. And that is meat consumption.

“Why? Meat does not look “polluting” enough to me. Are you being serious that if I continue eating hamburgers, chicken drumsticks and juicy sirloin steaks, I would actually be polluting Earth? I think you are preaching your religion of eating spinach to me.”

People can be sceptical when presented about how meat consumption should be reduced to tackle global warming. And you must be wondering why eating meat could cause damage to our Mother Earth.

The meaty effects

First of all, meat industry emits more greenhouse gas than any factor given. According to the United Nations, total amount of greenhouse gas emitted by livestock farms and meat-processing factory is around 18% of the total greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere, making it the largest single factor in causing greenhouse gas.

Second, meat production takes more resources than growing vegetables and fruits. Growing meat is never efficient. We need 16 times as much grains to produce meat, and we need another 16 times as much resources as to produce these grains to feed our cows, lambs, goats and chickens. Around 70% our grown vegetations are being used to feed livestock, just for them to produce enough meat for us. Besides that, we also need to put in power to refrigerate our meat, to process them, and to ship them throughout the world.

Third, we need enormous water supply to produce meat. According to a statistic made by John Robbins in his book Food Revolution, we need 99.6% lesser water to grow one pound of potatoes, than to grow one pound of beef, and 97% lesser water than to grow one pound of chicken. Aside from supplying water to livestock as their drinking water, we need to constantly wash them, clean up their cages from accumulating faecal wastes, as well as to clean up the mess after we butchered them. To be specific, it takes 5214 gallons of water (or about 19731 litres) to produce one pound of beef.

Last but not least, eating meat cuts more land. In fact, raising animals for food takes up more land than to grow crops directly. We need 16 pounds of grains to produce 1 pound of beef. This means in order to grow beef, we need 94% more land to cultivate grains for them, and more land needed means more pesticides needed. Instead of producing food for us, they are more like processing food for us, in a reverse way. According to a recent study by PETA.org, more than 90% of Amazon rain forest was cleared since 1970 is used for global meat production.

To be green, we don’t have to sweat. We just need to change what we eat, because what we eat determines how we get it, and how we get it determines what kind of effects our surroundings will get. You can keep earth green by simply not eating any animals.

Quit meat! It’s not just good for your body; it’s good also for your earth."

Less Acid For Better Health

Look around the market, and you see countless products promoting "alkaline" food and supplements. Vitamin C, which is an important daily supplement now has an alkaline version under the generic name of "Sodium Ascorbate". Manufacturers still cannot remove the name "Ascorbic Acid" as I heard it is required by the BFAD. Fern-C is a very successful brand today. I personally use Daily-C, at least 1000mg a day. The flipside to this is ofcourse cost. An alkaline version of vitamin C is many more times expensive than the regular "acidic" version.

I spoke to one of the local Pharma companies producing regular vitamin C and they actually had a valid point. They have to make the vitamin affordable so a lot more people can buy it. And besides, according to them, only a very small fraction of the population cannot tolerate the acidity introduced by the vitamin they produce. That's another way of looking at the picture I guess.

But for me, Alkaline is King! If you can afford it, why not?

Alkalinity or Acidity is measured in pH (potential of hydrogen). The range is from 0-14, and a reading below 7 is acidic while above that is alkaline. A healthy body should have a pH reading of at least 7.4. In fact, studies have shown that in an environment where the pH reading is at least an 8.5, cancer cells die! (Otto Warburg, MD, PhD Nobel Laureate) That is why an alkaline lifestyle does help prevent cancer.

Not all acidity though comes from what you take in your mouth. Psychological factors like stress, also contribute to acidity. Even too much exercise where muscles get strained and thereby release too much lactic acid will cause cramps.

You know when you are acidic when you have low energy level, frequent aches and pains, poor indigestion, high blood pressure, shortness of breath, and insomia.

Some very quick ways to solve this is to drink water - lots of it. Eat more of the living foods as we call it - raw vegetables like cabbage, brocolli, carrots, cauliflower, spinach, tomatoes, and ofcourse WHEATGRASS! You can also increase your fresh fruit intake from apple, lemon, mango, papayas, pineapple, watermelon, and grapes.

