Description
Spirulina is a
blue-green algae. It is a simple, one-celled form of algae that
thrives in warm, alkaline fresh-water bodies. The name "spirulina"
is derived from the Latin word for "helix" or "spiral"; denoting
the physical configuration of the organism when it forms swirling,
microscopic strands.
Spirulina is being
developed as the "food of the future" because of its amazing
ability to synthesize high-quality concentrated food more
efficiently than any other algae. Most notably, Spirulina is *5 to
*1 percent completeprotein, with all essential amino acids
in perfect balance. In comparison, beef is only *2 percent
protein.
Spirulina has a
photosynthetic conversion rate of 8 to *0 percent, compared to only
3 percent in such land-growing plants as soybeans.
Spirulina also
provides high concentrations of many other nutrients - amino acids,
chelated minerals, pigmentations, rhamnose sugars (complex natural
plant sugars), trace elements, enzymes - that are in an easily
assimilable form.
Its metabolic
system is based on photosynthesis, a process of direct food energy
production utilizing sunlight and chlorophyll, which is typical of
plant life forms.
