Brace yourselves, another superfood supplement has found its way to instagram! It seems like we’re bombarded with all sorts of supplements these days everyone needs to take. Of course, each supplement has particular claims influencers try to convince you with. But is there anything to support chlorophyll benefits? There are indeed and we’re going to have a closer look at that one. Afterwards, you can visit this page and take your pick.
What Is a Chlorophyll Supplement Even?
In nature, any green plant contains chlorophyll to serve as a powerhouse for plants. As you may remember from school, chlorophyll plays a vital role during photosynthesis. There are two varieties of chlorophyll, an A and a B. One is contained in plants that grow in the sun and the other for those in the shades. Without chlorophyll B, plants growing in shadows wouldn’t be green. Both of them work a little differently, but in general, they convert UV rays into energy for plants to live and then to provide our beautiful planet with fresh oxygen.
That’s also the first part where one could question whether chlorophyll benefits are legit or not. There are no studies to determine how much chlorophyll we may need and hence whether there’d be any requirement to supplement it. Technically, you already do take chlorophyll if you’re eating a lot of raw green foods. Chlorophyll will lose nutrition in green foods such as broccoli, green asparagus, spinach or kale during cooking. There might be chlorophyll benefits if you don’t have a lot of raw green foods.
Chlorophyll Benefits – Fake or Legit?
As soon as an influencer promotes a new supplement, you definitely have to take a closer look. After all, an influencer paid for what he’s doing and he’s most likely not taking the supplements himself he gets to promote. One could see influencers as the new actors which are usually engaged for advertisements. The only difference is, that they’re not an actor but rather a person like you and me. That’s the reason why influencers are often approached by larger companies.
Either way, influencers aside, let’s take a look at the chlorophyll benefits and whether they are legit.
Promotes Wound Healing – Fake or True?
One of the many chlorophyll benefits is that it can promote wound healing – even sunburns. Chlorophyll does have antibiotic effects which do help wounds to heal. Wounds do only get infected if they get infected by bacteria. If there are no bacteria that could cause infection, wounds obviously heal better. In fact, there were studies in the 1950s which prove chlorophyll’s effectiveness at wound healing. In the meantime, those were debunked. However, that’s what happens with a lot of natural supplements. Quite a few have been used for ages for several health benefits and then it’s attempted to debunk true effectiveness. The sole reason is that pharma companies can’t sell their products if there’s an effective natural alternative (which can’t be patented). Even though chlorophyll benefits for better wound healing have been ‘debunked’ it is indeed contained in prescription ointments for wound healing.
Metabolism Booster – Fake or True?
As we get older, the metabolism automatically slows down every year. Therefore, you need to give your metabolism a kickstart. The best way to boost your metabolism is physical activity and there’s nothing that could ever change that. However, there are supplements that can help your metabolism to wake up from its slumber. In the case of chlorophyll benefits some evidence exists to support the claim.
Detox Helper – Fake or True?
You can probably not hear the word ‘detox’ anymore as it seems to be all over the place. Detoxifying your body is important to retain your health in the long run or also to get better. Studies show that chlorophyll benefits the production of biotransformation enzymes for your liver. Once the liver can work properly or also better, it can deal with toxins in a better manner. Additionally, chlorophyll binds itself to heavy metals which makes it easier for your body to get rid of them. That means, chlorophyll can help you detox is, in fact, no made-up claim.
Eliminates Free Radicals – Fake or True?
Everyone has got free radicals in their system. Unfortunately, they promote a lot of things we’re not entirely happy about, such as ageing, illnesses or also the growth of cancer cells. As studies show, chlorophyll benefits the elimination of free radicals. This makes it already look quite good for cancer prevention. Only does that area require more research. So far, the studies have been inconclusive.
Supports Weight Loss – Fake or True?
Chlorella is an alga that’s high in chlorophyll and has been praised for aiding weight loss for years. But what happens if you take pure chlorophyll? Well, a rather recent study from 2014 seems to prove chlorophyll benefits your weight loss goals. It aids your digestion, especially the digestion of proteins and fats. Proteins aren’t bad for you, you actually do need a lot of them. But fats can be problematic when you want to lose weight. Thus we can determine, chlorophyll does help to lose weight.
Odour Fighter – Fake or True?
As it’s a rather sensitive topic, influencers don’t talk about it as much. They don’t want other people to think they could have bad breath in the morning – albeit almost everyone has. Don’t forget that chlorophyll benefits include antibacterial properties. Bad breath turns up because of bacterial buildup in your mouth or also in your stomach. Most people go for an antibacterial mouthwash. While scientists seem to tiptoe around the topic and say there’d be nothing to the claim, veterinarians have another stance. Those who’ve given dogs some chlorophyll drops notice a massive reduction in bad breath. Even though science can’t seem to support chlorophyll benefits against bad breath, practice shows a different result.
Decide for Yourself
As you can see, all the positive claims about chlorophyll appear to be true and influencers are not overdoing their job. If you’re unsure about supplementing chlorophyll you could benefit from chatting with your nutrition – or just give it a try.