When it comes to wheatgrass benefits, it has more vitamin C than oranges, more provitamin A than carrots, and more potassium, phosphorus, iron, and magnesium than any other grain.🌱
If you’re looking for a simple, natural way to boost your health, wheatgrass is the powerhouse to bring onboard. It boosts energy, the immune system, longevity, metabolic health, and more.
It’s also easy to add to your routine in the form of juices, powders, or supplements.
What Is Wheatgrass?
Wheatgrass is the young, leafy shoots of the wheat plant, Triticum aestivum, harvested before it develops into a full-grown stalk. It’s sprouted from wheat seeds and typically consumed in juices, powders, and pills.
The grass is packed with nutrients and is often used as a health supplement due to its high concentration of vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and particularly, chlorophyll.
In fact chlorophyll—a green pigment that helps in photosynthesis and is believed to have detoxifying and healing properties—is abundant in the plant.
Here are 10 reasons to give it a shot:
1. Powerhouse Nutrients
Wheatgrass is considered one of the most nutrient-dense plants on earth. Due to its high levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other bioactive compounds, it’s a go-to for health.
Because it’s a young biogenic plant, it’s packed with an impressive array of nutrients that are far more bioavailable than in most vegetables and fruits.
Here’s what it contains:
- Vitamin C..
- Vitamin E.
- Carotene.
- Vitamin K.
- Vitamin B1.
- Vitamin B2.
- Vitamin B3.
- Vitamin B5
- Vitamin B6.
- Vitamin B8.
- Vitamin B12.
- Calcium.
- Magnesium.
- Selenium.
- Boron.
- Iron.
- Potassium.
- Phosphorous.
- Zinc.
- Copper.
- Manganese.
- Molybdenum.
- Vitamins C (more than in oranges).
- Provitamin A (more than in carrots).
It also rocks more of these than any other grain:
- Potassium.
- Phosphorus.
- Iron.
- Magnesium.
- Molybdenum.
Wheatgrass is packed with a thing called ‘grass juice factor,’ a powerful regenerative fuel.
According to Dr. Ann Wigmore, “Clinical and research evidence has revealed the ‘Grass Juice Factor’ to have, probably by the stimulation of human growth factors, a powerful effect on the regeneration of damaged skin and the body in general.”
2. Plant-Based Protein
Raw living wheatgrass contains 17 amino acids and eight essential amino acids.
Studies note that “Proteins found in wheatgrass are known to be involved in preventing many diseases, oxidative stress, primary metabolism, storage, and energy-related mechanisms.”
Wheatgrass Amino Acids
Essential:
- Lysine.
- Isoleucine.
- Leucine.
- Tryptophane.
- Phenylalanine.
- Threonine.
- Valine.
- Methionine.
Others . . .
- Alanine.
- Arginine.
- Aspartic acid.
- Glutamic acid.
- Histidine.
- Proline.
3. Antioxidants
Wheatgrass is rich in scores of powerful antioxidants that contribute to its benefits by reducing inflammation and oxidative stress.
They play key roles in neutralizing free radicals—unstable molecules that can cause cellular damage and diseases, aging, even death.
Here are some of the key antioxidants in grass:
- Chlorophyll.
- Selenium.
- Glutathione.
- SOD.
- Saponarin.
- Quercetin.
- Carotenoids.
- Apegenin.
- Phenolic Acids.
- Luteolin.
- Lipoic Acid (ALA).
- Molybdenumronutrients.
- Enzymes.
- Growth Hormone.
- Flavonoids.
- Vitamins C & E.
According to one report, “The major clinical utility of wheatgrass juice is due to its antioxidant action which is derived from its high content of bioflavonoids like apigenin, quercetin and luteolin. Other compounds present, which make this grass therapeutically effective, are the indole compounds, choline and laetrile (amygdalin).”
It’s also been shown that antioxidants in wheatgrass can mitigate serious disease: “Wheatgrass extract has an antioxidant activity, inhibits proliferation of leukemia cells, and induces apoptosis [cancer cell death].”
4. Detoxification
Wheatgrass not only detoxifies cells, it’s a powerhouse antagonist of pollutants.
One report notes that “the amino acids [in wheatgrass] are absorbed directly into the blood. As well as neutralizing toxic substances like cadmium, nicotine, strontium, mercury, and polyvinyl chloride, by changing them into insoluble salts which the body can eliminate more easily, they stimulate cellular metabolism. The flavonoids act to detoxify cells and prevent their deterioration.”
5. Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll, the green pigment in plants that plays a key role in photosynthesis, is one of the most important and abundant compounds found in wheatgrass.
It not only gives grass its characteristic green color, it offers numerous health benefits when consumed.
