Sunday, December 4, 2011

Ingredients of Cell Tech Blue Green Algae

Blue green algae is found in the wild.

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Cell Tech Super Blue Green Algae is an algae from Klamath Lake in Oregon that was marketed aggressively by pyramid type network marketers for years. Cell Tech changed its name to Simplexity in 2006 and stopped marketing the blue green algae under that name following several lawsuits. The only ingredient of Cell Techs product is aphanizomenon flos-aquae, the scientific name for wild blue green algae, which is closely related to spirulina, a farmed algae.

Related Searches: Claimed Nutrients and Benefits

Marketers of blue green algae products, of which Cell Tech, or Simplexity, is only one, claim that it is a superfood that contains important amino acids, B vitamins, and other compounds, especially chlorophyll, that are very beneficial to human health. Furthermore, marketers of products from Klamath Lake claim that the lake's pristine environment and location (next to the volcanic Cascade range) imbue their blue green algae products with high amounts of trace minerals not found in other algae products.

An Independant View

According to the University of California at Berkeley guide to dietary supplements, blue green algae does contain protein, vitamins, and several minerals. But, they caution, these components are in such small amounts that you would have to each large quantities of the product to really get high nutrient amounts from it. For this reason, it is better qualified as a food, not a supplement. Like spirulina, blue green algae does contain copious amounts of chlorophyll, but according to the dietary guide, this is of little benefit to humans.

Chlorophyll

Chlorophyll is the green matter in plants and is chemically related to human blood cells except that chlorophyll has a magnesium atom at its center while blood has an iron atom. According to Diana Post, M.D., of Harvard Medical School, there is very little evidence that chlorophyll has positive benefits on the human body besides possibly helping to mitigate the bad effects of eating too much red meat. Beyond this, chlorophyll is present in all green vegetables; and to actually get the amount of chlorophyll -- in the amounts present in a spinach salad, for example -- from eating blue green algae, you would have to eat much more than a spoonful or two, the recommended serving.

Microsystins

According to the dietary guide by UC Berkeley, blue green algae is often contaminated by toxins due to the fact that it is gathered, not farmed, from wild sources that are often polluted. One of the most dangerous substances that can contaminate blue green algae are microsystins, which are potentially deadly. In fact, a wrongful death suit was filed against Cell Tech in 2005 by the family of a woman who died from liver failure after consuming large amounts of their products. Although the suit was dismissed, the product was found to contain large amounts of potentially toxic microsystins.

ReferencesMillenium2.org: Blue Green Algae FAQUC Berkeley Wellness Letter: Blue Green AlgaeMSN Health: Does Chlorophyll Have Any Proven Health Benefits?By Diana Post, M.D., Harvard Health PublicationsCaseWatch: Cell Tech sued for wrongful deathPhoto Credit Hemera Technologies/AbleStock.com/Getty ImagesRead Next:

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