Wheat grass has become one of the more popular “go green” dietary supplements. You find it offered at premium prices in juice bars, health shops, and many restaurants. It can be purchased in juice, salad, smoothie, pill, and powdered form.

So, what’s all the hype about?

In this instance, the hype is all fact. In addition to being loaded with micro-nutrients, wheat grass also contains high concentrations of raw protein, chlorophyll, calcium, Lysine, and vitamin C. Wheat grass is a true superfood and has been shown to provide a range of benefits including:

• Replenishing blood cells
• Restoring balance in the body
• Providing nourishment to critical organs including the kidneys, liver, and heart
• Flushing toxins from the body
• Supplying raw energy

A single ounce of wheat grass juice provides the nutritional value found in 2.4 pounds of raw, fresh vegetables.

This value is derived from the 30 enzymes and the 70% chlorophyll content found in freshly juiced wheat grass. And as most of us don’t get the recommended eight servings of fruits and vegetables in our daily diet, being able to obtain the equivalent nutritional value in a one ounce shot of juice is certainly an attractive alternative.

Many people are now growing their own wheat grass in their kitchen, or anywhere there is ample sunlight. Utilizing a wheat grass juicer, or even a household blender (not recommended as you lose much of the nutritional value via the high speed blending process), you can save that $2-$4 dollars you would pay in a juice shop and make your own juice at home.

Wheat grass is the young seedlings of wheat plants. It’s fast and easy to cultivate and can be grown in containers ranging from plastic cups to full size plant trays. Follow these steps to grow your own nutrition-rich wheat grass:

1. Obtain a bag of wheat berries (seed). They can generally be found in any natural food store for around a dollar per pound. They keep well, so stock up and store the extra in a darkened pantry.
2. Determine what you want to use to grow the plants in. You can use any container that is at least two inches deep. A used flat from a gardening project is ideal. And if you can find one with drainage holes, even better. Otherwise poke an appropriate number of small holes in the bottom of your selected container.
3. Select the wheat berries you intend to plant. There should be enough to completely cover the surface of the planting container. Err on the side of too many rather than too few. Soak the selected wheat berries, or seed, in clean cold water for eight hours.
4. Add soil to your container to a depth of at least two inches. Any type of good potting soil should be sufficient. Spread the seeds over the top of the dirt. Use enough to completely cover the planting area.
5. Although not strictly necessary, it’s helpful to cover the seeds in a light layer of moss of some type. I typically use Spanish moss, breaking it up and sprinkling it over the seeds. But any dry type will do.
6. Water the plants well and cover the container with a thin sheet of plastic. Sandwich wrap or the like can be used as long as light is able to get through.
7. After a couple of days, the seeds should have germinated and the plastic can be removed. Make sure the plants are positioned to get ample sunlight. Mine grow on the counter beneath a kitchen window.
8. To avoid mold (a common problem), mist the plants daily with a mixture of water, baking soda, and kelp extract. Assuming a 16 ounce spray bottle, fill with water and add two tablespoons of kelp extract and a quarter tablespoon of baking soda.
9. Once the grass has reached 3-4 inches in height, it’s ready to be harvested. Just cut around 3/4 of it’s length to allow the blades to regrow.
10. To juice your harvested grass, you’ll need a wheat grass juicer (a fruit juicer will not work due to the high speed process which will destroy the delicate enzymes in the wheat grass). An alternative is to put a half cup of water in a blender, throw in the grass, blend at a low speed, and filter the mixture through a fine strainer. But even this method will destroy many of the enzymes, reducing the nutritional value of the resulting mixture.

Go to Men Living Longer to learn more about wheat grass juicer recommendations and some limited time free trial offers Visit the author’s fitness, health, and lifestyle blog.

I am a drug pusher of sorts. I sell supplements. I believe in supplementation in today’s modern world where nutrients are lost while the shelf life of the food has become more important than the nutritional value. Appearances can fool you.

I spent more than half of my adult life in third world countries shopping at open markets and not able to enjoy the luxury of an air conditioned supermarket in which to shop.

When I would return to the States for an occasional visit, I was so impressed with the long, clean aisles of the extravaganza called the American supermarket. Entire rows of assorted styles of potato chips! I thought I was in heaven.

You may have heard that it takes twice as much broccoli today to get the same amount of nutrition as when JFK was President. An apple today has lost 40% of its nutritional value since the Beatles first appeared on the Ed Sullivan show.

America’s orchards have been scientifically engineered to produce apples that can be maintained for year round sale. There is nothing wrong with having apples in season or out, but it’s important to know if an apple a day can keep the doctor away any more.

