A few nights ago, we had the health food stores version of a “girls night”. We went to a dinner training hosted by Whole Earth and Sea, with Dr. Kate Rheume-Bleue as the speaker. PS: It was at the Hilton and the salmon was awesome.
I am trapped in the back room working today, and since I am participating in a lengthy waiting game with my computer, I thought in the meanwhile I would share with you a bit about what we learned at our “girls night”-aka work masked as fun (or fun masked as work depending on how you look at it).
The Whole Earth and Sea line was first introduced to us in March, and brought into the store in April, so it is very new for us. It is a small line so far with four categories of multivitamins, fish oil derived from herring, a bone formula, and a vegan food bar, but it is projected to grow exponentially within the next two years. The objective of the line is to incorporate local, organic and non-GMO ingredients using environmentally sustainable practices, while delivering high quality, effective products. Impressive, I think.
The multivitamins offered so far are: Mens 50+, Adult Mens, Women's 50+ and Adult Women
The multi-vitamins contain calcium sourced from algae, Vitamin D3 from lichen and all biologically active vitamins (B1, B6 and B12). They all contain 300mg of a Farm Fresh complex that contains: kale, alfalfa, cilantro leaf, parsley, caper berries, sprouted garlic, artichoke, black radish, dandelion, barley grass, pepper, oregano, peppermint, spearmint, celery seed, beet, tomato, wasabi rhizome, fresh freeze-dried sprouted broccoli, upland cress, daikon, red radish, cauliflower, cabbage, arugula, watercress leaf, grape, pomegranate, strawberry, cranberry, blueberry, raspberry, bilberry, Indian gooseberry, Schizandra berry, red orange, acai berry, Theracumin, organic decaffeinated green tea, organic milk thistle, organic ginger rhizome, organic echinacea, spirulina, chlorella, red algae, blue algae, kelp.
It is important to note that all formulas are vegan, soy-free, non-GMO, and 100% made, packaged and tested in Canada.
Bone Structure
The bone formula Pure Food Bone Structure is comparable to a multi-vitamin for your bones. This formula is not intended for someone of the old-school 1200mg/day of calcium way of thinking. In fact, this formula only has 300mg of calcium per day, and they did this very intentionally. There are strong findings that a high intake of supplemental calcium has done very little to influence our bone density, and it is considered a possible suspect in the development of heart disease. It is speculated that what goes unabsorbed into the bones will get deposited in soft tissues like the arteries. This formula is the new-age calcium supplement: intended to provide us with nutrients that will support collagen formation (a protein that forms bones, joints and connective tissue) and the absorption of calcium. It also contains beta-glucans derived from a fermentation process that will slow down the natural break down of bone, and speed up the bone building process. It is three tablets per day.
Herring Gold is offered in a 500mg or 1000mg per capsule strength
http://www.wholeearthsea.com/en-ca/our-products/herring-gold-omega-3/
The MOST interesting thing we talked about last night (to me anyway) was the Herring Gold formula. Many of you have heard of krill, and some of you may actually take it, but what you may not be aware of is that most of the krill we have obtained has not been harvested in an ecologically friendly way. This is the reason why in the past I have chosen to only carry krill from the company Nutristart, as I can say with certainty that it has been harvested in an ecologically sustainable way.
If you haven’t heard of krill here is the basic rundown. The fatty acids in krill are bound to phospholipids which are partly water-soluble, so it is said that the Omega-3 fatty acids in krill are absorbed better than those found in fish. Krill also contain a powerful antioxidant called astaxanthin, which come from the algae that they eat. Astaxanthin is a carotenoid, and is responsible for the pink color found in salmon, lobster, shrimp and even flamingo feathers. Astaxanthin has had several preliminary and clinical trials performed, and has shown benefit in lowering blood lipids, reducing C-reactive protein (a marker of inflammation), and in preliminary trials has improved memory performance. It has an affinity for the eyes (like many carotenoids) so it is said to have a role in protecting vision, and it may also relieve eye fatigue due to prolonged computer use[1]. In a small-scale study it was also reported to improve male fertility.
New to Canada’s market (though used for years in Norway) is the Herring Gold, a product with a profile very similar to krill, if not slightly better. This product is actually derived from the roe of Norwegian spring spawning herring and is harvested in an ecologically sound fashion as according to The Marine Stewardship Council. In addition to the Omega-3 fatty acids and astaxanthin, Herring Gold also contains choline, an important constituent of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine that has been a cornerstone in the research of Alzheimer’s disease, as well; choline fosters the process of methylation, which is involved in the building of DNA, and in phase 2 of liver detoxification.
All-in-all the training was great, because we joked around the whole car-ride in, ate a lot of food, and learned a LOT. If you have any further questions on the product, please contact me at 780-962-9710.
Take care everyone!
Chelsea Hohnstein, NNCP
[1]{cke_protected_1} Kidd,P. 2011, Astaxanthin, cell membrane nutrient with diverse clinical benefits and anti-aging potential, Altern Med Rev, v 16(4), p.355-6. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22214255 (September.11th, 2014)