Ofcourse, avoid acid foods or as much as possible reduce your intake. Examples: red meats, corn, peanuts, sugar, chocolate, softdrinks, dairy, alcohol, and coffee. Imagine, coffee alone has a pH level of 4! Not good .... But, did you know that there's Wheatgrass Coffee already available in the market today? So essentially it removes the acidity issue of coffee. NO, it is not colored green. It looks and tastes like the real thing and it is made from arabica beans. Let me know if you are interested.

So as a general rule, try to eat 80% more alkaline food. Do yoga or whatever it is that will relieve you of stress from time to time. Remember, we only live once, let's make the most of it.

To good health,

Wheatgrass Man

Chocolate is Good, BUT ...

I would like to share this nice article by Steve Meyerowitz, one of the experts in healthy living promoting organic food. He was pronounced "Sproutman" by Vegetarian Times Magazine in a 1979 feature article that explored the why's and wherefores of his 100% sprout diet.

"Are you familiar with Green and Black? They are the leading British chocolate maker in the organic sector and they are quite successful. Last year the company increased their sales by 69%. (Imagine if you got a raise in salary by that much!) They grossed a healthy 41 million dollars. One of their lead products is a 70 percent cocoa 100 gram bar that is popular with health-conscious consumers. Pure chocolate, without the milk and sugar and the pesticides, contains many antioxidants and flavonols, which have numerous health benefits (see below).

Evidently, Cadbury Schweppes found them delectable, too. The London based company, which manufactures Europe’s best selling Dairy Milk brand, just acquired them for an undisclosed sum.Previously, they had owned a 5% stake in Green and Black. The good news is that Green and Black will continue to operate independently and be able to maintain its ethical values. Green and Black was the first UK company to source its cocoa beans under Fair Trade agreements and its Mayan Gold chocolate was the first organic chocolate product to be awarded the Fair Trade Mark in 1994.

More and more information is coming forth about the health benefits of chocolate. It turns out that cocoa actually contains antioxidants and many different types of flavonols, such as quercetin and rutin, which belong to the larger family of bioflavonoids. Flavonols are famous for their protective properties against cardiovascular disease, but they also have numerous benefits to the immune system, reduce inflammation and increase blood flow to all sorts of important places including the brain.

Buyer Beware- This is good news especially if you buy organic chocolate and avoid the milk and sugar and buy from brands like Green and Black. But beware as other manufacturers try to enter the market to take advantage of this good health news. You see, candy manufacturers have been on the receiving end of a lot of negative criticism for their role in the obesity epidemic and everything else from cavities to diabetes.They see the health benefits of chocolate as a way of improving their unhealthy image.

For example, Mars, the giant confectionary company, wants to synthesize the flavonols and turn them into drugs that can be marketed in their candy bars. “We have been able to identify the molecular structureof flavonols found in nature ....But we are also able to synthesize not only those found in nature but also compounds tailored to specific needs,” says Marlene Machut, communications director for Mars Nutrition.She says they are in “serious discussions with large pharmaceutical companies” for a licensing or joint venture agreement that could see some flavonols extracted from its chocolate developed as prescription drugs.

The problem is that chocolate contains these benefits naturally and that all chocolate companies can claim health benefits. But companies like Mars seek to carve out a unique position in the marketplace by synthesizing and patenting these antioxidants for commercial use.

So, enjoy your chocolate, but choose wisely about from whom and what kind you buy."

LIVE Longer by Taking Care of Your LIVER!

If I can single out one organ in our body that is the key to good health, it is no doubt the liver. If you look at the liver, it is really a highly organized mechanical filter, cleansing the blood of impurities and toxins as it returns it back to the right side of the heart.

