Hemp: Healthy or Hazardous?
Hemp has been getting a lot of mixed press lately. Many are touting its outstanding health benefits, while others are calling for it to be pulled from the shelves. Why all the controversy over a single plant?
Hemp is a variety of the cannibas sativa plant. Many of you may recognize cannabis as marijuana. Although both hemp and marijuana are techniquely from the same species, they are chemically very different. It’s kind of like saying a Chihuahua and a Great Dane are the same species, but their differences are obviously very substantial.
Marijuana has a very high level of the chemical THC, which makes the plant psychoactive. Grown for it’s flowering tips and leaves it is used primarily for drug use and produces a hazardous “high.” In some states, marijuana is a legal pain medication. However, hemp has nearly non-existent levels of THC, making it completely safe. It is grown for it’s seeds, oil and fiber. Because hemp lacks THC, it’s health benefits become forefront in its use.
In the United States, federal law prevents hemp from being grown and farmed because it is the same species as marijuana. I find this absolutely ludicrous! Hemp is not a drug, but a source of nutrition! It is also a fantastic material for rope, paper and fabric. The hemp products you buy off the shelves have been imported from other countries like Canada. I find it a travesty that the federal government is preventing a profitable industry like this from existing in the United States.
What Makes Hemp So Nutritious?
You’ve all probably heard about the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids. Well, hemp is packed full of both omega-3 and 6! Hemp also contains:
- B vitamins
- Vitamins A, D, and E
- Calcium
- Iron
- Not to mention the healthy amount of fiber and protein!
You can buy hemp in about every kind of form you can imagine. There is hemp oil, hemp milk, and hemp protein powder. My personal favorite is hemp seeds. They have a great flavor and contain the full spectrum of nutrition hemp offers: omega fatty acids, vitamins, protein, and fiber! I like eating a handful straight out of the bag, but many people like to sprinkle them on their salads or mix them in a protein shake. Their taste and texture is like a cross between sunflower seeds and pine nuts.
There is a reason why hemp is becoming one of the fastest growing health products. There really isn’t a health food like it! Its all-in-one quality makes it a step above the rest. If you’d like to start adding
hemp into your daily regime, I recommend starting with hemp protein. It’s quick, easy, and tastes great! Hemp is a complete protein, meaning it contains all the essential amino acids. Many vegetarian proteins are not complete, making hemp a superior choice. It is also the only protein powder on the market with naturally occurring omega-3 fatty acids and a high fiber content.
Drinking a hemp smoothie for breakfast or before your daily work out, can give you a great boost of energy. It also stabilizes your blood sugar with its healthy fats and protein. My favorite recipe is below.
Hemp Energy Smoothie Recipe
Ingredients:
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk- 1 banana
- 2 tbsp of almond butter
- 2 teaspoons of Cocoa powder (raw cocoa is best)
- 3 tbsp of Nutiva Hemp Powder
Directions: Throw all the ingredients in a blender and then enjoy!
My favorite hemp protein is made by Nutiva. It is 50% protein, 20% fiber and 11% fat. This is a fantastic ratio of nutrients that will keep you going for hours!
Don’t forget to be creative with your smoothies! If you have some raw spinach left over, throw it in! Do you have a half of an avocado? Put it in too! Not a chocolate lover? Try frozen berries! Smoothies are a great way to use your left over produce, blending them into a delicious drink.
Hemp is No Hazard
As you can see, hemp is far from a hazard such as marijuana, but a wonderful healthy addition to someone’s diet. I encourage you to spread your knowledge about the safety and nutritional value of hemp: omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins, protein and fiber to name a few. If enough of us demand it, we could see a new industry arise in America producing more jobs and boosting the economy!
What is your opinion about the Federal law on hemp? Do you think it should be legal to farm in the United States? Why or why not? Comment below. I’d love to hear from you!
Comments
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This article was in my weekly health news and Im so glad that someone has released the same information that I found out long years ago. I did research some time ago at Bell Labs through a class that I was taking at Ohio State. I lost that info and now someone else has written some useful information that everyone can investigate. Now I’m sharing it with everyone I know, mainly because we are told so many false truths that we don’t know what is good for us anymore. I promise to keep all my friends and fam informed but everyone has to do their part, don’t just take the info and not do the research, go for yourself and confirm what is being written so that if you are ever questioned, you can have the answers! Do the research! Eliminate the Doubt! Pass it on!
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I think the government needs to worry about alot more things than hemp! Like getting rid of inner politics, keeping lazy ass people on welfare, and helping people get jobs and keep their houses instead of giving money to car dealers and banks to keep them going. And they also need to take their personal religious views out of politics…remember we separated state and church a long time ago! Jodi
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I find it ludicrous that the US prohibits the cultivation of such a healthy product, but encourages the potentially disastrous cultivation of GM crops. Money obviously talks and shows the hypocritically corrupt state of US government boards.
