Seaweed – The Superfood Tackling Health Emissions And Food Security
As the world battles rising chronic disease and climate instability, seaweed is emerging as a rare solution to both. Once relegated to coastal cuisines, this fast-growing marine macroalgae is now surfacing in dietary supplements, snacks, bioplastics and even methane-reducing livestock feed.
Seaweed has emerged as a promising solution to help meet global food and material demands without expanding agricultural land. Researchers from institutions including the University of Queensland, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization found that scaling up the cultivation of commercially valuable seaweed species could significantly ease pressure on terrestrial farming. These findings underscore seaweed's potential to support both food security and climate goals, provided land and ocean resources are managed in an integrated, sustainable way.
According to a Science Direct article, Western diets are deficient in fiber and essential micronutrients, contributing to gut imbalances, chronic inflammation, and metabolic dysfunction. Seaweed, particularly sugar kelp, naturally fills these gaps with a potent mix of insoluble fibers such as fucoidan, beta-glucan, alginate, and cellulose. When fermented by gut bacteria, these fibers produce short-chain fatty acids, compounds linked to improved insulin sensitivity, satiety, and immune health.
TOPSHOT - Captain John Lovett, 52, uses a knife to harvest kelp and throws keepers into a large bin ... More on the boat in Duxbury, Massachusetts on May 9, 2023. (Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP) (Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)
Seaweed Health Support From The Ocean
OCEANIUM, a UK-based biotech founded by Karen Scofield Seal and Dr. Charlie Bavington, is using seaweed to support both people and planet. Their flagship product, OCEAN ACTIVES® H+, delivers a clinically proven 250 mg dose that improves the ratio of beneficial to harmful gut bacteria, specifically increasing Bifidobacterium while decreasing Enterobacteriaceae.
The company's proprietary green biorefinery process ensures their ingredients are bioavailable, food-safe, and traceable from sea to shelf. OCEANIUM is also collaborating with Wageningen University on dementia-prevention research through the gut-brain axis and working with Reading University to explore human and pet nutrition.
From a sustainability standpoint, seaweed requires no land, freshwater, or fertilizer, making it one of the most sustainable crops on Earth. According to the company, it supports six UN Sustainable Development Goals, absorbs CO₂ and nitrogen, and increases marine biodiversity.
OCEANIUM is not alone in the innovation game. PhycoHealth in Australia produces seaweed-based capsules targeting gut and skin health. FutureFeed, another Australian agritech company, has developed a seaweed-based cattle feed supplement that cuts methane emissions by over 80%, according to CSIRO.
Challenges Facing Seaweed And The Way Forward
Despite its potential, seaweed still faces hurdles to mainstream adoption. Limited processing infrastructure poses a bottleneck to scaling, and its taste and texture can be off-putting to some consumers. According to the OCEANIUM team, overcoming these challenges requires offering products in familiar, easy-to-use formats with a neutral flavor profile. Their approach focuses on refining seaweed into versatile ingredients that seamlessly integrate into everyday foods like snacks, soups, and protein bars. Just as crucial is consumer education, emphasizing seaweed's health benefits and sustainability value to build trust and encourage widespread use.
Pills of seaweed spirulina, chlorella on a wooden spoon close up. Vegetarian Super food with plant ... More protein
Seaweed is no longer a fringe ingredient, it is a frontier crop with the potential to nourish people and regenerate the planet. Backed by science, powered by innovation, and aligned with global sustainability goals, seaweed offers a rare convergence of health, climate, and economic opportunity. Seaweed brands are proving that with smart processing, strategic partnerships, and consumer education, seaweed can transcend its niche and become a mainstream force in food systems, bioeconomy, and environmental resilience. The path forward isn't without obstacles, but if cultivated with care, this marine resource could help reshape the future of both nutrition and planetary stewardship.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gizmodo
2 hours ago
- Gizmodo
Gluten Could Be Wrongly Blamed for Americans' Stomach Troubles
For many of us, gluten is a dietary villain, capable of causing all sorts of gastrointestinal troubles. Research out this week looks to complicate that narrative, however, finding that people are sometimes wrongly blaming gluten for triggering their symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome. Scientists at McMaster University in Canada conducted the study, a small, randomized trial of IBS patients. People became sicker just as often after eating food containing gluten or wheat as they did after eating food without the ingredient, they found. Gluten is likely safer to eat for those with IBS than commonly thought, the researchers say. 