Unfortunately, our society today is built on fast-food and refined food and this is not doing any good to our liver. It is NOT true that only alcoholics will be at risk of liver disease - in fact, you and me, even our kids who do not drink alcohol are at risk. Consider the following IFs:

- if your diet is high in refined carbs,

- if your diet is high in bad fats like deep fried foods (fries anyone?), chips (typical school snack), preserved meats (tocino, tapa), and hydrogenated vegetable oils (high in trans-fat which are free radicals),

- if your diet is low in fresh colored vegetables and fruits,

- if your diet lacks antioxidants like vitamin C, and

- if your diet is low in good quality protein (fish, tofu, nuts)

THEN, the risk for FATTY LIVER DISEASE is there.

But what is fatty liver disease exactly?

In the world of medicine, this is referred to us NAFLD or Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. This is the entry-level stage, of which the liver contains an excessive amount of fat, to the point where healthy liver tissues are partly replaced with unhealthy fats. Because of this, the liver becomes enlarged and swollen, and has a yellow greasy appearance.

Now this is a BAD thing because instead of the liver functioning efficiently as a filter, it is not able to properly do its task. And this results in a variety of symptoms, such as: fatigue, abdominal bloating, abdominal fat (pot belly), reflux, hemorrhoids, overheating of the body, excessive sweating, gall stones, inability to lose weight (even if you are eating less and exercising regularly), high cholesterol and triglycerides, and poor memory.

A more severe form of fatty liver is called NASH or Non-Alcoholic Steato-Hepatitis and is characterized by more inflammation. The real danger here is if not treated, it will progress to sever liver scarring known as Cirrhosis.

My advise is at least once a year, have your liver checked with blood tests, and an ultrasound scan of the abdomen. Better to be safe than sorry.

I've been often asked why some people who are overweight have a harder time losing weight than others. With a strict diet and regular vigorous exercise, someone who has a fatty liver will take a longer time to slim down vs another with a non-fatty liver. This is because it is necessary to remove the fat first from the liver before it can function properly. A fatty liver has forgotten how to burn fat because it has been accustomed to storing fat. But once it is rejuvenated and detoxified, weight management becomes easier as the Yo-Yo effect is avoided.

Taking wheatgrass daily as a supplement helps the liver rejuvenate as wheatgrass cleanses the blood. I have said before that if you just drink it daily, in 20 days, you would have consumed 350 lbs of the choicest vegetables !!!

I highly recommend this book by Dr. Sandra Cabot. I've read it and I know it will help you to be a healthier person.

https://www.liverdoctor.com/index.php?page=shop&subpage=cat1&id=3

To Your Good Health,

Wheatgrass Man

The "So Easy" Way To Detox

When I lost 20 lbs and 4 inches off my waistline over a 5-month period, it wasn't solely because of drinking wheatgrass daily, eating properly and going to the gym twice a week. I also did a detox program, which I want to share with you today.

Detox can be done in a variety of ways. If you have the time and the money, you can enroll yourself in one of the health and wellness spas in the country, like San Benito Farm in Batangas (Email: info@thefarm.com.ph Tel: +63 2 884 8073 / 74 / 75). Or, if you want to prepare your own diet, there's an excellent 8-week plan from Dr. Cabot in her best-selling book called The Liver Cleansing Diet. It's a very good book that I highly recommend. Another book which I encourage you to read is called Detox, by Rosalyn Patrick.

If you are a busy professional like me with a modest budget and don't want the hassle of having to prepare your own diet and have only 3 days to detoxify, then the So Easy Cleansing program is for you. You can do this at home, which I advise you to do since you need to have ready access to the rest room.

But why detox in the first place?

Over the years of eating acid foods, our colon is not able to properly expel these waste materials. This build up of mucous, dead cells, and impacted waste covers the inner lining of the colon which over time if not removed will eventually cause auto-intoxication. This has been researched by Dr. Bernard Jensen, DC, ND, Ph.D. in his book Tissue Cleansing Through Bowel Management. No wonder why most diseases like cancer start from the colon!

There are ways to remove this mucoid plaque. One is through Colon Hydrotherapy, which is a medical procedure involving the safe and gentle infusion of around 95 to 130 liters of water into the colon via the rectum. Another is by going through a home-based detox program which I did.

