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The Nutrients of Barley Grass

The nutrients in barley grass

Barley grass is considered the most nutritional of the green grasses. Yoshihide Hagiwara, MD, the pioneer of green foods, is responsible for more than 200 published studies on green and natural foods. After studying green plants for decades, he said, "It is clear to me, then, that the leaves of the cereal grasses provide the nearest thing this planet offers to the perfect food. For reason of palatability, higher nutrient content, and favorable harvesting features, green barley stands out as the best among these."

Barley grass contains a wide spectrum of vitamins and minerals, amino acids, including the eight essential ones we must get from our diet, proteins, enzymes, chlorophyll, and phytochemicals.

Amino acid and proteins

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins, which are the major constituents of every cell and body fluid, and are thus necessary for the continual cell building, cell regeneration, and energy production that we need for life. An added benefit of the green barley leaf proteins is that they are polypeptides -- smaller proteins that can be directly absorbed by the blood, where they promote cell metabolism (the chemical changes that we need to live).

Enzymes

Green barley leaves contain a multitude of enzymes. Enzymes are essential for the thousands of chemical reactions that occur throughout the body, including the production of energy at the cellular level, the facilitation of digestion, the absorption of digested nutrients, and the rebuilding and replenishing of all that the body requires for metabolism to occur.

The enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD) is a powerful antioxidant thought to slow the rate of cell destruction by providing a defense against free radicals, especially the most prolific free radical, superoxide. Superoxide free radicals are thought to be responsible for the breakdown of synovial fluid that leads to the inflammatory response in joints. Much of the current clinical research on SOD is focused on arthritis, bursitis, and gout. Low levels of SOD are also associated with cataracts and other degenerative diseases. In addition, it is believed to help the body use zinc, copper, and manganese more effectively.

As SOD is heat sensitive, it is thought to be the yardstick for measuring overall enzymatic activity. If SOD is present is a food in an active state it can be concluded that the other enzymes in the food are present in an active state.

Enzymes are not found in processed and cooked foods.

Chlorophyll

Green barley grass also contains chlorophyll. Chorophyll has been studied for its potential as a deodorant, in stimulating tissue growth, and in stimulating red blood cells in connection with oxygen supply. Perhaps the most remarkable is the similarity between chlorophyll and the red pigment in blood. Research in the 1940s demonstrated that the two pigments react the same during breakdown.

According to an article in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (Jan 4, 1995), chlorophyll fed to laboratory animals reduces absorption of three dietary carcinogens: heterocyclic amines (found in cooked muscle meats), polycyclic hydrocarbons (found in smoked and barbecued foods), and aflatoxin (a mold on peanuts). The chlorophyll formed complex compounds with the carcinogens while they were still in the digestive tract, limiting their bioavailability.

Chlorophyll also removes carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, and by-products of respiration and pollution, and has been found to reduce fecal, urinary, and body odor in geriatric patients. In addition, it has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and wound-healing properties.

Phytochemicals

Phytochemicals are simply plant chemicals that are thought to be essential to health. They have been associated with the prevention and/or treatment of at least four of the leading causes of death -- cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension -- and with the prevention and/or treatment of other ailments, including neural tube defects, osteoporosis, abnormal bowel function, and arthritis, as well as numerous chronic conditions.

The value of barley grass

Research has found that green barley grass extract has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity, immune system support, and cholesterol-lowering effects.

Alkalinity

Green barley grass has a high alkalizing effect, which helps keep the ratio between acidity and alkalinity in our body functions balanced. Our cells cannot adequately function if the pH (which measures acidity and alkalinity) is not in a narrow range. Most processed foods and acidic, and when we consume too many of them, the acidity-alkalinity balance is upset.

Green barley grass contains buffer minerals such as sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium. Buffer minerals neutralize acidic materials and can help maintain a healthy acidity-alkalinity balance.

Antioxidants

Green barley grass also contains unique and powerful plant antioxidants, including lutonarin(7-O-GIO) and saponarin (7-O-GIV). According to scientists, lutonarin is the superior antioxidant. Antioxidants protect cells from free-radical damage.

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