'These findings suggest that expectations played a major role in symptom generation and that only some of these patients could benefit from gluten or wheat restriction,' they wrote in their paper, published Monday in The Lancet Gastroenetrology and Hepatology. IBS is a complex, chronic, and relatively common condition, estimated to affect between 5 and 10% of the population worldwide (including up to 45 million people in the U.S.). Its symptoms include stomach pain, bloating, and diarrhea or constipation. Unlike the closely named inflammatory bowel disorder, IBS isn't marked by physical changes or visible damage along the digestive tract, but it can still be a debilitating burden for many, with around 20% of sufferers experiencing severe bouts. The exact causes of IBS remain unclear, though scientists have speculated it can arise from a miscommunication between the nerves found in the gut and the brain. People with IBS tend to report having specific triggers that can cause a flare-up of illness, gluten included, and often manage their condition by avoiding these triggers. The researchers behind the new study aimed to better understand gluten's potential role in IBS, so they recruited over two dozen people with IBS for their randomized, double-blinded trial, all of whom had reported improving after switching to a gluten-free diet. At first, the volunteers were randomly assigned to one of three groups. All the groups were first told to eat cereal bars for a week. One group ate bars made with flour containing gluten, the second ate bars made with wheat flour, and the third ate bars made with gluten- and wheat-free flour. Afterward, the volunteers took a break for two weeks. Then they switched to eating the bars they hadn't eaten yet for another round of testing, a process repeated twice. By the study's end, all the volunteers had eaten all three kinds of bars, though on different schedules and without knowing which bars they had eaten on a given week. A total of 28 people completed the trial. A significant percentage of people reported having worsening IBS symptoms after eating gluten or wheat bars, the study showed, but about just as often as they did after eating non-gluten/wheat bars (roughly a third experienced worsening IBS during each of the three conditions). 93% of participants also reported having adverse events after each scenario of bar-eating. Interestingly enough, tests of the participants' stool found that only a third strictly followed their diets as instructed, with likely many fearing they would get sick. The findings are based on a very small sample size, so it's not yet certain that they apply to the general population of people with IBS tied to gluten. There are also, of course, digestive conditions clearly caused by an intolerance to gluten, particularly celiac disease. And the researchers aren't saying gluten can't sometimes be a genuine trigger for people's IBS. But they argue that in many cases, people's negative perception of gluten is causing a nocebo effect, the dark cousin of the placebo effect. In other words, someone's belief that gluten is bad for them can potentially spark or worsen the IBS symptoms seen after eating it, rather than gluten itself. The researchers say better communication and follow-up care from doctors are needed for IBS patients, given the findings. 'What we need to improve in our clinical management of these patients is to work with them further, not just tell them that gluten is not the trigger and move on. Many of them may benefit from psychological support and guidance to help destigmatize gluten and wheat and reintroduce them safely in their diet,' said senior author Premysl Bercik, a professor at McMaster's Department of Medicine, in a statement from the university. That may be easier said than done, though. The researchers note that most patients, upon learning the team's findings, staunchly refused to entertain the idea of gluten not being a trigger for their IBS symptoms. So it looks like gluten may need a promotional campaign to win back its reputation.
Forbes
10 hours ago
- Forbes
2 Surprising Ways ‘Attachment Styles' Impact Sleep, By A Psychologist
Your attachment style impacts more than just how you relate to others — it can even affect how you ... More sleep. Here are two attachment styles that can keep you up at night. Do you ever lie awake at night, wondering if your partner still loves you? Perhaps you had a disagreement earlier that day, or didn't get to spend enough time with them. So now, you think there's an issue. You ask yourself, 'Do they even care about me?' or 'Why do we argue so much?' Anxiety plagues you and you keep tossing and turning, unable to sleep. If such thoughts constantly keep you up at night, your attachment style may be to blame. A 2022 study published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin attests to this. Researchers assessed the connection between attachment orientation and sleep quality in married younger and middle-aged adult couples. Over 100 heterosexual couples were recruited as newlyweds a decade prior, who then participated in a large follow-up investigation to examine relationship impacts on health and thriving over the course of marriage. Sleep for couples is a shared experience, meaning one person's poor-quality or complete lack of sleep can impact the other's. Our bodies are hard at work when we sleep. The brain has to merge useful data, regulate emotions, repair our immune system and balance our hormones. This means being deprived of quality sleep can increase risks of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, which in turn, impact our life span. Here are two key results from the 2022 study that highlight how intricately linked attachment styles are to the quality of your sleep. 