One report states that “Grasses, along with alfalfa and algaes, are the richest sources of chlorophyll on the planet.”
6. Longevity & Anti-Aging
One of the primary reasons wheatgrass is considered anti-aging is due to its powerful antioxidants. Oxidative stress, caused by an accumulation of free radicals, is one of the leading contributors to aging and age-related disease.
Wheatgrass is high in vitamin C, vitamin E, and chlorophyll, which work to neutralize free radicals in the body. By reducing oxidative damage to cells, tissues, and DNA, it helps slow down the aging process and reduces the risk of degenerative diseases like heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer’s.
According to one report, “One of the enzymes found in cereal grasses, SOD [superoxide dismutase], plays a crucial role in wheatgrass’s ability to prevent aging. This enzyme has received plenty of attention in scientific circles as a possible anti-aging enzyme.”
7. Weight Loss
There are tons of reasons why wheatgrass boosts weight loss, including thylakoids, located in the chloroplasts of the plant. They boost metabolism, suppress appetite, and curb fat.
One study found they promote satiety, modulate peptides, and “produce weight loss together with a reduction of blood lipids and blood glucose.”
Wheatgrass also improves circulation, metabolic rate, and digestion.
8. Energy
Wheatgrass ramps energy by providing the body with essential nutrients, improving oxygenation, supporting detoxification, and enhancing metabolic efficiency.
Its rich chlorophyll content increases oxygen delivery to cells, while its B vitamins help convert food into fuel. Additionally, wheatgrass helps stabilize blood sugar levels, improve circulation, and support a healthy gut.
One report noes that “With the addition of wheatgrass and raw foods to your diet, your cells will store a maximum electrical charge.”
9. Alkalinity
The concept of alkalinity refers to the pH level of the body, and maintaining a balanced pH—specifically a slightly alkaline one—is essential for good health. The standard pH scale ranges from 0 to 14, with 7 being neutral. A pH below 7 is acidic, while a pH above 7 is alkaline.
Wheatgrass is considered an effective way to boost alkalinity. One report notes that “The pH factor of the blood is 7.4 and the pH factor of wheatgrass juice is 7.4, which is why it is quickly absorbed into the blood.”
10. Enzymes
The raw living enzymes in wheatgrass are not only abundant, they’re exceptionally bioavailable. In fact when wheatgrass is juiced and consumed fresh, they can immediately be absorbed into your blood.
According to Dr. Wigmore, “All of the enzymatic activity in wheatgrass adds up to one vitally important thing—greater strength and resistance to pollutants both outside and inside the body. Enzymes are perhaps more important than any other active ingredients in wheatgrass.”
However, cooking or processing can destroy many of these enzymes, which is why it’s key to consume wheatgrass in its raw or minimally processed state.
Wheat Vs. Wheatgrass: What’s the Difference?
In case you’re wondering why we can’t just eat the mature wheat plant to obtain all those rich, valuable nutrients in wheatgrass, Dr. Charles Schnabel says this:
“If [wheatgrass] is not grazed or cut and preserved within a few days of the jointing stage, its value is lost forever because the vitamins associated with photosynthesis are not transferred to the grain or returned to the soil. They are used up by the grass plant during the reproductive stage of growth. It is this transient nature of the quality of grass at the jointing stage that has made the secret of grass so elusive. The irony of it is that our ‘dumb’ animals seem to have known the secret all the time.”
Wheatgrass Harvest Time
It’s important to note that if you’re growing raw organic wheatgrass or purchasing wheatgrass in trays, its optimal harvest time is between 8-10” tall.
Juicers & Equipment
I have a lot of experience with equipment after decades of juicing and owning an organic drink bar that served raw juices, including wheatgrass. The juicer listed below is the best in the industry but also a bit spendy.
If you’re serious about making grass a lifestyle—I highly suggest!—it may be a good ROI. I still have mine after all these years and it rocks. It also juices barley grass and oat.
If you can’t afford it, you can always get a hand crank or something cheaper, but Nutrifaster is the state of the art. Used by Jamba Juice back when business was booming, it’s the only way to go if you plan on opening a juice bar or juicing a lot. 🍷 💚
Is Wheatgrass Gluten-Free?
If you’re anything like me and sensitive to gluten, you’ll be happy to learn that wheatgrass is gluten-free. Since it’s the first seedless blades of the wheat plant, it does not contain gluten. However you should definitely research products thoroughly if you’re gluten-intolerant or have celiac disease.
Wheatgrass Side Effects
Wheatgrass is generally considered safe, though side effects may include allergic reactions. Consult your physician if you have medical conditions or take prescription drugs.
The medical and health topics covered on the Plate of Grass website and blog have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to prevent or cure any disease. This article and its content is presented ‘as is’ for informational purposes only.