Going through the So Easy Cleansing program first involves fasting 2 days before. This means reducing your food intake by 50% on the first day and 75% on the second before the actual start of the detox. You also need to prepare yourself mentally for this, as it will not be a walk in the park.

The detox program follows the schedule below:

All ingredients of this detox package are all-natural, so you can be sure it is safe for your body.

One of my tips during the detox phase is to do abdominal massages, you can do this by yourself, just make circling motions with your hands on your abdomen, to assist the flow of mucoid plaque out of your colon. It is also very important to drink lots of water. You shouldn't feel hungry during this time, as the detox program contains complete nutrients. However, if you do feel the need to eat, it is largely psychological in nature. Instead of eating, just drink water and remember your ultimate goal - to be healthy! Discipline is key.

On my second day of detox, that's when I began to release mucoid plaque. I went to the rest room 7 times in 2days, and you can be sure it is mucoid plaque by the way it looks (like the shape of your colon) and the way it feels (rubbery, which I didn't touch btw - you can use a barbeque stick like I did). For those who want to see how mucoid plaque looks like, here are some pictures from the Internet:

I lost between 3 to 4 lbs during my 3-day detox. My abdomen also became "soft" and I felt lighter. In fact, in the weeks that followed my body began to search for different kinds of food. I used to be a chocoholic before, but after detox, my craving for chocolates disappeared. I still enjoy eating it though, but now it is more controlled as I don't have to give in to this craving after every meal. I also began to look for more greens and fish, which in turn resulted to me losing more weight. Call it a psychological effect, but in my opinion, it is more than that. I guess after you've seen all these junk released from your body, you will be more careful in what you eat.

After the 3rd day of detox, you have to break in your body before resuming your normal eating habits (which hopefully will change like what happened to me). The 1st day after detox, you need to do a liquid diet - fresh fruits and vegetable shakes. On the 2nd day, you may now eat solid foods, but limit to vegetables and fruits only. On the 3rd day, you may add fish to your diet. On the 4th day, you can resume your normal diet.

I really hope this information will help you to become more healthy. I did this and I know it works for me. May it be the same for you.

To Good Health,

Wheatgrass Man

P.S. We should detox at least once a year ...

Is Wheatgrass Gluten-free?

I've been asked a couple of times by my friends if wheatgrass has gluten. Some people cannot take gluten as their body will react to it, especially since it has the word "wheat". Celiac disease is a medical condition that is particularly sensitive to gluten.

From Cynthia Kupper RD celiac diseaseExecutive Director, Gluten Intolerance Group, 206-246-6652; www.gluten.net:* :

"Q: Is barely and wheat grass safe to use in a gluten-free diet? What about sprouts?*
A: According to information from USDA research chemists, specializing in wheat gluten and cereal proteins and a statement from the American Association of Cereal Chemists, gluten is found only in the seed kernel (endosperm) and not in the stem and grass leaves. If the grass is cut from a growing plant and does not include the seed kernel, it should be safe for persons with gluten intolerance to use."

So juicing wheatgrass should be safe since you consume the leaves only. The powder versions from Easy Pha-Max are also safe since it contains the roots and the leaves when the plant reaches 8 days old.

Wheatgrass Man

Weight Loss Tip: Eat Peanut Butter!

A colleague of mine who competes in Mr. USA would you believe is over 60 years old, but is in excellent health? In his recent trip to Manila, he shared this tip on weight management. Before a competition, if he needed to lose weight, he would take 2 teaspoons of peanut butter (not the commercial ones like JIF or Peter Pan, but those from health food stores) before sleeping. According to him, it really works. I love peanut butter, and I make it a point to snack on peanuts during the day (as much as possible the unsalted, not fried variety). I find that peanuts and peanut butter keep you more satisfied than many other snacks.

