Vegetarians are often faced with somewhat of a challenge when looking for complete, good sources of protein, such as the type that can be found in meats and fish.  For example, one of the hardest nutrients to come by that is often found in red meat, which obviously vegetarians don’t eat, is the combination of iron and vitamin B12. B12 is absolutely essential to energy levels, and often those that do not eat meat are hard pressed to find good, readily usable forms of this vitamin in alternative protein sources.

Another complexity of finding protein is to find one that is complete. That is, one that contains all of the essential amino acids. Actually, there is one that I really love the flavor of and happen to eat frequently since being introduced to it a short while ago, and that is quinoa.  It contains all of the essential amino acids, and is therefore an excellent complete source of protein, especially for vegans, who are even more hard pressed to find good sources of protein that are healthful in other ways.

Spirulina, which you have probably heard of before, is actually a blue green algae that partly gets it’s name from it’s spiral structure. It is found not only in fresh water, but also in sea water, and it is thought to carry some beneficial health effects as well, although some of them are argued.

For example, there is supposed to be vitamin B12 in spirulina, but the bioavailability of it is in dispute. This means that even though there may be some amount of this vitamin in spirulina, it may not be used by the body properly and is therefore useless if this is true.

Spirulina does, however, contain a complete source of protein, and for that reason it has been used therapeutically as ways to keep weight on cancer patients as well as a way to get vegetarians and vegans a complete, energy giving source of protein.

Spirulina also may have benefits for those with allergies, as it is thought to have effective prevention effects against allergies.  It is also used as an energy enhancer. I have eaten spirulina in little energy snacks that can be found at health food stores, and I also like to drink it in smoothies that can also be found at health food stores, and it may just be psychosomatic, but I swear I do get a nice energy boost from it.

So, there has been a lot of back and forth about both the adverse and the positive health effects of drinking coffee, the number one caffeinated beverage of choice here in the US. It is estimated that over half of the adults here in the US are habitual coffee drinkers. Sheesh, no wonder why there’s a Starbucks around every corner and new coffee shops popping up every day.

Not only that, but how many coffee machines do you see around? I know at my job, there are five coffeemakers just in our downstairs rest area alone. A lot of people can’t even function in the morning until they’ve had their “fuel” – their coffee in the morning. Why is this? Because of the caffeine content. Coffee has plenty of this addictive substance in it, and that is why it gets the bad health rap that it does.

Caffeine really isn’t that great for you when you look at many of the aspects of it, but there are actually some arguments that it may help you in certain ways. However, the health benefits that have been found to be had by coffee are actually not chalked up to the caffeine content, but instead are attributed to other factors of nutritional substances that are found within the coffee bean.

Some of the drawbacks of the caffeine aspect of coffee are that it can cause nervousness, heart palpitations, and sleeplessness. Some studies even say that it can contribute to anxiety. I’d believe that, because I think I’ve actually experienced all three of those side effects myself.

What scientists are finding though, is that coffee drinkers, who drink several cups of coffee a day are definitely exhibiting some health benefits that non coffee drinkers are not. One study shows that men who drink coffee every day (several cups) showed less signs of dementia and alzheimers in their older years. Another showed that women who were habitual coffee drinkers had less risk of several health issues like heart disease and cancers.

They think that all of these health benefits either haves something to do with the antioxidant values in the coffee, which contains lots of polyphenols, or they may also have something to do with other lifestyle habits that coffee drinkers tend to have. Coffee does have antioxidants in it, and if you are someone that drinks it often, you are getting a steady dose all day long, which helps you maintain those antioxidant levels all day long, and your body reaps the benefits all day.

Vitamin B12 gets a lot of press because of it’s ability to give people so much extra energy. Some people even think that Vitamin B12 helps them to lose weight, but there is really no connection proven, besides the fact that they may just get up and move around more because they have a lot of energy, but there is absolutely no evidence that B12 in itself helps one to burn excess calories or suppresses the appetite. Some people may think it suppresses appetite simply because it sort of replaces the purpose of food that way, by providing the body with energy.

At any rate, there are a lot of people out there taking Vitamin B12 supplements in hopes of helping them with everything from energy levels to mood, to weight loss and exercise enhancement, but what if you take too much B12? Are there any bad side effects or symptoms if you are simply taking too much of this vitamin, to where your body just can’t get rid of it through urinating fast enough. Yes, there can be potential side effects, however, they usually are not severe and they usually pass within 24 hours.

There are always exceptions for the rule of course, so be sure to monitor yourself if you are taking this vitamin in particular. Taking too much B12 vitamin can actually cause you to flush easily. It can also cause heart palpitations and shortness of breath, which is definitely never a pleasant feeling.

Too much B12 can also cause rashes on the body and hives if too much has been taken. I think I actually experienced this in Las Vegas because I was downing Five Hour Energy like no one’s business to keep my energy up constantly, and Five Hour Energy is chock full of this vitamin, and lo and behold, I actually broke out in a mysterious rash for several days.

Not knowing the likely connectiont to the energy drink with lots of B12, I kept taking it, and so I had the rash for several days in a row. I also have experienced the shortness of breath mentioned as well when taking too much of this vitamin, but I must say that this vitamin is one of the best natural energy boosters I’ve every taken, so it’s key just to make sure that you take it normally and don’t overdo it, and you’ll reap the benefits without the bad side effects.

I have started to ditch coffee in the morning in favor of green tea, and as long as my face doesn’t break out, I think I’m going to make it the norm since green tea has so many more reported health benefits than coffee does, and I just don’t feel like it messes with my blood sugar balance like coffee does for a few hours. I purchased a natural brand of green tea that was infused with white tea and a few other flavors, just so it wouldn’t have that notorious, somewhat bitter flavor that green tea tends to have, and it tastes great with a little under one packet of stevia.

Some of the purported benefits of green tea have been that it helps you to burn fat and lose weight and may have thermogenic (calorie burning) and appetite control properties, which is the reason it is a good weight loss supplement for energy and appetite control. However, this thermogenic claim has of course been challenged. I will tell you that I feel like it doesn’t throw my blood sugar off as badly as coffee, so I think that it may help offset your blood sugar levels, because I swear I am just a TAD bit less hungry when I drink green tea in the morning.

I will fully acknowledge that could be the placebo effect, but hey, I’ll take it. Green tea is also supposed to have some anti cancer properties because it is rich in not only antioxidants, but also compounds called polyphenols, which are also found in some darkly colored berries and other fruits and olive oil, which are also thought to have anti cancer properties.

In fact, a very interesting study was commissioned in Asia where women’s lifestyles were examined for breast cancer rates, and it was found that women who ate both mushrooms and drank green tea pretty much daily had a much lower incidence of breast cancer – something like 90%. I don’t remember the exact perameters and specifics of the study, but the upshot was the green tea drinkers had less cancer risk.

And that is not the first study of it’s kind, there have also been studies that link the drinking of green tea itself to a reduction of cancer risk, so I’ve read that it doesn’t have to be combined with mushrooms to have the positive effect.

Aside from all the reported health benefits of green tea, I have to say that the flavor is growing on me. It took me a while to get over the fact that it doesn’t taste as rich as coffee, and there is no creaminess to it because I can’t put creamer in it (I don’t like tea this way, it makes me gag). I’m now enjoying the lightness and the flavor of it though now that I have it down to somewhat of a science. And hey, my skin is not breaking out, so green tea may become a staple in my diet!