In 1930 Charles F. Schnabel conducted experiments that introduced the world to wheatgrass when he fed it to his dying hens. They recovered and also produced eggs at higher rates than fit hens. He began using wheatgrass as a supplement for his friends and neighbours. By the 1940s it was available in chemists throughout America and Canada.

Ann Wigmore was also an early pioneer in wheatgrass juice. In the late 1960’s she co-founded a health resort in America where she used living food and wheat grass juice as treatments for many disorders including mental health problems. Wheatgrass enemas were also used at the Hippocrates Health Institute.

The structure of wheatgrass is similar to haemoglobin, the protein of red blood cells which carries the oxygen in the blood. A metallic atom is the only difference between the two, human blood carries the iron element and wheatgrass also carries the magnesium element in the chlorophyll.

Wheatgrass provides chlorophyll and contains a wide variety of vitamins, minerals, amino acids and enzymes. The nutritional value of wheatgrass and vegetables is more or less equivalent but with a ratio of 1:23, by taking into consideration the small portion of wheatgrass that is required to obtain the same nutrition. Wheatgrass is produced using the seed leaf, the cotyledon, of the wheat plant. Triticum aestivum ~ common wheat is used.

The best wheatgrass is grown outdoors under natural sunlight in organic conditions. Some people grow their own wheatgrass seed leaf at home and then juice it but it can become mouldy from seeds that did not germinate in close proximity sowing. It takes about 200 days of growing for the wheatgrass to be harvested. Harvested grass is then immediately dehydrated at low temperatures and turned into powder which is used in tablets and capsules.

The nutrients reach their peak in wheatgrass at the joining stage which only lasts for a couple of days. The jointing stage is when the inter-nodal tissue in the grass leaf begins to lengthen to form a stem and this is the optimal time for harvest. All of the nutrients in the wheatgrass reach their maximum concentration immediately before this stage.

The health claims for wheatgrass range from general well-being to cancer prevention. It is said to help with detoxification of heavy metals, such as mercury released into the body from amalgam tooth fillings. It aids blood flow and digestion and it has been used in a study of children with thalassemia, an inherited form of anaemia, in which it reduced the need for blood transfusions.

The many benefits come from nutrients found in wheatgrass.

• Protein
• Chlorophyll
• Beta-carotene
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin B (except B12)
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin K
• Phosphorus
• Calcium
• Magnesium
• Potassium
• Amino acids
• Enzymes
• Folic acid
• Iron

The nutritional value of wheatgrass is high that it can help stop constant food cravings which will help control weight gain. Wheatgrass juice also helps stimulate metabolism and boost the immune system. It is a powerful detoxifier which restores the alkalinity of blood.

Enzymes are destroyed by heat so it is best to use wheatgrass juice or powder in colds liquids. Daily intake should start with half a tea spoonful of wheatgrass powder once a day and slowly increase to one or two tea spoonful a day. An ounce of juice a day can be increased slowly up to two ounces a day. Mix the wheatgrass powder or juice with fruit juice or vegetable juice or just water.

Green juice is very healing and should be consumed daily. Slowly sipping throughout the day allows the body time to get used it. Take short breaks from the juice so the body can detoxify itself as it is fully capable of doing.

You will be doing yourself a small favour on the path to holistic health by drinking this sweet grass juice as part of your daily routine. It is widely available in drug store and health food shops and on line. Why not try it and see?

Live life in the moment.

"If you think you're too small to be effective, you've never been to bed with mosquito."
~ Anita Roddick