Chlorella is part of a family of microalgae that also includes spirulina and wild blue-green algae. They are highly nutritious, detoxifying, and are the ultimate travel snack!
Microalgae have the highest levels of chlorophyll (2%), protein (50%), vitamin A, and nucleic acids of any edible substance and are some of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet.1 Growing conditions affect the amounts of chlorella and nutrients present. They are primal and ancient, with “three and one-half billion years of life on this plant encoded in their nucleic acids (RNA/DNA).”1 Microalgae contain abundant vitamin A, B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, iodine, phosphorus, vitamin E, pantothenic acid, folic acid, biotin, PABA, and inositol.1,2 Nucleic acids “benefit cellular renewal and reverse aging.”1 Interestingly, chlorophyll has been called “the blood of plant life” in part because its molecular structure is very similar to hemoglobin in red blood cells; the structures are almost identical except for the central atom (chlorophyll has magnesium, while hemoglobin contains iron).1 Chlorella can enrich the blood and has been used for people with anemia.1 People with kidney stones, low calcium levels, and gout should be careful, as the nucleic acid content can elevate uric acid, exacerbating these conditions.1 Microalgae also contain antifungal, antibacterial qualities, and anti-inflammatory qualities.1 They can counteract radiation, build blood and tissues, encourage the growth of healthful intestinal bacteria, detoxify the body of toxins/drug deposits/carcinogens (support the liver), slow tooth decay and gum infection, halt bacterial growth in wounds, and stop the growth of anaerobic fungi and yeast in the digestive system.1 Chlorella is a lightweight, highly nutritious snack that is non-perishable if kept cool and dry. It has been used in WWI/WWII and by NASA astronauts.2
Fresh green foods are the color of spring and represent renewal. The color green is soothing and sedating, which makes it helpful for emotional imbalances (particularly anger). I especially love the description by Paul Pitchford that plant foods in general are “cooling, calming, and generally peaceful” in comparison with a world that is often “filled with aggression, hostility, noise, and other yang excesses.”1 Green foods have healing, cleansing/detoxifying power for the liver and blood, which is especially recommended in the spring.1 Green is associated with the heart chakra.1 Especially in the spring, the power of chlorophyll from microalgae should be part of any whole foods diet. It is pure food from sunshine!
Product Comparisons
A patient recently asked me which chlorella product is best. Here is a synopsis comparing several brands they asked me about. Note: I consider this a very *rough* comparison, as it relies on information provided (or not provided) by the companies selling these products. This is really an initial comparison of information, and a call for help in scientifically analyzing all chlorella products on the market in standardized way. Perhaps there is someone out there with a biochemistry/molecular biology lab who would like to collaborate. Perhaps there is a marine science lab out there with a mass spec they'd like to donate for our use? (I also apologize that wix does not allow me to superscript my in-text references; how annoying!)
Prime reports the nutrient content of their product to a greater extent than other chlorella products in this comparison. It is the most well-tested for contaminants (see chart below) and therefore holds a high level of trust from me as the consumer. This product contains Chlorella Pyrenoidosa, whose cell walls are broken by sound vibration for easier digestion. This is understood to be the best technology available for breaking these tough cell walls yet retaining nutrient contents.
A more detailed chlorella nutrient chart can be found here. A heavy metal contaminant comparison chart can be seen below and found here.
Ancient Purity appears to have high ecological standards and to be a really clean product from Japan (chlorella) and India (spirulina). And while the website lists that the product contains “Protein, Vitamins, Minerals, Fatty acids, Trace Elements, essential and non-essential Amino Acids and Carotenoids - Beta Carotene, Beta Cryptoxanthin and Zeaxanthin” it does not list the amounts of these ingredients or offer a product contaminant analysis. Perhaps it was there and I missed it... It is also a powder, which in general I don’t recommend because the flavor and texture can be off-putting and therefore the likelihood that people will actually consume it is low. However, if you are okay with using a powder and know you don’t mind the strong flavor and strange consistency when mixed with water, this could be an option. Powder is also great for baking or making smoothies. Personally, I don’t recommend smoothies because they are cold and sweet, which is too damp-forming for most people. This product is also a blend of spirulina and chlorella. Spirulina tends to be slightly warming in nature, while chlorella is neutral, making chlorella a more ideal choice for everyday, long term use.
