Identification of Spirulina platensis
1, look at the target. Spirulina health food must have the official national health food approval number and the "little blue hat" sign. The information contained in the product label must conform to the national standard for health food labeling. Such as ingredient list, functional ingredients and their content list, people suitable for eating and taboo, claimed health care function, taking method, net content, shelf life, product standard number, hygiene license number, name and address of manufacturer and/or distributor, etc. If any major information is missing, it must be questioned. It cannot be a "three noes" product without trademark, factory name and address. For the food safety licensing system recently implemented by the state, all foods must also pass the "QS" certification label.
2. Look at the color. The truly pure natural spirulina (100%) powder, tablet and capsule are all dark green and yellowish (not only by looking at the surface, but also by looking at the color of the cross section): the pure green spirulina product may have problems, be fake or fake, or be doped with other substances. Because the processed spirulina is very dry, it is easy to absorb moisture, and it may gradually turn green after absorbing moisture, and it is easy to rot and deteriorate. Eating this spirulina is not only unhealthy, but also harmful.
3. smell the smell. Spirulina has a special seaweed smell or fishy smell. It may not be spirulina or algae powder that has been stored for a long time. But what smells bad is probably inferior products.
4. Look at the hardness. For spirulina tablets products, the harder the spirulina tablets is, the more other components are doped, while high-quality products can be separated by hand.
5. Try it. Spirulina is delicious, usually with a slight alkaline taste. If the alkali is heavy, it is not up to standard. In addition, products made of 100% spirulina should be sticky.
6. Water solubility observation. Put spirulina powder or tablets into a glass filled with purified water, dissolve it, and observe the color of the water. If it is of high quality, the water should be green and gradually turn blue after half an hour.
7. Look at the packaging. Some nutrients in spirulina need to be isolated from the air, such as phycocyanin and carotene. Therefore, there must be a moisture-proof, moisture-proof and light-proof outer packaging, which is the protective layer of the internal quality of the product. If the packaging does not meet the national regulations, it is easy to cause the loss and deterioration of spirulina nutrients. Scientific experiments show that phycocyanin loses 50% in direct sunlight 15 minutes, and basically loses within 3 months without sealing. Therefore, in order to avoid direct contact with light and air and ensure that nutrients are not lost, large international spirulina production enterprises generally use small bags of aluminum foil for packaging.
In addition, many unscrupulous traders in the market sell inferior Undaria pinnatifida as spirulina, and consumers need to pay attention to identification. Undaria pinnatifida and Spirulina are two different plants, which are easy to distinguish: Undaria pinnatifida leaves are as big as tea, while Spirulina is an aquatic plant that is almost invisible to the naked eye. It can only be seen clearly with a microscope of 600 times, and it is covered with dust after collection.
How to judge whether spirulina is true or false
As a new type of health food, natural spirulina has been gradually accepted by the public. Natural spirulina is richer in high-quality protein, vitamins, minerals, chlorophyll, linolenic acid and other unsaturated fatty acids and carotene than any other food. It contains eight essential amino acids that cannot be synthesized by human body, which is almost in line with the United Nations "FAO" standard. 1g spirulina powder contains the same nutrition as 1000g various vegetables. It contains more than ten kinds of vitamins, and its content is very rich. Because of the particularity of its cell wall structure, it is easy to be absorbed and digested by human body, and the digestibility is over 70%. It is the best natural green health food. Such a good product will inevitably involve fake products. Let's briefly talk about some identification methods of spirulina.
First, break the spirulina by hand.
Good spirulina tablets is easily broken and completely disintegrated into powder. The powder is hung on the back of the hand, and the powder is even and delicate. If the tablet is hard to break, it means that the tablet is too hard to disintegrate and absorb in the stomach, and the surface of the tablet is smooth? It also shows that there are too many auxiliary materials added.
Second, look at the color of spirulina.
The superior spirulina is dark green and dark in color. The main reason is that the water content is too high, exceeding 7%. Of course, the following situations may also occur: the blackening is due to the high temperature of fresh algae during drying and the carbonization of spirulina; 2, yellow, because spirulina grows too fast, nutrient absorption is unsaturated 3, blue, because spirulina is oxidized, that is, ineffective, eating such spirulina is quite unfavorable to the human body. After the tablet is broken, it can be seen that the cross section or surface is mottled with colors, indicating that unqualified or expired spirulina powder was mixed in the tabletting. The cross-section color is consistent with the surface, with no chromatic aberration, uniform color, delicate and uniform feel and no obvious impurities.
Third, smell spirulina.
Spirulina itself has a strong sea smell, and there is also a kind of seaweed fragrance. When the lid is opened, it comes directly to the nose and has a fragrant aftertaste. If there is no fishy smell or the smell is very weak, it means that the quality of this spirulina is very poor. If it smells like rotten eggs, spirulina has gone bad. If there is dull mildew, it means that the water content is too high and the humidity is high, and some of them have deteriorated.
