I know many tout the health benefits of seaweed, but it is something I have never been a big fan of, plus I can't get it fresh locally anyway...

Is this something I need to be consuming in order to maintain a well rounded diet, or is it not really that necessary?

We are just talking about that a bit here...
[www.rawfoodsupport.com]

Well vegan diets are notorious for being low or deficient in iodine, seaweeds being the best source. Not even that but even SAD diets there are many with low iodine levels due to the poor quality of soil.

juicerkatz Wrote:
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> Is this something I need to be consuming in order
> to maintain a well rounded diet, or is it not
> really that necessary?
I have blended seaweeds in my Green Smoothies. I was particularly
fond of Dulse, until I ate a handful, by itself just recently, and woke up
the next morning with swollen eyes.
If you're going to try it, Maine Coast has the best.....WY

[www.seaveg.com]

Do you soak your dulse before putting it into a smoothie WY? Just asking because it sounds like the salt freaked your body out and soaking would get rid of a lot of that.

What do you all think about the "cleanness" of seaweed? If we are to believe the environmentalists, it is not being grown in the healthiest of environments.

coco Wrote:
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> Do you soak your dulse before putting it into a
> smoothie WY?
I sometimes give it a quick rinse, but haven't been
soaking it. Maybe I should since this batch of Dulse is so
salty. I have also used Sea Lettuce in smoothies in the past,
but favor Kale, and Collard Greens now.....WY

Dulse is one of the best, particularly flakes. Stay away from hijiki, full of arsenic. Kelp is too full of iodine. That is the levels are too high of iodine per serving. O/w wakame, kombu, sea lettuce & arame are all good in moderate amounts. Wakame contains a potent anti-cancer agent, fucidan or something like that. Japanese eat moderate amounts.

Paul

I like to tear peices of nori or dulse and use it as a condiment. I have done so with Tekka also but it is a bit strong. Kombu is great for adding to broths and then either chopping fine or discarding. Not a lover of arame...texture thing.

februarygirl

I don't eat it often as it's hard to find her in blizzard land... but I will indulge from time to time and had some Nori today... but I've been burping up the flavor ever since... maybe it's the mermaid in me saying get to the ocean so you can have the good stuff!!!

Love laugh and dream

Thanks to all for your input. The only seaweed I see at any of the store I frequent is Nori & dulse, & it is in sealed plastic bags. Is that how it usually is purchased, or are there markets where you can buy it "fresh".

@ Paul -

you seem to know a lot about the different ones, their content, etc. Do you have a good source/ website for that info.? I need to do some reading up on this, I see...

thats one thing I miss about my home town, being able to harvest lots of awesome clean seaweed for free every low tide...

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh, mirror in the sky
What is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?

i buy 50lb sacks of powdered seaweed/kelp meal and add it to my garden and occaisionally eat nori , beyond that no other seaweed products , i think it enriches the garden enough to get the trace minerals and the plants take it up and give it back to me (hopefully lol)

there are some kelp noodles i saw that i would liek to try .. but i think they are fairly pretty much processed

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist




Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/04/2011 08:37AM by Jgunn.

pborst Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Dulse is one of the best, particularly flakes.
> Stay away from hijiki, full of arsenic. Kelp is
> too full of iodine. That is the levels are too
> high of iodine per serving. O/w wakame, kombu,
> sea lettuce & arame are all good in moderate
> amounts. Wakame contains a potent anti-cancer
> agent, fucidan or something like that. Japanese
> eat moderate amounts.
>
> Paul

This is how I understand it: the iodine in kelp is in the wrong form for anything more than light consumption. If you are worried about not enough iodine in your diet, there is a great (I've used it) supplement called Iosol. It is in a form different from the iodine you find in kelp.

Regarding hijiki: is it a natural accumulator of arsenic, or is it an issue of it growing in an area that is arsenic polluted?

I consume less than 1/4 tsp kelp daily. It's so high in iodine that's more than enough.

Hijiki is unfortunately my favourite. I eat it very sparingly though.

well, according to some stuff ive read, trace amounts of organic arsenic are supposed to help reduce ones chance of getting cancer, and can actually help kill existing cancer... so im sure a tiny amount eaten occasionally probably will not hurt you, as isnt the arsenic in Hijiki organic? (i am not sure, which is why im asking,lol)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh, mirror in the sky
What is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?

Can't stand seaweed unless cooked in a miso or other vegetable broth. Used to be able to consume powdered kelp and wakame in a green drink, but now, just can't stand it. I take Iosol for iodine and give the kelp to the African violets--everybody happy

I used it to make fresh juice that tasted really similar to a bloody mary,lol

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh, mirror in the sky
What is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?

I just read this statement by Dr. Cousens -

"Sea vegetables are high in vitamin A, chlorophyll, enzymes, all the Bs, some vitamin E and D, and vitamin C."

Dulse is my favorite.

Not to mention there one of the best mineral sources especially of iodine. They contain trace elements which you cant get elsewhere from fruits, vegetables etc.

I love mose seaweed, especially nori, mostly the fun sheets it comes in. I like the seaweed salads one can get at japanese resturants, but it always seems to be covered in oil. I don't know if that is the way its stored, or just the cultural norm for taste.