"A study conducted at Purdue University showed that those who consumed peanut snacks were more satisfied than those who ate high carbohydrate snacks like rice cakes. Those who ate the peanut snacks lasted about 2 ½ hours as opposed to ½ hour for the high carbohydrate snacks.
Peanuts and peanut butter are high in protein, healthy fats, and fiber. These attributes contribute to helping you feel fuller longer. Eating peanuts and peanut butter will also help to keep your blood sugar more stable partly because they have a low glycemic index (GI). Peanuts have a GI of 14 on a 100-point scale, whereas pretzels have a GI of 83. Eating pretzels would produce a much larger rise and fall in blood sugar than the peanuts, and this is what can make you hungry and sluggish.

Another interesting fact is that peanut and peanut butter eaters tend to have lower Body Mass Index (BMI) values and lower body weights than non-peanut eaters. While those who eat peanuts have been shown to naturally adjust their calorie intakes throughout the day, some evidence shows that resting energy expenditure is actually increased after peanut consumption – so you are burning energy by eating them."

You can read more on this here:

http://www.peanut-institute.org/PDF/PeanutsandSnacking.pdf

Wheatgrass Man

WONDROUS, WONDROUS WHEATGRASS

Sharing this article from the Daily Tribune written by my friend Happy Tugade. - Wheatgrass Man

Colon and prostate cancer, heart disease and diabetes, anemia and constipation, obesity and premature aging, bad breath and body odor: what we would all pay to cure these conditions or at least prevent them from afflicting us?

Not much, it seems, or at least not as much as a lifelong regimen of therapies and maintenance medicines would cost us and that not just in money. A food-supplement remedy for these ills first tested successfully in the US in the 1930s, it has amassed a loyal following over the decades, even with members of the medical community.

Who would think all these restorative properties would be found in grass, specifically wheatgrass (*Triticum aestivum*), the plant that when full-grown yields wheat flour for our bread? This humble herb is said to be effective in detoxifying the body and making it alkaline by eliminating excessive acids and neutralizing the pH level of the body. Too much animal protein, fat, preservatives and artificial sweeteners make the body acidic. Wheatgrass, like greens, unpolished grains, vegetables and fruit, makes it alkaline. It does this through its active component chlorophyll, 17 amino acids, 10 minerals, 13 vitamins including A, C, E, and B complex, fiber and over 100 enzymes.

The wonder herb can be grown and juiced at home. Abroad, it is dispensed in juice bars alone, or in mixed fruit and/or vegetable drinks. It is sold in many health food stores fresh, in tablet form, frozen juice or powder. An average dose of 3.5 grams (powder or tablets) is consumed per day or a fresh-squeezed 30 milliliter shot once daily. A higher dose up to 2–4 oz taken 1-3 times per day on an empty stomach and before meals is recommended for more therapeutic benefits. Users may increase their intake to 3–4 times per day for detoxification. However, persons with a poor diet may experience nausea on high dosages of wheatgrass.

Easy Pha-max, the Malaysian Largest Producer of Wheatgrass and maker of Wheatgrass Powder Drink now available locally, is recognized and certified by the Ministry of Health of Malaysia; the Food and Drug Administration of the US; the Ministry of Public Health of Thailand; the National Agency of Drug and Food Control of Indonesia; the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare of Japan; and the Bureau of Food and Drugs of the Philippines.

Easy Pha-max Wheatgrass Powder Drink is mixed with cold or room-temperature water and taken on an empty stomach upon waking up in the morning. Dr. Hans Fischer and associates noticed that the human blood is practically identical to chlorophyll on the molecular level and can stimulate blood production. Increase of blood cells means better circulation and oxygenation and rapid body cleansing. A British study also found that animals made anemic through bleeding sped up their hemoglobin regeneration when fed with raw unrefined chlorophyll, they said. (US studies in the 1930s also found that animals could survive on grass alone but failed on other well-known healthy vegetables like carrots and spinach.) Chlorophyll has also been found by a Texas study to inhibit the activity of carcinogens and (by a Hawaii study) to shield the body from the effects of carcinogens from smoked meats and food molds. Its antiseptic properties were the subject of an article in the *American Journal of Surgery*, which suggested that the chlorophyll helps clear up foul odors, neutralize strep infections, heal wounds and hasten skin grafting. Gahan, Kline and Finkle also reported the benefits of chlorophyll in treating gastro-intestinal ulcers and colitis.

