Arruda: Plant for Your Protection, the Benefits of Rue
For ages, Arruda, also known as Rue and Herb of Grace (scientific name Ruta graveolens) has been used to purify environments, repel parasites, and clear the mind of negative thoughts and energies. Arruda as it’s known in my homeland of Brazil, is originally from the Mediterranean region and grows well in dry environments. It thrives in direct sunlight. In my country, it’s commonly used as an anti-parasitic and many people place a sprig of it in the closet or dresser drawer to keep the bugs away.
The Romans and Greeks commonly used Rue to remove negative energies and to treat a variety of health issues. You know the classic image of a Greek male with a sprig of leaves in his hair? Well, that was probably Rue in his hair…there to keep the lice away. Even Shakespeare referred to Rue as the “sacred herb of sundays” (Hamlet). It was commonly dipped in water and shaken at the faithful to clear them of negative spirits. Some cultures use Rue in cooking, as it’s rich in vitamin C. Its leaves and seeds are used in salads and sauces while its leaves are also dried and used in tea. In Europe, it was often infused into wine and stronger alcoholic drinks, such as Grappa, to aid in digestion.
Rue is from the Rutaceae family, rich in salicylic acid, alcaloides, flavonoids, rutin, quercetin, fenols, and many other substances useful in pharmaceuticals. A plant with similar properties in my homeland of Brazil, known as Jamborandi, is used widely in the pharmaceutical business, including medicines to fight glaucoma.
Besides all this, it can also be used to counter Belladona poisoning and for bad breath.
In natural health circles, Rue is used to support the kidneys, bladder, intestines and inner ear. It can also be used for infections of the eyes, constipation, sciatica, asthma, headaches, dermatitis, and strokes. However, it must be used in moderation, as too much Rue can be toxic; pregnant women or those desiring to get pregnant should stay away from Rue, as it has abortive properties.
You can grow Rue yourself in the backyard. It’s a hardy plant the requires direct sunlight. It can be found under the names Arruda, Common Rue, Herb of Grace, Ruta, Golden Rue, Herbygrass, Somalata, Weinraute, Sadab and German Rue. If you’re not up for growing your own, you can also find it in herbal mixtures of all kinds.
5 comments September 21st, 2008
Although ProGreens was formulated for use by doctors who need specific information about ingredients for their patients with food allergies and other issues, its formulation is utlimately quite comparable to several others. The approach is to offer a variety of greens for nutrition, along with a collection of botanical herbs for overall health and immune support.
This formulation is a lot like many others: fairly robust with a variety of greens (barley grass, spirulina, chlorella), followed by filler (oat betaglucen, apple fiber, brown rice, lecithin), and then antioxidant herbs and fruits (carrot, green tea, blueberry, plum, and other fruits and veggies). The rest is a collection of veggie powders and herbs. This particular formulation is pretty heavy in the fillers with almost 4 grams of it (I look for under 2 grams of filler in a good formulation). This product’s label, like so many others, call their fillers a “Fiber Blend” to give it a purpose in the formulation. And while it’s true that many of these fillers add fiber, I look for a more substantial reason for the filler to call it anything but “filler.” The rest is really nothing special…a few herbs and not enough kelp to even warrant mention (a token amount). At $4.22 per ounce, I think this is a bit pricey for the quality of the blend.
This formulation is made with no spirulina, chlorella or sea vegetables because the manufacturer believes that these are acid-forming botanicals. In fact, these are not acid forming ingredients; they are simply not as alkaline as some other greens. So if you are going for an alkaline-enhancing formulation (which this formulator clearly is), you might choose to leave these water-based greens out. If you do, you’d better replace them with some pretty nutrient-dense veggie powders because you’re losing a lot of potent nutrients without these ingredients in your formulation. Does Mega Greens meet this challenge? Pretty much.
Not everyone takes a green drink for the same reason. And to argue that there is only one formula or “set of criteria” that defines a good green drink is completely absurd. The fact is, there are many reasons for adding a green drink to your food choices and each has its advantages. Plus, a green drink is only one part of a healthy diet program — not the entire thing. So you need to COMBINE your green drink with the other supplements and food choices you make.
UPDATED: Dec 2010
I like the formulation of this product and feel it’s an excellent value for the price. It has very little filler, which consists mostly of apple fiber and pectin, flaxseed meal, and rice bran (not the worst type of fillers if you have to include some). The bulk of this formula is made up of greens and fruits with some great herbs to complete the anti-oxidant blend. The greens are varied and consist of grasses, veggie powders, spirulina and chlorella. There is also some parsley and watercress to boot (I love to see watercress in these formulations). The fruits are also varied and include acerola, blueberry, orange, pineapple and raspberry. The herbal extras include green tea, grape seed extract, tumeric and rose hips. Plus, they include some exotic ingredients, such as bamboo, cinnamon, horsetail herb, ginseng, ginger, suma, astragalus, and royal jelly. This is a quality blend at a very good price of $4.30 per ounce.