Fourth, taste spirulina to experience the taste.
Take a spirulina and chew it slowly in your mouth. Normal spirulina tastes good, delicate, smooth and waxy. Protein in Spirulina is mostly macromolecular protein, which has a sticky taste, while soybean protein is short, which has no sticky feeling, bitter and salty taste, and tastes like fried beans. If you feel impurities such as dust? This means that it is not clean or the additive is not handled correctly.
5. Soak spirulina.
Put spirulina into warm water to observe its unique phenomenon. Putting a spirulina into water will separate a blue-green ribbon or color bar from the water (blue appears first, because phycocyanin is more soluble in water, and the color will be separated first). Because there are many long-chain protein in spirulina, the dissolution speed will be slow, which may take several hours under static state and ten minutes after continuous shaking. After dissolution, the water is green, and there will be no obvious floating objects on the water surface. (For example, some fakes will have obvious floating objects on the water). After standing for 24 hours, the water turns blue (chlorophyll in the water is oxidized to colorless, and the water reflects blue), and then it turns back to green after shaking. Chloroplasts deposited on the bottom of the water disperse in the water with the shaking of the water, making the water turn green again.
Tips for purchasing spirulina
Look at the batch number first. "Food Zhunzi" is the batch number of food, which is only a proof that it meets the edible standard, and its health care efficacy has not been certified by the authoritative department. According to the relevant regulations, the batch number of "food" is not allowed to publicize its health care efficacy, so this spirulina should be given a big "?" !
Second, look at the variety: there are many varieties of spirulina, among which spirulina platensis has the best quality. Although all spirulina platensis, because of its unique polysaccharide structure cell wall, it is easy to be absorbed by human body, which leads to its health care effect different from that of ordinary spirulina, similar to that of German shepherd dogs and ordinary grass dogs.
Third, look at the process: the process level of the enterprise largely determines the quality of the product, especially the drying process of spirulina. Large enterprises adopt mechanical drying, which has the advantages of fast mechanical drying speed, small loss of nutrients, guaranteed purity and no secondary pollution; Because of the scale cost and other factors, workshop-style enterprises adopt natural air drying. After ultraviolet irradiation, spirulina loses a lot of active protein and phycocyanin, which affects the quality of products. When working in the open air, the hygiene and purity of products are difficult to guarantee.
Fourth, look at the price: the market price is a basis for judging the quality of products. The pricing of enterprises will carefully consider their own profits and the market competitiveness of products, so as to formulate reasonable product prices. As the saying goes, "only buy the wrong ones, don't buy the wrong ones", "first-class products and first-class prices". To be sure, if you buy a so-called "wild ganoderma lucidum" at a price lower than that of artificially cultivated ganoderma lucidum, please consider the authenticity of this so-called wild ganoderma lucidum.
5. Look at the color: 1. The darker the color, the higher the nutritional content of spirulina. According to the general principle of botany, color reflects the sufficiency of photosynthesis of algae. The more photosynthesis, the more dry matter accumulation and the higher the content of effective components. Good spirulina is turquoise or dark green, followed by yellow-green and grass green, and blue-green is the worst. Even the products of the same brand have different colors in spring, autumn and winter compared with summer. 2. Look at the purity. High-quality spirulina products are selected by selecting equipment, and other impurities in the growth process of spirulina are removed. The pure spirulina powder selected is only 70% of the original spirulina powder. Therefore, the high-quality spirulina is uniform in color and is not allowed to be doped with other impurities, but there are also some illegal underground workshops that use dyeing methods to cover up the impurities of the products, remember! Chemical dyes are extremely harmful to human body! ! ! 3. Look at the color dissolved in water. If spirulina turns blue-green after being dissolved in warm water, it means that the phycocyanin of spirulina has been destroyed and overflowed. To be sure, this spirulina was dried by the sun. Please buy this spirulina carefully.
6. Look at the place of origin: Spirulina comes from Central Africa and Mexico and is suitable for growing in tropical and subtropical regions. In China, only the light and temperature conditions south of the Yangtze River can make spirulina grow naturally. Spirulina can only grow normally in the north of the Yellow River in a short time in summer, and urea and other fertilizers are used to artificially promote its growth in spring and autumn, so the nitrate content in its spirulina is high, which does not meet the requirements of "natural" and "pollution-free" modern food.
7. Look at the visibility of the enterprise: an excellent enterprise pays great attention to its corporate image, and its corporate information and product information will also appear in various media as the corporate public relations image. Friends who surf the Internet can also easily search for information about related products on the Internet. If you can't find the so-called "brand" products, please buy them carefully.
Edible taboo
Spirulina is a good natural nutritious health food, but it is not a panacea for all diseases. Therefore, consumers should be vigilant when they encounter exaggerated false advertisements. Some people's skin will be allergic to spirulina. If you find abnormal skin after taking it, please stop taking this product immediately. If you take this product, your skin will be allergic, and skin diseases like rashes will appear on your face and other places.