Re: Greens powder supplements - nutrition?

[Guest guest]

Hi :

LOL.

Well I have waited a while before answering this to see if others have something intelligent to say about the benefit of these 'greens' mixtures. Not seeing any replies I feel entitled to provide my unintelligent contribution, so here is my view, fwiw:

Sorry, but let me be the devil's advocate. I have a bunch of questions, and they are not rhetorical, I will listen carefully to the answers if someone provides them. But they result from an IMPRESSION I have that this 'greens' stuff is a lot of hype without much in the way of evidence of benefit.

What are the benefits of all these ingredients?

Has it been shown that this mixture extends lifespan or improves health? And if it has, has it been shown to be beneficial to people on CRON, whose risk for just about everything is already greatly reduced?

There are 21 items in the ingredient list you kindly provided. Have the plants from which these components were obtained been shown to have benefits? And for those where benefits have been found, have these substances been shown to have benefits *in the form they appear in this mixture*? The powders and extracts and fibers etc. listed here are not the plants themselves. Is there reason to believe that what remains after processing has benefits similar to those of whatever it was that was tested and found helpful?

While posing the above questions for each item in the ingredient list, here are some questions about specific items:

In the case of the rhubarb, for example, it has been posted here that it is top of the list of foods for oxalic acid content, something that is generally considered better avoided rather than supplemented.

It lists rice flour and barley flour. Presumably the nutrient content of these is about the same as for rice and barley, and not much different from that of regular white wheat flour? After all, if it was whole barley and whole rice flour, wouldn't they have made sure to say so? Many people here seem to think white flours are second only to potassium cyanide ; ^ ))) on the list of things to avoid. (I don't have an opinion).

Spinach is on the list. While it has many good characteristics it has two bad ones. Much too much iron, and four times too much methionine (imo).

Then, for the five items described as "extracts", even if the plants from which these extracts are derived have been shown to have benefits (have they?) do we know that the extract contains the beneficial compounds? Is it even known what the beneficial compounds are? Not infrequently the component of a food believed to confer a benefit is found to be harmful when taken as a supplement (beta carotene for example).

Then there are seven items described as powders. It has been claimed in posts here from time to time that much of the benefits of fresh vegetables are gone within a few days after harvesting. How much, if any, benefit remains many months after harvesting and after being processed into powder? I don't know the answer, but it does seem like a relevent question.

Then there is the pea fiber and apple fiber. Since the definition of fiber is that it isn't absorbed we can conclude there are no nutrients in these, although they will likely be of help to anyone suffering constipation.

Barley grass and wheat grass are basicly grasses, as their names imply, so why not use your own lawn clippings instead? Is there reason to believe the green parts of barley and wheat are significantly different from, or better than, regular lawn grasses, grown from essentially rather similar seeds?

And finally, how much does this stuff cost per pound in comparison with the cost per pound of its major constituents? Rice, barley, lawn clippings, spinach, broccoli and apples, generally don't cost a heck of a lot. If one is satisfied the contents have benefit, does the price make sense?

Seriously, I am open minded to hearing what the benefits are of all these things. But at the moment I have the uncomfortable feeling this may all be a marketing gimmick. Am I mistaken?

Rodney ; ^ )))

PS: As you may be able to tell I don't currently use these 'greens' things. >> Hi everyone,> I've been using a greens powder supplement in a few recipes and would> love to be able to really crunch the numbers in CRON-o-meter, but the> only information I have available is the basic 4 or 5 required> nutrients on the label, and the very lengthy ingredient list.> > Has anyone a source to the complete nutrient stats for this type of> thing? I know that most brands are very similar to each other, so the> goodies inside won't vary a ton.> > Here's the ingredient list for mine (Trader Joe's Very Green), FWIW:> alfalfa leaf extract, barley grass juice powder, pea fiber, rice> flour, apple powder, barley flour, apple fiber, wheat grass juice> powder, spirulina powder, citrus bioflavinoids, spinach powder, green> tea leaf extract, eleuthero root powder, chlorella powder, acerola> juice extract, licorice root powder, chinese rhubarb root powder, blue> green algae, broccoli powder, ginkgo leaf powder, bilberry fruit extract.> > Whew.> > >