Wheatgrass: grazing for good health

by Lain Chroust Ehmann

wheatgrass Ponce de Leon searched for years for the elusive fountain of youth, to no avail. If the Spanish explorer were around today, though, he might have to look no further than one of the thousands of "juice bars" springing up around the country. Offering fare such as "smoothies" and "wraps," these trendy establishments also claim to offer patrons the all-purpose elixir for good health: wheatgrass juice.

Made by juicing week-old shoots sprouted from winter wheatgrass berries, the bright, almost fluorescent-green juice contains approximately 70% chlorophyll, the so-called lifeblood of plants. "Over 50 years ago, scientists proved that chlorophyll was bacteriostatic, meaning it controls harmful bacteria," says Steve Meyerowitz, author of Wheatgrass: Natures Finest Medicine. Meyerowitz says that chlorophyll

Wheatgrass fans range from hard-core athletes to patients fighting serious illnesses to those just looking for a quick way to get more vitamins and minerals. The most devoted disciples avow that wheatgrass is the cure to all that ails you, whether it is dandruff, body odor, infertility or general lethargy.

Peggy Badgett, R.Ph., of Nutrition Unlimited in Rockford, Illinois, says she sees a lot of people with depressed immune systems using wheatgrass as a way to jump-start their systems. "We have a lot of people who have cancer or who are really ill and trying to build themselves back up," says Badgett, a registered pharmacist.

Proponents frequently recite the wheatgrass liturgy: a single ounce of fresh juice is equal in nutrient value to 2-1/2 pounds of vegetables. Though its also available in powdered and tablet form, purists reach for the fresh-squeezed, one-ounce "shots" served up in tiny paper or plastic cups at their local juice bars and health food stores. At the going rate of $1.00-$2.00 per ounce, consumers are betting the health claims are well worth the price.

Ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptians and people of the Middle and Far East, turned to grass for sustenance and healing. It wasnt until the 1970s and 80s, though, that Ann Wigmore, founder of the Hippocrates Health Institute and author of The Wheatgrass Book introduced wheatgrass and its benefits to the health food set.

Wigmores book includes stories of users who credit wheatgrass with helping them beat breast cancer and colitis. Wigmore also cites various studies

One key to wheatgrass purported effectiveness is its high proportion of chlorophyll. "Grass is one of the planets richest sources of high-quality chlorophyll," says Meyerowitz. "This blood of plants is a chemical cousin to hemin. Hemin is part of hemoglobin, the red iron-rich oxygen-carrying portions of human blood."

In addition, wheatgrass juice is said to be a "complete" food, containing all the vitamins and minerals essential to the human body, in a form more easily absorbed than traditional multi-vitamin supplements and pills. "These greens are so special," says Meyerowitz, "because they behave like supplements but are naturally concentrated whole foods made in natures laboratory. Nutrients in foods coexist with numerous other factors that enhance and enable their function."

According to one study done by Pines International, a wheatgrass supplier, dehydrated wheatgrass beats wheat sprouts, spinach and broccoli in providing 17 of 21 specific vitamins and minerals. "Its like eating vegetables, but in a much more concentrated form," says Nutrition Unlimiteds Badgett.

With todays frenzied pace where meals can consist of a Starbucks breakfast, lunch at McDonalds and dinner from the freezer, its no wonder wheatgrass is growing in popularity. An ounce a day

A shot of wheatgrass juice can be an easy way to boost your daily nutrient intake, since many Americans are lacking in important vitamins and minerals. And, for those suffering from an immune system deficiency

Perhaps there will be more information forthcoming, as the University of California at Davis has funded research to study the effects of wheatgrass juice on asthma and allergic rhinitis (runny nose). The study is examining whether people with hay fever will improve after taking the very thing that ails them: a juice made from wheat and rich in pollen, the substance that actually causes hay fever.

"Its a like cures like theory that the immune system can build a resistance to these allergens," says Merrill Eric Gershwin, M.D., the principal investigator at the center. "Oral immunotherapy may be a very promising, safe, and low-cost option for managing seasonal hay fever and asthma."

As far as being natures version of the fountain of youth, however, modern-day Ponce de Leons might have to keep on looking. "I dont think there is such a thing as a cure-all," Badgett concludes.