Do Flu-Fighting Alternatives Work?

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Some healthy adults aren't waiting for their turn to get the H1N1 vaccine. They're trying to find ways to avoid getting sick now.

You aren't going to find many doctors writing prescriptions for it. It's over-the-counter, and unregulated by the FDA.

But, some Des Moines merchants are reporting sales are through the roof as the H1N1 vaccine is in short supply and conventional medicine is offering few alternatives.

To avoid the flu, growing number of people are turning wheatgrass juice.

Juicing and taking shots have a whole different meaning at Fresh Café and Market in West Des Moines where a shot of wheatgrass comes with an orange chaser. They're $2.50 a shot.

Kerri Rush said her wheatgrass business has spiked with the start of the flu season, and talk of H1N1.

Right now, because it is flu season people are more concerned. I see more people come in for grass," said Rush.

The wheatgrass shot contains Vitamins A, E and B-12, Calcium, Magnesium and Iron. Webmd.com said one ounce is the equivalent of one ounce of fresh vegetables.

Campbell's Nutrition will take it a step closer. Naturopathic consultant Sandy Seeman said elderberry lozenges can block H1N1 from making you sick. The pills are a dollar each, sold in bottles of 30.

"In a test tube they put healthy cells, the H1N1 virus and then they put in this elderberry. And what they found is that the elderberry stopped this H1N1 virus from getting into the healthy cells," said Seeman.

Seeman said another study shows elderberry syrup can reduce your time with symptoms.

"It actually lessens the duration of the flu for four days," said Seeman.

The syrup runs $19.99 for an 8-ounce bottle.

Doctors said there's no mainstream evidence to support claims elderberry can do either of these things, or that wheatgrass can boost your immune system.

Rush said she doesn't need the studies, she hears testimony every day. And she's living proof.

"I have to find some wood to knock on, because I haven't been sick in a long time," said Rush.

Jeff Brock is the Infectious Disease Pharmacist at Mercy Medical Center. He said to use caution when trying nutritional supplements. They can have interactions with medications or cause allergic reactions. He recommends consulting a doctor or pharmacist before trying them.

He also said eating a healthy diet, getting rest, exercising, washing your hands and avoiding people who are sick are the cheapest and most effective way of avoiding the flu.

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Plant Compound May Aid Cancer Treatment

A natural substance known as chlorophyllin may be useful in the treatment of cancer, a new study shows. A derivative of chlorophyll (a green pigment found in most plants), chlorophyllin may be 10 times more potent than the commonly used chemotherapeutic drug hydroxyurea when it comes to knocking out colon cancer cells.

In test-tube studies on human cells, investigators found that chlorophyllin caused colon cancer cells to spend more time than normal in the phase in which DNA is duplicated. By slowing up the process of cancer-cell growth, the study's authors suggest, chlorophyllin may help spur the death of cancer cells. In particular, chlorophyllin significantly decreased levels of ribonucleotide reductase, an enzyme crucial to cell growth.

Chlorophyllin must be more extensively studied - especially in combination with cancer drugs - before its effects can be tested on humans, the study's authors note.

Often touted as a natural immune-booster and detox agent, wheatgrass juice is particularly rich in chlorophyll. While there's no evidence that drinking wheatgrass can help fight cancer, research suggests that the juice may ease symptoms of ulcerative colitis.

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Wheatgrass: Wonderful aid in Weight Control

According to an article "Benefits of Wheatgrass Juice", Wheatgrass juice is a wonderful aid in weight control. The starch of the wheat berry is stored energy which when converted to simpler sugars is a quick energy source. It is especially good for athletes because it is a juice and assimilated in 20 minutes. Wheatgrass picks up 92 of the 102 minerals in the soil and contains all vitamins science has isolated. Because one ounce of juice equals two pounds of produce nutritionally, it naturally shuts off the appestat in the brain. It helps in weight control. The nutritional value of wheatgrass Juice is so high that many people don't feel those "cravings" that lead to overeating.

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What is Wheatgrass?

Wheatgrass refers to the young grass of the common wheat plant, Triticum aestivum, that is freshly juiced or dried into powder for animal and human consumption. Both provide chlorophyll, amino acids, minerals, vitamins, and enzymes. Claims about wheatgrass' health benefits range from providing supplemental nutrition to having unique curative properties. Some consumers grow and juice wheatgrass in their homes. It is often available in juice bars, alone or in mixed fruit and/or vegetable drinks. It is also available in many health food stores as fresh produce, tablets, frozen juice and powder.

History

The consumption of wheatgrass in the Western world began in the 1930s as a result of experiments by Charles F. Schnabel and his attempts to popularize the plant.

Schnabel, an agricultural chemist, conducted his first experiments with young grasses in 1930, when he used fresh cut grass in an attempt to nurse dying hens back to health. The hens not only recovered, but they produced eggs at a higher rate than healthy hens. Encouraged by his results, he began drying and powdering grass for his family and neighbors to supplement their diets. The following year, Schnabel reproduced his experiment and achieved the same results. Hens consuming rations supplemented with grass doubled their egg production. Schnabel started promoting his discovery to feed mills, chemists and the food industry. Two large corporations, Quaker Oats and American Dairies Inc., invested millions of dollars in further research, development and production of products for animals and humans. By 1940, cans of Schnabel's powdered grass were on sale in major drug stores throughout the United States and Canada.

Cultivation

Extracting wheatgrass juice with a manual juicing machine.
Outdoor grown wheat grass grows slowly through the winter in a climate like that of Kansas in the United States.

Schnabel's research was conducted with wheatgrass grown outdoors in Kansas. His wheatgrass required 200 days of slow growth, through the winter and early spring, when it was harvested at the jointing or reproductive stage. It was at this stage that the plant reached its peak nutritional potential; after jointing, concentrations of chlorophyll, protein, and vitamin decline sharply. Harvested grass was dehydrated and made into powders and tablets for human and animal consumption. Wheatgrass grown indoors in trays for ten days contains similar nutritional content. Wheatgrass grown outdoors is harvested, dehydrated at a low temperature and sold in tablet and powdered forms. Wheat grass juice powder (fresh squeezed with the water removed) is also available either spray-dried or freeze-dried.

Usage

The average dosage taken by consumers of wheatgrass is 3.5 grams (powder or tablets). Some also have a fresh-squeezed 30 ml shot once daily or for more therapeutic benefits a higher dose up to 2–4 oz taken 1-3 times per day on an empty stomach and before meals. For detoxification, some users may increase their intake to 3–4 times per day. It should be noted that consumers with a poor diet may experience nausea on high dosages of wheatgrass. Outdoor wheatgrass is harvested for a few days each year from plants grown in the "bread basket" regions of the US and Canada. Winter wheat requires more than 200 days of slow growth in cold temperatures to reach the peak nutritional content. Even after that length of time, the plant is only 7 to 10 inches high.