It is also the chlorophyll that, when taken in adequate quantities, reduces or eliminates offensive body and breath odors caused by food, beverages, alcohol, tobacco and metabolic changes. Wheatgrass also contains significant amounts of the antioxidant [Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), which protects DNA from damage by free radicals, as well as the compound P4D1, a glycol protein, which stimulates the repair of damaged DNA. It promotes bowel movement and helps flush out toxins in the liver, and beats aspirin's anti-inflammatory effects through the combines potency of the glycol proteins D1G1 and P4D1 and the antioxidant SOD.

Easy Pha-max Wheatgrass, however, is unique in that it is grown indoors in a sterile, air-conditioned environment aeroponically, that is, without soil, which enables makers Easy Pha-max to use both the leaves and the roots in making the powder. Only balanced and complete nutrients developed in the firm's laboratories using organic raw materials are fed to the growing plants that are harvested after eight days. Japanese research found that eight days is enough time for wheatgrass to maximize its full health potentials. Processing, drying, and packing are also done under low temperatures. Now available in the country, Easy Pha-max Wheatgrass was awarded the silver medal in the 28th Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions, New Techniques and Products 2000 for Indoor Aeroponic Cultivation Method for Wheatgrass. It was also the first wheatgrass tea producer awarded the Superbrands Malaysia 2005 status by the Malaysian Consumers and the Superbrands Council.

"We believe that there is a world trend to change from synthetic to alternative medicine, and we know it's going to be big in Asia," Mr. Edward Ling, CEO of Easy Pha-max Philippines, was quoted as saying. The company reportedly has projects underway to maximize herbal products in the Philippines in collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology and Philippine Council for Health Research and Development. Mr. Ling said that 120 local herbal species are proven to be medicinally useful and Easy Pha-max would like to bring these herbal products to the world through our global platform.

"Philippine herbal products will make a big impact and enhance the livelihood and economy (of the country)," Mr. Ling said.

For more information on Easy Pha-max Wheatgrass powder, visit http://www.myeasycenter.com/miraclefood

The Philippine headquarters of the company is at 10/F Herrera Tower, 98 V.A. Rufino corner Valero Sts., Salcedo Village, Makati City, Philippines. Contact numbers are (632) 890-1111 or Toll-Free at 1-80010-890-1111. Mention the code MIRACLE FOOD to avail of a special discount. You may text your inquiries to (0917) 861-2008, (0918) 951-2008, or (0927) 426-0430.

The Story of a Lupus Survivor and Wheatgrass

I'd like to thank my friend Vic Milan who shared this testimonial from one of his listeners. Vic has a radio program called Kalikasan Vigilante, which airs Mondays to Fridays from 7:15pm to 8:30pm at 104.3FM - Wheatgrass Man

A LUPUS SURVIVOR’S STORY
BY MARIA CHRISTINA M. CASTILLEJOS

(23 Years Old)

"I was in second year college in 2003 when I was diagnosed with Lupus Nephritis (Class 4). I was hospitalized for more than one month. Two years later, after a seizure, the diagnosis was even more stunning: I had Lupus Cerebritis, which means that the disease had reached my brain. I was also told I could no longer go back to school. I was so devastated I just wanted to die.

I was told to see a psychiatrist so I could accept the fact that lupus would forever be in my system. I did not follow the suggestion. I was determined, and I began to believe in my heart, that prayers and research would help me find a cure.

Lupus is a disease where the immune system goes on a rampage, attacking even healthy cells, resulting in severe damage to my kidneys, lungs and hemoglobin count. In my case this happened whenever I experienced pressure and depression. I was hospitalized three times for long periods, put under heavy medication all the while, and the effect on my family’s finances was just as devastating.