This product is loaded with nutrient-rich plant superfoods, but it is because of this that I caution its use. Often, a product with so many ingredients, even if they are “good” plant foods can be a source of digestive distress or be difficult for people with food intolerances or allergies (known and unknown). For example, it contains bell peppers, which are nightshades, which people on anti-inflammatory diets should avoid. Additionally, if you look closely, you can see that chlorella is near the bottom of the ingredient list. I might recommend this product to someone who is nutrient-deficient, unable to eat whole foods, and who is not trying to get the potent benefits of chlorella supplementation per se. People who are trying to get the benefits of chlorella should choose a product with chlorella as the only ingredient and avoid products that “water it down” with other good-for-you vegetables. Best to consume whole foods if possible and to choose a 100% chlorella supplement. This product does have the bonus of a probiotic, but again, eating whole, fermented foods is a recommended way to get both prebiotics and probiotics.
Good Natured Chlorella Spirulina 50/50 Tablets 4
This product, like Ancient Purity, contains a 50/50 blend of spirulina and chlorella. Spirulina tends to be more warming in nature, while chlorella is more neutral, making it a more ideal choice for everyday, long term use. I recommend choosing a product with one or the other, depending on your needs. This does appear to be a very clean product, made from mountain spring water in Taiwan. Like Prime, it contains broken cell walls of Chlorella Pyrenoidosa to aid in digestion. However, unlike Prime, the technology used to break the cell walls is described as a “low-pressure flash expansion technique.”
The Prime website authors discuss this:
“Many commercial companies have a special process of breaking the cell walls. The most often used breaking cell wall is milling (or dyno mill for some products). This milling or grinding process is very efficient in breaking the cell wall into small fragments and therefore making chlorella thus treated more digestible. However, the process is also very destructive to the nutrients contained with the cell walls as the milling completely smashes the cell open and exposes the nutrients. … Other less mentioned process of cell wall treatment is chemical bleaching or heat and freeze process. Chemical bleaching uses simulated digestive enzyme to pre-digest chlorella, or to thin the cell walls of chlorella. Chlorella thus treated has a very thin cell wall and therefore easy to digest. This chemical process is similar to bleaching and is also very destructive to the nutrients. Heat-freeze process is also used by some manufacturers to break the cell walls. Heat is used first to make chlorella cell expand and then freezing is used to shrink the cell walls. Chlorella thus treated has cracked cells but many valuable nutrients are lost during the heating process.”
Conclusions
It appears to me that although there are many products on the market, Prime provides the most trustworthy safety and nutrient information. You pay more, but you get more. Their products appear to be more highly tested for contaminants and nutrient-content than other products I found and the information regarding this testing is more readily available. Prime chlorella has low contaminant levels and higher nutrient levels. The sound vibration technology used to break chlorella’s cell walls for easy digestion and nutrient preservation aligns with the type of resonance I want entering my body. Sound is healing. Prime chlorella comes sealed in vacuum-sealed packaging for ultimate product longevity. This is the product that I consume, that I recommend to patients, and that I offer to friends and family.
As of the writing of this article, Prime is having a 30% off sale! With regular consumption once or twice/day, 5,000 tablets should last a couple of years. Understandably, that may still be too expensive. Out of the products on this list, I would recommend Good Natured as the next best option here. I would love to see more comprehensive testing and analysis done on all of the chlorella products on the market! Perhaps that is homework for myself ~ an individual research project that I can take on in the future. Once again, calling fellow scientists!
If you decide to go with Prime, upon arrival in the mail, I recommend taking some out of the package and putting it into a clean glass jar for easier access on a daily basis. Seal the rest in the now-broken vacuum seal packaging with duct tape and/or heavy elastic bands and store in a cool, dry, dark place until you need to replenish your jar. Start by consuming ~5 tablets/per day, then move up to 10, and then to 15 so long as your digestive system handles it well. It is food-grade and can be eaten multiple times per day so long as your digestion is content. Happy chlorella crunching!
References
1. Pitchford P. Healing with Whole Foods. North Atlantic Books: Berkeley, CA; 2002.
2. Prime Chlorella. Published 2023. Accessed on April 2, 2023. https://www.primechlorella.com/index.php.
3. Ancient Purity. Published 2023. Accessed on April 2, 2023. https://www.ancientpurity.com/spirulina-chlorella.
4. Primal Harvest. Published 2023. Accessed on April 2, 2023. https://primalharvest.com/products/primal-greens.
5. Good Natured. Published 2023. Accessed on April 2, 2023. https://goodnatured.info/
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