My nickname is "Omega-3 man." I am really big on Omega-3s as being a nutrient that saved me from heart disease. I take a lot of high octane omega-3s to keep my triglycerides in check and to keep my blood "silky" and free flowing in my arteries.

So a good friend asked me, "Why don’t you just eat salmon?" Excellent question! I like salmon. It tastes great. I just don’t know how to cook. But there is another problem.

Most salmon sold in America is farm raised. This home grown salmon is fed mixtures of the cheapest available "feed" in order to contain costs. This mixture and the environment of these farms expose the salmon to PCBs. This is an oily substance that is no longer manufactured in the United States but it is still a major environmental risk.

Wild salmon in the North Atlantic and Alaska however feed on phyto-plankton. Plankton is the true source of omega-3s. Those wild salmon are actually little factories that turn the excellent nutrients of plankton into EPA and DHA, the stuff that does my heart, my brain and my joints so much good.

Raw fish oil means nothing unless you know where the fish grew up. That fish oil you buy in bulk for a few bucks for a 1000 capsules could contain PCBs and other heavy metal toxins and very little omega-3s if any.

Here’s a little secret: The 1000mgs in a fish oil capsule will naturally contain 180 mgs or 18% of EPA and 120 mgs or 12% DHA, if it is wild from the North Atlantic. The EPA is for your arteries and your heart, DHA for your brain and retinas. Both work together as a anti-inflammatory for your joints and a lot of people enjoy relief from skin problems by ingesting omega-3s.

There are processes in place in sophisticated laboratories where the fish oil can be molecularly distilled. The results of which can provide up to 66% Omega-3s and the remaining 34% of the raw fish parts can be disposed of and replaced with a natural preserving agent such as rosemary extract and vitamin E, which not only preserves the goodness but provides some anti-oxidant benefits also.

This can’t be done on the cheap. So don’t shop on price when looking for omega-3s!

Read the label, know the source and make wise decisions about what kind of omega-3s your take.

You can do this at home: The "acid" test: There is a simple way to find out if your omega-3 is pure. Just put a capsule in the freezer overnight. In the morning, cut the capsule open. If you have a clear runny liquid, you have a pure product. If it’s milky white with solids, then you are swallowing a product that is not pure. Those solids are not omega-3s.

So now you know why I don’t eat salmon. I just don’t know how to cook. If you buy salmon, make sure it’s wild. Live long, live strong.

Garey Simmons writes about heart health from the perspective his personal experience. Diagnosed with high risk of heart disease, elevated triglyceride count, and suspect family history, Garey
studied for 2 years to acquire an interesting perspective on the natural means
of reversing heart disease. Sign up for a free E-Course "Four Golden Guides of Heart Health." http://OptimalHealthRSQ.com http://OptimalHealthRSQ.com

The human body needs sufficient energy to perform various activities. To meet the energy requirements of the body, one has to consume the right kind of diet, so that the body is provided with the required Nutrition to enable physical and mental activity.

Thus, a nutritious diet is vital for sustainable existence. However, no single food or group of foods can fulfill all the nutrition requirements of the body. There are five main food groups which are as follows:

• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Cereals and Pulses
• Dairy
• Poultry, Fish and Meat products

A balanced diet of these five varieties of food groups helps meet the nutrition requirements of the body. One must also eat a variety of foods from within and across the food groups in order to compensate for varying the nutrition content of foods within each group. Besides, variety in food also appeals to the palate. The food group serving size, however, will depend upon various factors like age, activity level, body size and gender.

Fruits are rich in fiber and contain minerals like potassium, calcium, phosphorous etc. Fiber completes nutrition in the sense that it facilitates bowel movement and thus elimination of toxins from the body. A majority of the fruits also contain Vitamin A and C.

Vegetables too, are high in vitamins and minerals. Some vegetables not only have the obvious nutritional value but those like bitter gourds also have medicinal value.

Cereals and pulses fulfill the protein requirement of the body and provide nutrition for the muscles and bones.

Dairy products are especially rich in calcium which is quintessential for healthy bones.

Poultry, fish and meat products are rich in protein, fat and minerals. These are foods packed with heavy nutrition as the major nutrient is fat.

One must be careful about relative amount of consumption of each food group. Fruits, vegetables, cereals and pulses must be consumed in considerable amounts whereas dairy must not dominate the diet. Meat and other foods rich in fat must be consumed as per the requirement of the body. Excessive consumption of this food group leads to many heart related diseases. Consumption of all the nutrients proportionately is the key to suffice the Nutrition requirements of the body.

Provides articles about Nutrition. Consumption of all the nutrients proportionately is the key to suffice the Nutrition requirements of the body.