When shopping online or in person for a lot of different nutritional foods, it is very common that you will come across a term known as ‘superfood’. This is where food is so high in a lot of nutrients and also has a lot of health benefits. While simultaneously not being too high in carbs or sugars either.
There are plenty of different superfoods available and two of the most well-known ones are sea moss and spirulina. These are so popular because of how rich they are in vitamins and minerals. Not only this, but they also have borderline miraculous health effects. These benefit your body both on the inside and out, making you healthier and also making you look healthier too.
Table of Contents
- What Is Sea Moss
- What is Spirulina?
- The Main Differences Between Sea Moss And Spirulina
- Alternatives To Both Sea Moss And Spirulina
- FAQs On Sea Moss Vs Spirulina
What Is Sea Moss
Sea moss is a common type of red algae. It also goes by other names such as Irish moss, Jamaican sea moss, or more scientifically, Chondrus crispus. As you would assume, this is very simply just moss that has grown in and around the sea.
The mix of nutrients and resources in the sea can sometimes create physical vegetation. This is seen all the time in smaller scales such as when a swimming pool or fish tank naturally grows algae and moss. While it is quite similar, sea moss is at a much larger scale. It can be quite astounding to see. It collects on rocks near the shore and can be harvested.
There are many uses for sea moss. It has quite a few nutritional benefits and scientific properties that make it very unique and specialized for an array of uses. One of these uses is as a thickener for dairy products. The entirety of the sea moss is not needed for this. But the ingredient carrageenan is harvested from the moss and is then used as a thickener.
Other than this ingredient, sea moss can come in a lot of other forms that are more suitable for consumption. These are supplement pills, gels, powders, and gummies. You can even make sea moss water.T
he majority of these are for taking almost instantaneously and on their own with the biggest exception being the gel.
While the gel still contains all of the nutrients and benefits that the other forms have, it can be used quite differently. The sea moss gel can be mixed in with other liquids and ingredients to help bolster their nutritional values.
Sea Moss Benefits
In terms of nutrients, sea moss is very high in compounds such as taurine and iodine. These are brilliant for aiding in muscle recovery and a healthy thyroid respectively.
Iodine is typically found in a lot of dairy products and seafood. Yet some people who choose not to include these items in their diet can sometimes not have enough iodine and could always do with more. Taurine is loved among professional body-builders and casual gym clientele alike. This amino acid helps repair our muscles after a workout. When working out, you get micro-tears in muscles that need to be repaired. This is how our muscles get stronger as they are rebuilt better than before. Taurine is incredibly helpful for this and there is an abundance of it in sea moss.
Alongside the rarer compounds, sea moss also contains a lot of rather common compounds that are still very healthy and can aid you in day-to-day life and health. These other ingredients can help with boosting your immunity, improve and support your gut health, and also promoting weight loss.
What is Spirulina?
Spirulina is an algae that is rich in many vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phytonutrients, and carotenoids. Alongside all of this, spirulina also boasts an impressive amount of protein that is just ready for consumption.
As for a more detailed description – this superfood houses nutrients such as vitamin b, beta-carotene, vitamin E, copper, iron, magnesium, zinc, gamma-linolenic acid, and selenium.
Spirulina Benefits
Various studies have shown that animals react to spirulina very positively as it can be linked to an improved immune system. Not only is it great for protecting your body from illness, but spirulina also has a lot of antiviral and anticancer properties.
While studies are not concrete yet, there is also a strong link between the consumption of spirulina and a decrease in allergic reactions, both their frequencies and severity.
Organic spirulina powder, or spirulina capsules, are both great supplements for adding extra protein and nutrients to our bodies. While the antiviral, anticancer, and allergic reaction properties have not been researched enough to find strong evidence in human consumption – the protein and nutrients alone are very much worth it.
Not only is blue spirulina a protein source, but it is a complete protein source. The definition of a complete protein source can be confusing for some. It is easily describable in a different way; protein is made up of over 20 different building blocks that are called amino acids. 9 of these are absolutely essential and the others are just helpful overall.
Spirulina has all 9 of these amino acids which makes it a complete protein source. For comparison, other rich protein sources, such as wheat and legumes, only have around 4 of these amino acids inside them. Meaning you would have to eat a lot of these in order to receive the same amount of protein in a much smaller portion of spirulina.
What is so important about protein and amino acids is that our bodies cannot naturally produce them. There are a lot of vitamins and nutrients that our bodies can produce, yet amino acids are not one of them. We need external sources of amino acids in order to function properly and have muscle development. This is why spirulina is such a brilliant supplement.
The Main Differences Between Sea Moss And Spirulina
Despite being sea vegetables, both Irish sea moss and blue spirulina has differing properties and values that make them both equally enjoyable. The different nutrients in each of these sea veggies will target different ailments and parts of your body. But overall they are both really healthy and good for you. The deciding factor between these two will usually be how they taste and act.
Spirulina has a very bitter taste that can be hard to counter even when in a powder form. However, in the contrast to this, sea moss will have a salty and earthy flavor that is present in both the powder and gel forms.
One of the other factors to take into account is what you are looking for in a food supplement/nutrition booster. If you are wanting an all-rounder for helping tie up any nutritional loose ends you may have, sea moss is a great choice for you. On the other hand, if you want to focus on adding more protein to your diet, spirulina is the better choice.
Personally, I would say that you should take both. While it may seem like a lot at once, it really is not. Neither supplement has an insane amount of a certain nutrient. They also do not overlap that much with the nutrients they do have.
Even if they did both shares a large quantity of a certain mineral or nutrient, that would not be a bad thing. If you take a dosage of both spirulina and sea moss every day, you are getting optimal nutrition. You will be healthier than if you were to just take one or the other.
Be sure you stick to recommended daily doses of both supplements. You might cause a vitamin overload if you are not careful. This is nothing too severe but can lead to mood changes, convulsions, headaches, and irritability.
Alternatives To Both Sea Moss And Spirulina
If you are looking for other sea vegetables to take the place of one of these aforementioned supplements, you’re in luck. There are quite a few different types of natural supplements that you can take in order to further your dietary well-being.
If you are looking for specific names, kelp, chlorella, and nori are all fantastic for your body. They can be eaten in various different ways!
FAQs On Sea Moss Vs Spirulina
Can you mix sea moss with spirulina?
You can mix sea moss and spirulina for sure. There is a thing known as vitamin overload, but it is quite difficult to reach a point where this becomes an issue. If you are struggling to decide between the two, or you are just wanting to have optimal vitamin intake then you can take both sea moss and spirulina together to mix their health effects.
What’s better sea moss or spirulina?
The word ‘better’ always depends on one’s own definition. If you are wanting to get a very versatile supplement for all general needs then sea moss is perfect. However, if you are wanting some good minerals and vitamins with an added bonus of some great protein – spirulina is what you want.
Although, there is nothing wrong with taking both of these at the same time as they do not have any severe overlapping issues. You can take both dosages a day and as long as you do not exceed the medically recommended amount – you should be perfectly okay.
Is seaweed better than spirulina?
Seaweed is not necessarily better than spirulina. Both supplements have a lot of benefits and vitamins alongside the nutrition they hold. Spirulina has a lot of complete protein in it which is what would make it arguably better than seaweed. Although, you can take all sea vegetables in tandem as they will not result in anything bad happening.
