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Index

Introduction
Green Barley Grass - the wonder food
AIM BarleyLife™
Recipe of the month
Website update

Introduction

Since our last "Health Tips" we have a new government, and Judy & I have had a break away in Hawaii and Gold Coast. (Both are beautiful - especially during our Winter)

But our best news is the new product we have ... read on

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Green Barley Grass - the wonder food

Barley grass is one of the green grasses - the only vegetation on earth that can supply sole nutritional support from birth to old age.

Agronomists place this ancient cereal grass as being cultivated as early as 7000 BC, probably in the dry lands of south-western Asia. In the west, barley grass was first known for the barley grain it produces;there is written mention of the grain as early as 2800 BC in Babylon.

Barley is also a Biblical food mentioned no fewer than 32 times in the Bible.

Barley grass vs Barley grain

Green grasses are at their nutritional peak before they enter the reproductive cycle. To create grain, the plant must channel its nutrition up to the seed heads. When grasses are harvested before they enter the reproductive cycle, they have a different chemical makeup from their adult, largely depleted, counterparts.

Young grasses contain about the same vitamins and minerals as dark green vegetables. When these grasses are juiced and concentrated, as in
AIM BarleyLife™ , they are far superior nutritionally. This amazing discovery is supported by data.

For example, according to the US Department of Agriculture's Nutrient Database, barley contains 22 International Units (IU) of vitamin A per 100g and barley flour contains no vitamin A.

AIM Barleylife™ however, contains 19,700 IU of vitamin A per 100g. This is 2.5 times the beta carotene found in an equivalent weight of raw carrots and about 25 times that found in an equivalent weight of raw broccoli. Vitamin A is an important antioxidant known to protect cells. It is implicated in cardiovascular health and is believed to have anticancer benefits.

To use another example, barley contains 33 mg of calcium per 100 g and barley flour contains 32 mg of calcium per 100g.
AIM BarleyLife™ contains 730 mg of calcium per 100g. This is more than 7 times the calcium found in an equivalent weight of raw spinach and 15 times the calcium found in an equivalent weight of raw broccoli. Calcium is essential for bone development.

You can see then, that grasses, when juiced and concentrated as in
AIM BarleyLife™ , offer us great nutrition.

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, that the leaves of the cereal grasses provide the nearest thing this planet offers to the perfect food. For reasons of palatability, higher nutrient content, and favourable 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 that we must get from our diets, proteins, enzymes, chlorophyll, and phytochemicals.

Amino acids 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 (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 the 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 disease. 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 in a food in an active state, it can be concluded that the other enzymes in the food are also present in an active state.

Enzymes are not found in processed and cooked foods.

Chlorophyll

Green barley grass also contains chlorophyll. Chlorophyll 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 most remarkable is the similarity between chlorophyll and the red pigment in blood. research in the 1940's 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 adsorption 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 bioavailabilty.

Chlorophyll also removes carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, the 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

Phytochemical 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 extract has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity, immune system support, and cholesterol-lowering effects.

Alkalinity.

Green barley grass has a high alkalising effect, which helps keep the ratio between acidity and alkalinity in our body fluids balance. Our cells cannot adequately function if the pH (which measures acidity and alkalinity) is not in a narrow range. Most processed foods are 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 neutralise 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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A new and improved green barley juice powder!

AIM BarleyLife™ is a whole food concentrate that captures all the nutrients in green barley grass. The power of AIM BarleyLife™ is found in this combination of nutrients. The powdered juice of AIM BarleyLife™ is as close to the natural state of young green barley leaves as possible and thus supplies the leaves' nutrients in natural proportions.

AIM BarleyLife™ is produced in the clean, green, pristine lands of New Zealand and Canada. While American soil, water, and air have become increasingly devoid of nutrients and polluted from chemicals, the soil, water, and air in New Zealand and Canada are richer and purer than in many places in the world.

The barley used for AIM BarleyLife™ is grown from a variety of seed that allows for the longest harvest window and is residue-free. The leaves are harvested with state-of-the-art equipment when their nutrients are most potent and alive. The leaves are then juiced (not milled, as in many other barley grass products) and processed using the most advanced and efficient cold processing methods for maximum freshness and nutrition. The juice is spray-dried, using a special, low-temperature process. This preserves the delicate balance of the nutrients and phytochemicals.

Nutritionally superior product

AIM BarleyLife™ is bursting with nutrition. It contains 2.5 times the beta carotene found in an equivalent weight of raw carrots and about 25 times that found in an equivalent weight of raw broccoli. Beta carotene is an important antioxidant known to protect cells. It is implicated in cardiovascular health and is believed to have anticancer benefits.

AIM BarleyLife™ also contains more than 7 times the calcium found in an equivalent weight of raw spinach and 15 times the calcium found in an equivalent weight of raw broccoli. Calcium is essential for bone development.

In addition, AIM BarleyLife™ contains more of the other essential vitamins and minerals, more amino acids, more enzymes - including peroxidase, a marker of freshness, and superoxide dismustase (SOD), a marker of antioxidant activity and a free-radical fighter - more antioxidants - including at least two powerful ones, lutonarin and saponarin - and more chlorophyll.

Benefits of AIM BarleyLife™

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

Anecdotal evidence indicates that AIM BarleyLife™ helps maintain whole body health and provides increased energy and stamina.

Why is AIM BarleyLife™ better?

• AIM's barley seed varieties provide the widest window of harvest.
• AIM's barley crops thrive in the clean, green, pristine lands of New Zealand and Canada in which the nutrients in the soil contribute to the nutrients in the plants and the juice.
• AIM's barley crops are staggered for a consistent processing campaign in which each field is harvested when the plants are bursing with nutrition.
• AIM's barley crops are harvested when they are at their nutritional peak, before they enter the reproductive cycle and use their nutrients to produce grain.
• AIM's barley crops are cut only once, allowing for optimum nutrient density.
• AIM's harvested barley plants are juiced and chilled immediately, rendering the enzymes dormant and preserving their precious nutrients.
• AIM's barley juice is powdered using the most advanced and efficient methods for ensuring maximum freshness and nutrition.(see Nutritional Profile)

Harvesting and juicing in New Zealand

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Recipe of the month

MINTED BEAN SALAD

This is an excellent salad when green beans are plentiful over summer and into autumn. It is very quick to prepare. Keeps well in the fridge. Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS

1 Green cucumber (chopped into cubes)
1 Red capsicum (chopped small)
250 gram Beans
1 bunch mint
2 lemons - juice
1 tsp sugar
½ cup cold pressed Olive Oil or Flaxseed Oil
Salt & pepper to taste

PREPARATION

Cook beans, then plunge into cold water, drain and dry

Mix and add other ingredients, then serve.

COMMENTS

This is one of our favourites. Can be served with Red Cabbage salad and tomatoes. Also good with Kumara or Potato chips ( home made - of course!)

Check out our other great recipes - here

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Health Seekers Website

We now can accept Credit cards on our new secure server.

We list prices in New Zealand, Australian and US Dollars.

It has been a long time coming but we now have it. Check out our prices here