Sea vegetables like kelp are found in oceans around the world and used by manufacturers in products ranging from ice cream to toothpaste as both a thickener and stabilizer. But kelp is also full of vitamins and minerals and has the potential to help prevent and treat various diseases, as well as promote overall good health.
Identification
Sea vegetables like kelp have been used in the Japanese diet for centuries, one reason so many seaweed species have Japanese names. The kelp family includes varieties like arame, bladderwrack, kombu and wakame and are neither plants nor animals but grouped in the same family as algae. Sea vegetables are typically categorized by color, known as brown, red or green sea vegetables, with kelp belonging to the brown variety. Kelp is commonly found in powdered or flake form in health-food stores.
Nutrition
Kelp is an exceptional source of minerals like calcium, potassium, magnesium and iron and also contains trace minerals such as manganese, copper and zinc. It's particularly high in chromium, with only 1 oz. of kelp providing the complete Recommended Daily Allowance. Kelp contains 25 vitamins, according to Gaia Organics, including vitamins A, C, E, B1, B2, B6 and B12, as well as a substance called ergesterol that converts to vitamin D in the body. It's also one of the richest sources of vegetable protein and iodine.
Benefits
Kelp species contain high levels of iodine, which is used to prevent or treat some thyroid disorders. Kelp also contains algin, a compound that acts as a laxative to help the stool pass through your bowels. Phytonutrients found in kelp and other sea vegetables have been shown to inhibit the type of blood cell growth that creates fast-growing tumors. Kelp also contains carbohydrate-like substances called fucans that help your body fight inflammation.
Expert Insight
A study at Hokkaido University in Japan by Kazuo Miyashita, et al, discovered that a compound found in brown seaweeds such as kelp, called fucoxanthin, promotes weight loss and has significant anti-diabetes effects. Researchers at the National Research Institute of Fisheries Science in Japan investigated the activity of brown seaweed on triglycerides in laboratory animals and found kelp and other similar seaweeds lowered serum and liver triacylglycerol levels. In 2005, scientists at the School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, showed that dietary kelp may help lower your risk of hormone-dependent cancers.
Warning
Although bladderwrack is used to treat underactive thyroid conditions due to its iodine content, higher doses above the daily recommended 150 mcg of iodine can lead to an overactive thyroid or make existing hyperthyroidism worse, according to the Merck Manual. Sea vegetables also tend to act like a sponge in the open water, which means they may absorb potentially toxic heavy metal elements such as arsenic, lead and cadmium from polluted waters.
Member Comments