Advanced Diets Advice & News

Maca truly is a nutrient dense superfood crammed full of amino acids, trace elements, minerals and vitamins, it is now coming back from near extinction and obscurity to take it’s place among the most valuable foods known to man. A natural  energy booster both, physically and  mentally,  It is proven to boost energy levels and is regularly used as a therapy for chronic fatigue syndrome. Said to have certain medicinal qualities that can lower stress and help many degenerative conditions.

Maca is a hardy, but small perennial plant cultivated in the Mountains of the Andes at heights from 10,000 to over 14,000 feet. A member of the Brassicaceae family, which includes radishes and turnips. Found growing in some of the most barren places on earth, where strong winds, harsh sunlight, and sub zero weather are normal. It has a sweet, nutty flavor and a butterscotch-like smell. It’s potato like tubers can be dehydrated and stored for years with no important loss of Vitamin and mineral content. It is believed it was taken by Inca warriors to boost their energy and staying power for battle.

It is a natural source of just about all essential amino acids and may be beneficial as a booster for the immune system, it is a good source of iodine, which is crucial for the endocrine system due to its effect on the thyroid. Also used to help handle other conditions connected with hormone imbalance, such as depressive disorder, insomnia, tiredness, and acne. It encourages the body to make its own natural hormones in just the right balance to each other. Because of this it is used to treat endocrine issues and is a popular and effective alternative to HRT.

Maca is known as an adaptogen, which means it’s a non-toxic nutrient that has the ability to cause the body to adapt to outside conditions and stabilize the body’s hormone, cardiovascular, circulatory, nervous and endocrine system. It increases energy, endurance and neurotransmitter output.  It balances physical strength, adrenal and thyroid function, lowers hormonal dysfunction during menopause, lowers anxiety, improves memory and balances mood. Maca helps to restore the natural balance in the human body.

One of the most important features that tradition gave to maca, are its benefits for fertility, both male and female. A great help against impotence it is an aphrodisiac, containing a nutrient called p-methoxybenzyl isothiocyanate, which it is thought has aphrodisiac properties. Maca is a natural source of nearly all essential amino acids and may be a great help as a booster for the immune system. It is a very rich source of iodine. It helps the body to secrete its own natural hormones in just the right ammounts and balance to each other.

Open minded health professionals are integrating maca into their practices and promoting it as an excellent treatment for menopause since it offers an altogether different and totally safe approach to hormones. Other traditional uses of maca include increasing energy, stamina and endurance in athletes, bringing about mental clarity, treating male impotence, helping with menstrual problems and female hormonal imbalances, including menopause and chronic fatigue syndrome. It is not a hormone and nor is it a source of hormones, but it does have a direct effect on the hormonal balance within the body.

A study in California tested the endurance of a control group working out in a Pilates Studio. Half of the group had been taking Maca as a food supplement for 8 weeks prior to the study. The other half of the control group had no Maca added to their diets. It was found that the group that had been taking Maca as a food supplement, out performed the other group by as much as 40% in some tests.

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