Wheatgrass Side Effects: This Superfood Has a Dark Side!

SorenMattson | Dec 16, 2011 |

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Wheatgrass Side Effects? Seriously?

I know, I know—wheatgrass is a superfood. It’s the healthiest food in the history of the universe. One ounce contains the equivalent of five hundred pounds of vegetables.

Wheatgrass Health Benefits

Don’t get me wrong: wheatgrass is great for you. It’s full of vitamins and minerals, including enzymes, amino acids, and especially chlorophyll. It can improve your immune system, improve your circulation, detoxify your body, and restore your pH balance. Because nourishing your body might lead to less hunger (your body won't crave as many nutrients), you might experience some wheatgrass weight loss. Some people even take wheat grass for hair. In other words, it’s awesome for you. It just has a few side effects, that’s all.

Wheatgrass Side Effects: Gluten

We like to think of wheatgrass as some kind of super-veggie, but in fact it comes from the wheat plant. Which means it has gluten in it! Some people have no problem with gluten, but for those who do, or those with an allergy to wheat, you might have to steer clear of wheatgrass unfortunately.

Wheatgrass Side Effects: Digestive Problems

Some people get a feeling of mild nausea when taking wheatgrass, especially after a meal. For that reason, some people say you should take it on an empty stomach. Sometimes, this happens in people who aren’t used to the distinctive taste. One trick, if you don’t like the taste, is to take it with some juice. That will cover up the taste nicely.

WebMD lists these side effects for wheatgrass: nausea, appetite loss, and constipation. (Some people have also said that diarrhea can be a side effect.)

Wheatgrass Side Effects: Toxins

I was watching a TV show called “1000 Ways to Die” or something like that and I saw a story of a women who had died from drinking wheatgrass. What happened? Well, she was growing her own wheatgrass outside in the back yard, and her landlord, not knowing what it was, kept spraying it with pesticides. So she kept juicing and drinking the wheatgrass, thinking she was improving her health, when in effect she was drinking straight poison!

The moral here is, even though wheatgrass is good for you, there might be other stuff in it that isn’t so good for you. So make sure you buy a high-quality organic supplement.

Wheatgrass Side Effects: Headache

Some people get a headache from wheatgrass. Supposedly, this is due to some mold on the wheatgrass. If you get a headache from it, try a different kind and see if it goes away.

Wheatgrass Side Effects: Are They Real?

Some people have gone so far as to say that the “side effects” of a wheatgrass diet are actually the signs of your body being cleansed of toxins from heavy metals. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but at any rate, the side effects are pretty small compared to the benefits of taking this super-healthy food.