1. Anxious Attachment Can Make You Hypervigilant At Night Imagine that your workmates had lunch together without inviting you. You feel left out, angry, lonely and sad. You start to feel anxious, and your stream of thoughts — which started with, 'Why didn't they invite me?' — ends up being, 'Something must be wrong with me.' For someone with an anxious attachment style, experiencing social rejection can feel especially intense and destabilizing. They may even internalize such rejections to mean they are 'not good enough' or 'unlovable.' The same pattern shows up in romantic relationships. People with anxious attachment often struggle with a deep fear that they might get abandoned. They also experience difficulty regulating their emotions and are hyperaware of potential threats and stressors. For instance, if you're prone to checking your phone often, your partner's late response, no matter how unintentional, might leave you spiraling. You might start to read into minor rejections and analyze every detail in your partner's actions and texts, only to end up blaming yourself or even villainizing them. This 'hypervigilance' seeps into your bedtime, leaving you awake as you overthink and scan for emotional cues. You might be trying your best to sleep, but struggle to get past those 'what-if's' such as, 'What if I've done something wrong?' or, 'What if they're interested in other people?' or, 'What if they find someone better?' Researchers suggest that these negative emotional experiences and the lack of security in a relationship can negatively impact the quality of your sleep, and may even lead to sleep issues like insomnia and restless sleep. 2. Fearful Avoidant Attachment May Be Even Worse For Sleep If you thought people with anxious attachment sleep poorly, those with a fearful avoidant attachment tend to sleep even worse. People with this attachment style may crave closeness, but are also scared of getting hurt. They want connection, but are equally scared to open up and trust someone. In relationships, this often shows up when someone says they want commitment but panic when the relationship gets serious. They intentionally suppress emotions and thoughts they don't want to deal with, instead of facing them head on. However, bottling up emotions doesn't stop them from surfacing. In fact, it only exacerbates anxiety and, in certain cases, may even lead to depression. Individuals with fearful avoidant attachment face a dual struggle when it comes to sleep. On one hand, their anxiety keeps them alert and emotionally wound up. But their avoidant side leads them to keep things to themselves, even when they struggle with their thoughts. At night, this emotional suppression weakens and their anxious thoughts creep in, making it tough for them to relax. They do not feel secure or calm enough to experience good sleep. Having relational stress is common, but it's important to put safeguards in place to protect your sleep and overall well-being. Here are a few ways to improve your sleep cycle: Attachment patterns can affect you as much as they affect your relationships. Gaining insight into these patterns and working toward emotional security might just be the key to great sleep. So, nurture your emotions, and the health benefits will follow. Is your attachment style affecting your sleep? Take this science-backed test to find out: Insomnia Severity Index
Medscape
10 hours ago
- Medscape
Early Menopause Blues: Not Just About Hormones
TOPLINE: Among women with premature ovarian insufficiency, 29.9% experienced depressive symptoms, with younger age at diagnosis, severe menopausal symptoms, and lack of emotional support being key risk factors. Oestradiol levels and the use of hormone therapy were not significantly associated with the risk for depression, underscoring the role of psychosocial factors. METHODOLOGY: Researchers in the Netherlands conducted an exploratory cross-sectional study of 345 women with premature ovarian insufficiency (median age at diagnosis, 32 years) to identify factors associated with the development of depression in this population. The diagnostic criteria for premature ovarian insufficiency included oligo/amenorrhoea for at least 4 months and an elevated follicle-stimulating hormone level (> 25 IU/L) on two occasions at least 4 weeks apart. Validated questionnaires were used to measure the severity of depressive symptoms, frequency and severity of menopausal symptoms, impact of infertility on various aspects of life, and level of emotional support. Clinical evaluations included recording vital signs and BMI; running a blood panel for lipids and thyroid function; and measuring luteinising hormone, follicle‐stimulating hormone, oestradiol, and progesterone levels. TAKEAWAY: Among the 345 patients, 29.9% reported depressive symptoms and 70.1% did not. Although 42.3% of women were using oestrogen plus progestogen therapy at baseline, no significant difference in depressive symptoms was observed between those receiving and not receiving it (P = .89); oestradiol levels and the receipt of hormone therapy were not associated with depressive symptoms in this study. Severe menopausal symptoms (odds ratio [OR], 1.13; P < .001), lower emotional support (OR, 0.86; P < .001), and younger age at diagnosis (OR, 0.95; P = .01) were each associated with higher odds of depressive symptoms, whereas genetic aetiology was associated with lower odds (OR, 0.10; P = .04). Among women experiencing fertility-related grief, a lower quality of life related to fertility issues was also associated with depressive symptoms. IN PRACTICE: "Our findings underline the need for comprehensive assessment and management of menopausal symptoms, including psychosocial and sexual well-being, in women with POI [premature ovarian insufficiency]. Addressing the psychological impact of POI, including the loss of fertility, is probably crucial in preventing or mitigating depressive symptoms," the authors wrote. SOURCE: This study was led by Charissa van Zwol-Janssens, MD, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It was published online on July 15, 2025, in Menopause. LIMITATIONS: The observational design of the study prevented causal inferences between the identified risk factors and depression. The evaluation of symptoms at only one timepoint precluded examining trends over time or identifying at ‐ risk individuals. Moreover, enrolling participants from a single centre may have affected the generalisability of the results. DISCLOSURES: This study did not receive any funding. Some authors reported receiving research grants and fees for consultancy or presentations from various organisations, including pharmaceutical and healthcare companies. This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.