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You speak of Marijuana as a HAZARD. The only hazard with marijuana is that if you use it or grow it or simply possess it you get locked up if you get caught. Statistically, marijuana is many times less dangerous than alcohol. Why do journalists not refer to the HAZARD of alcohol? Come on!!!
And yes, all forms of cannabis should be legalized and alcohol and dangerous pharmaceuticals should be made illegal! Medical use, recreational use (just like alcohol), clothing, paper, rope, and many more industries and products could abound.
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Where may I purchase Nutriva organic hemp protein?
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Government sponsored monopoly protecting Randoph Hurst and the Dupont Family as well as others. The known lies and misinformation from government propaganda continues to rob millions of people world wide from this most excellent nutritious plant. The lies are becoming known generally and it will be an increasing problem for the government to continue its propaganda. Calling Canibas a dangerous drug is rediculous as well as ignorant and stupid. It can cure cancer for heaven sake and there has never been a death or any other harm caused from the canibus plant, ever! Over dose on canibus results in a good night sleep. Nothing else. If I’m telling lies, you tell me why is the government making even the research of canibus illegal, yet alone available for scrutiny. They know what is in it and why it is not true what they are saying. The people will have their say eventually and then we can all take major advanatge of the health benefits of this vegetable God has given to man to help him be healthy..
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Like many laws in America, the hemp law is downright stupid. The government knows of the hemp food products and how beneficial they are, but doesn’t want people to have it because it can be used to replace gasoline, many building materials, build health along with many other benefits which would hurt many of the industries contrlling our lives. Cheap building materials and cheap gas is something they don’t want to see. And as far as your health is concerned, the government is connected to the pahrmaceuitcal industry and the last thing they want to see is a healthy population. Their billions in profits would suddenly dissappear,
I could spend a long time elaborating on the many inventions which would do away with the high cost of living created by big business in collaboration with a currupt government, but most people don’t want to read it and it would be book lenght.
As far as hemp is concerned, I have used the hemp products from http://hempusa.org/?ref=795 for about a year now. My wife was an early Alzheimer’s Desease patient and medicine was not doing anything for her. I thought she would soon have to be committed to a nursing home. But today she is almost back to normal. She also could only shuffle to walk and climbing stairs was almost impossible for her. Again, she can easily climb stairs now and walks normally.
And, yes, if the building, fuel, and health building forms of hemp were allowed to be grown in America, it would be a great boost to our economy. It wouldn’t be immediate, however, as it takes a few years to get such an industry on its feet. I believe you will soon see enough pressure on our government that some great inventions and hemp will have to be released to the people. But if so, the people – YOU – must demand it.
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Here are a couple of links for Nutiva Hemp Organic Protein Powder:
http://nutiva.com/products/hemp-protein-powder-organic/
http://www.amazon.com/Nutiva-Organic-Protein-Fiber-Pound/dp/B0012C2GFM -
I am not interested in hemp. Besides, I am allergic to the plant. People who grow hemp legally will provide cover for people who grow marijuana. It’s just the camel’s nose in the tent. How about pushing chia seeds instead? I am finding now that I have to be careful because many products I would otherwise eat contain hemp. Take it off the shelves! It is replacing things I want to buy and eat.
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It is fine to grow and eat. The government does not want us to have good nutrition; so that we may all get sick and die. Which is also why genetically engineered food was approved, mercury allowed in dentistry, toxins in our food supply and personal care products, dangerous prescription drugs, deadly vaccines, aluminum, barium, and scrontium being sprayed upon us by chemtrails, poisonous flouride in the water supply. Why is no-one stopping the slaughter in Syria?
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Bluebird, your analysis is far too simplistic. For some reason, hemp as protein is now legal. I find it in foods in health food stores. I don’t want it. The government favors big businesses such as pharmaceutical houses because lobbyists from these companies bribe Congresscritters. Hemp comes from the same species as marijuana. If growing hemp is allowed, it provides cover for growing marijuana. I know from deep study and from personal experience that marijuana is seriously harmful. It is particularly harmful to unborn babies whose mothers ingest it; it can cause serious learning disabilities and stunt the child’s ability to reason. The reason marijuana has been forbidden in the past is because no large pharmaceutical company makes and sells marijuana products, not because hemp is nutritious, and for my money, chia seeds are far superior anyway. Chemtrails are a hoax. They’re intended to keep people from fighting for real issues, by diverting their attention away from real issues. As for Syria, the United States doesn’t have a mandate to stop all atrocities everywhere nor do we have the capacity to do so. The problem here is terrorism and Islam, with its prohibition of any religious faith but its own. As long as Islam has that kind of power, there will be atrocities. Persuading people to leave Islam may result in their deaths, but it is the only way to combat the problem.
I use a series of products by Squel Naturals under the Vega moniker. Most of the protein in these products is hemp protein and they are wonderful products. High in nutrition and low in calories which for someone who has been on a weight loss journey is a perfect match.