Subjected to all kinds of procedures, my body became almost immune to pain. One procedure involved taking out 4 liters of liquid from my lungs… it was so painful I wished for death just to escape the pain, but I just let them do it anyway. My pain threshold went up some more, and during another open surgery I was awake during the whole procedure because the anesthesia no longer had any effect on me… possibly also because of all the drugs that had been given to me.

In 2007, they started giving me 5000 units of Recormon injection due to very low hemoglobin count. (Normally, blood count is at 12-17 G/DL; mine went down to 8.1 G/DL) which caused me to have shortness of breath and weakness almost to the point of collapsing. I could not sleep well. Black circles began to form under my eyes and other sensitive parts of my body. Also at this time my mother was suffering from slight anemia and symptoms similar to mine.

Then one evening while she was listening to her favorite radio station, she heard about wheat grass and its health benefits when taken regularly. She immediately contacted the person in the radio program to ask where she could get the grass.

Just two days after taking the said grass, she felt strong and was relieved of feeling weak after just minor household chores. She then encouraged me to take it also and see if it could help me. However, my doctor said I should not take it because it might conflict with my other medicines and that it might harm my kidneys.

My mother was so persistent and suggested that I should try the wheatgrass without stopping my medicines. I started taking two sachets a day for two weeks. I stopped my injection then so we could observe the effect of wheatgrass.

In just two weeks I started feeling so fantastic. I felt strong, my sleeping improved and my dizziness was gone. I had my hemoglobin count tested again and the result was amazing: it had gone up from 8.1 to 12 G/DL (normal) and my creatinine was normal.

My doctor was surprised. We had not told her I was taking wheatgrass. She must have thought it was due to Recormon injections and other maintenance medicines.

After just six months of daily wheatgrass intake, I am testing negative for protein, my pus cells normal… no more urinary tract infection (UTI) though all these past years I had been taking high dosages of antibiotics for UTI. My doctor continues to be surprised at my progress; I should be out of steroids soon. I am praying that with this new non-synthetic food supplement I will continue to improve and completely heal my disease and I will be normal again to continue my studies. I feel very strong now and am more confident because I have not had any attack the past six months.

I am now allowed to study at the University of the Philippines home-stay program. I now have a temporary job in the day time to test my endurance and ability to cope with pressure. I want to finish my studies so I can find a permanent job so I can continue my regular dosage of wheatgrass.

I will take this product forever and have recommended it to other lupus victims like me. "

A Brief History of Wheatgrass

“Fifteen pounds of wheat grass is equal in overall nutritional value to 350 pounds of ordinary garden vegetables. We have not even scratched the surface of what grass can mean to man in the future.”—Dr. Charles Schnabel, Father of Wheat Grass Therapy

So, what makes wheatgrass such a potent nutritional treasure? Today, informed health experts agree that the young green shoots of wheatgrass contain a phytonutrient or group of phytonutrients still not able to be isolated or synthesized in the laboratory. This is known as Grass Juice Factor. Its health benefits are profound.

In the late 1920s a Kansas City food chemist Charles Schnabel who was looking for a nutritional source to be added to poultry feed to promote fertility and reduce mortality tried to increase the percentage of alfalfa; next, he tried combinations of twenty different green vegetables. They did not have the health promoting effect Dr. Schnabel sought.

In 1931, he desperately tried something unique, using feed with immature wheat and oat grasses. The poultry responded fantastically. Their winter egg production increased 38 to 94 percent. But not only were more eggs produced, they also had stronger shells, therefore increasing the number of healthy hatchlings. A higher proportion of the layers and offspring remained free of diseases.

Following up on Schnabel’s work, esteemed nutritional scientist Dr. George Kohler and his colleagues at the University of Wisconsin were studying the differences in the nutritional value of cow’s milk produced at different seasons of the year. The researchers discovered that laboratory animals fed summer milk thrived, but became sick and died when given winter milk. Clearly, the higher nutritional value of the summer milk was found to be due to the young grasses cows grazed on in the spring and summer. Thus began research on the Grass Juice Factor, thought to be responsible for this growth effect.

