Recently, Dr. Andrew Weil published an article talking about the effects of spirulina. I’ve talked about it before, and for good reason: spirulina has a wide array of health benefits, containing vitamins A, K, B12, and contains more protein per gram than red meat.
Maybe you’ve seen algae at a local pond, or returned home after a trip to find your pool teeming with green growth. Perhaps you’ve walked down the aisle of a health food store and seen the bottles and packages of spirulina, chlorella and other green powders, or heard that algae is coming to fuel your life–from your body, to your vehicle. Algae cultivation actually has its own name–algaculture–and while thousands of types of algae exist, the majority of algae being grown commercially is microalgae.
The idea of consuming spirulina, let alone growing your own, might be off-putting. But hear me out: spirulina is widely considered the most nutrient dense food on the planet. With high levels of protein, B-vitamins, antioxidants and other nutrients like copper and iron, spirulina is like the whole foods version of your daily multi-vitamin.
But, at close to 50 cents per serving, it’s certainly not what you might consider economical.
So what can you do instead?
You might not think highly of algae–that’s right, the green scum that floats on pond surfaces–but reconsider your opinion. Algae – in both chlorella and spirulina form – has recently dominated the health food world with its impressive nutrient profile. Boasting high levels of B-vitamins, iron, copper, and a slew of other micronutrients, it’s widely considered the most perfect food. It’s so powerful, that algae may be coming to space.
Why?
In our fast-changing world, evidence of climate change, the need for sustainable practices, and concern for local environments are always intertwined with economics. Entrepreneurs and scientists who are consistently searching for alternatives to fossil fuels and natural gas have toyed with one idea—algae biofuels.
What is algae?
Scientifically, algae are aquatic organisms that thrive through photosynthesis. This includes a great number of organisms, but for our purposes, we’re going to focus on spirulina and chlorella.
What’s the difference between spirulina and chlorella?
Chlorella is a single-celled green algae made up of chlorophyll pigments (hence it’s bright green color.) Due to its incredibly fast reproduction rate, chlorella is a very sustainable food source.