The bulk of the ingredients in this mixture are fillers, such as barley malt extract and brown rice syrup solids (filler and taste) and the greens are primarily spirulina and grasses, but they also have a bit of alfalfa leaf in there. There are two other types of spirulina listed on the label, including the AFA spirulina from Klamath Lake (the one known as “blue green algae”). These are included in smaller amounts than the traditional spirulina, which is grown in controlled environments. There are very few fruits in this mixture, which is not a huge problem in my book, since I believe in taking a fruit drink (purple or red berry juice) in addition to your green drink. Finally, EnergyFirst has added some herbal ingredients that are often found in green drink formulas, including green tea, Echinacea, and ginko biloba. I applaud the addition of MSM in this mixture, as this is a supplement that most of us need and few of us get.
This product, like so many others in this price range (under $4 per oz), is very heavy in grasses, which are great for some basic nutrients, but they are not the most nutrient-rich of the botanical ingredients available for green formulas. The mint leaves have some excellent qualities, but they are mostly for flavor (covering up the grassy taste of all those grasses). The aloe and dandelion are excellent additions and should be higher on the list (more of them). The other interesting ingredient in this mixture is the clay, which is usually used for cleansing and detoxing. Clay pulls the toxins out of your intestinal tract as it passes through (it has no nutritional value in itself). Some would argue that you should not mix clay with nutritional ingredients, as the clay pulls the nutrients out along with the toxins. There is some debate over that, but most likely, at lease some of the nutrients get digested before the clay starts drawing elements out. Still, this is a strange formula, if well priced at $3.75 per ounce.
This formulation is quite interesting. It is designed to curb the appetite (with artichoke powder, green tea and other ingredients) while giving you some protein (from peas mostly) and nutrients from a variety of green botanicals. The greens are heavy in spirulina with a few grasses thrown in too. It has the ratio of spirulina to grass that I like — meaning it’s mostly spirulina. Other greens and herbs of note include spinach powder, ginseng, rosehips, astragalus, milk thistle, rosemary extract and mushroom extract. Plus, there is a hefty dose of apple powder, which is very good for digestion and liver cleansing (plus it tastes good). I’ve never seen a mixture with this much apple powder in it. The only drawback is the large amount of bulking ingredients (all of which have some function in the mix, but they are mostly bulking). These include the pea protein, lecithin, and some flaxseed meal. Overall, this is a high-end formulation for a very reasonable price of $4.36 per ounce.
Like many of the green drinks, Perfect Food is heavy on the grasses, which I’ve often mentioned are good ingredients, but not necessarily the best. Thankfully, this product also contains a significant amount of spirulina and sea veggies to make it a bit more robust than some of the other grass-heavy green products. The veggie juices included (beet, carrot, broccoli, etc.) are not in huge quantities, but it’s nice that they are included. The filler in this product is the rice bran solubles, which is not a super nutritious choice, but better than some products, like guar gum. At $4.24 per ounce, it’s not a bad value, but compare with 
This is terrific formulation by one of the industry’s best formulators, Dr. Jameth Sheridan. This particular formulation is almost identical to Sheridan’s own product 
Amazing Grass is not one of the most robust formulas on the market but it’s one of the best values you’ll find for a basic (but good quality) green superfood formula. It consists mostly of grasses, followed by spirulina, alfalfa, spinach and chlorella. Maca, which is also in this mixture, is a great botanical from Peru that provides natural energy and general healing qualities of an adaptogenic herb. It does bulk-up the mixture a bit, but if you’re going to bulk-up a green drink, Maca is about the best choice you can make (this product does contain flax seed meal and apple pectin, but in fairly small quantities, so I don’t consider them to be bulking this product). The apple pectin is there just to act as a natural flowing agent to help prevent caking. Overall, the greens in this mixture dominate and make this a very green superfood…and the price is excellent at only $2.82 per ounce, which makes it one of the least expensive green drinks on the market, and possibly the reason it’s one of the most popular. Compare with 
This formulation is different than most others, in that it’s focus is on both nutrition and amino acids. Hence, the formula contains some greens (mostly from spirulina and grasses), but also includes a great number of aminos from various sources (nuts, beans, molasses, alfalfa seeds, etc.). These types of ingredients are more expensive, hence the hefty price tag. You need to decide if the mixture is worthwhile for you, or if you’d be better off purchasing nuts and molasses and adding them to a more cost-effective formulation.
This is essentially a gluten-free version of 
This product has a lot of fiber and filler, but it’s also a very low-priced product. And for the price, it’s actually not a bad product with plenty of greens and special herbs. The manufacturer boasts a high protein content, which is true when you add it all up. But while it can be argued that chia seeds provide fatty acids, that peas and brown rice have protein, and that lecithin is good for digestion and elimination…the truth is, these are all relatively low-priced fillers (chia seeds less so) for those who know about green drink formulation. The greens in this product (mostly barley grass, spirulina and some spinach, kale, and other veggie powders) provide the bulk of the nutrition and it also offers a few well-chosen special herbs (dandelion, astragalus, ginger and milk thistle are the most notable). Sweetened with Stevia, which will appeal to some and not others. Good price at only $2.20 per ounce.
This product, while on the expensive side, is almost completely without fillers of any kind. It contains just a bit of brown rice solids, but otherwise, it’s pure functional. It features spinach and other healthy veggie powders (kale, broccoli, cabbage and Brussels sprouts), plus fruit powders like blueberry, cranberry, pomegranate and papaya. This explains the price point of the product; it contains high-end ingredients and pure vegetable and fruit powders. Overall, This is an excellent formulation if a bit expensive at $5.51 per ounce.