Meanwhile, at the University of California at Berkeley, Dr. Mott Cannon and his colleagues found that guinea pigs failed rapidly when fed a stock ration plus high levels of all the then-known nutrients. Wheatgrass expert author Steve Meyerowitz notes, “When the researchers added standard food supplements such as liver extracts, wheat germ, and brewer’s yeast to the animals’ diets, the guinea pigs remained sick and often died. Addition of dehydrated grass or grass juice brought about dramatic recovery and stimulated growth in these animals.”

Unfortunately, World War II changed that. After the end of the war, large corporations influenced American eating habits and medical choices towards chemicals and drugs, and the companies Dr. Schnabel was associated with discontinued distribution of his grass products. By 1950, Americans had been shifted from a natural to a synthetic approach to health care, and it wouldn’t be until the 1970s that natural grasses would make a comeback, largely due to a few committed individuals. Today you can find fresh wheat grass juice in most natural foods stores and juice bars because of those pioneers, and for good reason.

REFERENCES: Cannon, M. & Emerson, G. “Dietary requirements of the guinea pig with reference to the need for a special factor.” The Journal of Nutrition, 1939:18:155-167. Graham, W., et al. “Grass as a Food: Vitamin Content.” Paper presented April 10,1940, at the 99th meeting of The American Chemical Society. Kohler, G., et al. “Growth stimulating properties of grass juice.” Science, May 8,1936:445. Schnabel, C. “The biologic value of high protein cereal grasses.” Paper presented to the biologic section of the American Chemical Society in New York, April 22,1935.

Becoming Healthy with Wheatgrass

All of us should get back to good health, the natural and preventive way. In this day and age, getting sick can be expensive, or worse, might even cost you your job. So many products today give many promises but in my opinion, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

Last year, I was introduced to this "miracle food" called wheatgrass. I consider myself a healthy person (at least that's what I thought) and my regular annual executive checkup was essentially "ok". I did find though that as I was getting older (I'm 37 years old now), my energy level wasn't the same as it used to be. My BMI (body mass index) was also above normal treshold, so I was a little overweight. My doctor wanted me to bring down my weight to 165 lbs from about 180 then. Ofcourse I thought it was a crazy idea, the last time I weighed that much was when I was still in college.




So I did consider trying wheatgrass, but didn't want the hassle of juicing it myself. Good that with the advent of technology, there was now a powder version of wheatgrass which you mix with water and drink straight up. I expected a really "grassy" taste, but to my surprise it wasn't that "grassy" :-). I also tried the powder version with honey and it gave a natural sweet taste.

Drinking wheatgrass first thing in the morning gave my body a certain "kick". I noticed that I was able to go through 10 hours in the day without a drop of energy, and the usual sleepy feeling after lunch wasn't there anymore. I also did notice that my bowel movement became more regular. After a month of drinking wheatgrass, I started to lose a few pounds ...

The active component of wheatgrass if you recall elementary science is Chlorophyll. Advocates call it the natural green blood, because of its resemblance to the chemical composition of Heme, our own blood. The similarity of the molecular structure between Chlorophyll and Heme results in the effective assimilation of phytonutrients by the body and makes it a powerful blood purifier




Why do they call it Miracle Food? Studies done show that 15lbs of wheatgrass is equivalent to eating 350lbs of veggies! Imagine that, it is difficult to eat that much vegetables but it is certainly easy to drink one glass of wheatgrass daily.

Wheatgrass has been used historically by patients of cancer and other diseases for years to get back to good health. Certainly, this topic is a controversial one but there are many many cases of testimonials around the world on this. I for one have met a Lupus survivor here in Manila, a 19-year old student who after using conventional medicine and burning through cash, she didn't get well. After taking wheatgrass twice a day for 5 months, she got healed!

My personal experience after 5 months of wheatgrass and doing a 3-Day Detox (more to this in another article) is I lost 20 lbs, and now back to a normal BMI of 24.75. And the reason I'm sharing this with you is because it really works!

To Good Health,

Wheatgrass Man