AndreaFahy
04-20-2007, 11:30 PM
I am conflicted on the topic of sprouting. Seems to me it is a very pure source of very high nutrients. But, as anything else I do a lot of research and I'll share what I found:
There has been a study by the University of Hannover. They found that within48 hours bakteria grow exponentially. If you look on the site of the FDA (sorry I cannot remember the link - try google) there have been numerous incidents where spruts led to severe illnesses, due to bacterial contamination.
I know some breedersin the US who sprout with bleach. But then I would hesitate feeding that to birds . You either add bleach early in the Process meaning that it will be soaked up inthe kernel, thus all rinsing wouldnot get rid of it. Or you add it later meaning that any disinfection would only take place on the surface.
I would not risk it.
Ann Castro
GSE for sprouting:
This is what they say:
What is my recommendation? Buy good quality seeds and grow your own sprouts at home. Soak and rinse seeds in water treated with Grapefruit Seed Extract - GSE (30 drops per gallon - stirred and allow to sit for 20 minutes) to eliminate Strep, Staph, Salmonella, E. Coli, Candida, Herpes, Influenza, parasites, fungi and traveler's diarrhea. Besides being the perfect way to ensure safe, bacteria-free sprouting seeds, this all-in-one anti-antimicrobial product is also an excellent household cleaner for toothbrushes, vegetable/fruit or meat/poultry wash, sterilizing dishes and utensils, cutting boards and any other "germy" surface.
I have not decided that this is what I am going to do, just what I have been leaning towards in my reading.
Source:http://www.breadbeckers.com/gse.htm
GSE Article:
Sourced from:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/bodycare/natural_bodycare_ingredients.cfm
Grapefruit seed extract/grapefruit seed (citrus derived) -- GSE is a synthetic quaternary ammonium compound that is not permitted in organic food products.
According to the USDA's Agricultural Research Service's study on grapefruit seed extracts ("IDENTIFICATION OF BENZETHONIUM CHLORIDE IN COMMERCIAL GRAPEFRUIT SEED EXTRACTS"): "Confirming an earlier study by researchers in Germany we found that some commercial grapefruit seed extracts contain benzethonium chloride, a synthetic antimicrobial agent commonly used in cosmetics and only approved for topical use, at relatively high levels of
8%."
The Institute of Pharmacy, Ernst Moritz Arndt University, in
Greifswald, Germany in a study found that "The antimicrobial efficacy as well as the content of preservative agents of six commercially available grapefruit seed
extracts were examined. Five of the six extracts showed a high growth inhibiting activity against the test germs Bacillus subtilis SBUG 14, Micrococcus flavus SBUG 16, Staphylococcus aureus SBUG 11, Serratia marcescens SBUG 9, Escherichia coli SBUG 17, Proteus mirabilis SBUG 47, and Candida maltosa SBUG 700. In all of the antimicrobial active grapefruit seed extracts, the preservative benzethonium chloride was detected by thin layer chromatography. Additionally, three extracts contained the preserving substances triclosan and methyl paraben (synthetic petrochemical preservatives). In only one of the grapefruit seed extracts tested no preservative agent was found. However, with this extract as well as with several self-made extracts from seed and juiceless pulp of grapefruits (Citrus paradisi) no antimicrobial activity could be detected (standard serial broth dilution assay, agar diffusion test). Thus, it is concluded that the potent as well as nearly universal antimicrobial activity being attributed to grapefruit seed extract is merely due to the synthetic preservative agents contained within. Natural products with antimicrobial activity do not appear to be present."
There has been a study by the University of Hannover. They found that within48 hours bakteria grow exponentially. If you look on the site of the FDA (sorry I cannot remember the link - try google) there have been numerous incidents where spruts led to severe illnesses, due to bacterial contamination.
I know some breedersin the US who sprout with bleach. But then I would hesitate feeding that to birds . You either add bleach early in the Process meaning that it will be soaked up inthe kernel, thus all rinsing wouldnot get rid of it. Or you add it later meaning that any disinfection would only take place on the surface.
I would not risk it.
Ann Castro
GSE for sprouting:
This is what they say:
What is my recommendation? Buy good quality seeds and grow your own sprouts at home. Soak and rinse seeds in water treated with Grapefruit Seed Extract - GSE (30 drops per gallon - stirred and allow to sit for 20 minutes) to eliminate Strep, Staph, Salmonella, E. Coli, Candida, Herpes, Influenza, parasites, fungi and traveler's diarrhea. Besides being the perfect way to ensure safe, bacteria-free sprouting seeds, this all-in-one anti-antimicrobial product is also an excellent household cleaner for toothbrushes, vegetable/fruit or meat/poultry wash, sterilizing dishes and utensils, cutting boards and any other "germy" surface.
I have not decided that this is what I am going to do, just what I have been leaning towards in my reading.
Source:http://www.breadbeckers.com/gse.htm
GSE Article:
Sourced from:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/bodycare/natural_bodycare_ingredients.cfm
Grapefruit seed extract/grapefruit seed (citrus derived) -- GSE is a synthetic quaternary ammonium compound that is not permitted in organic food products.
According to the USDA's Agricultural Research Service's study on grapefruit seed extracts ("IDENTIFICATION OF BENZETHONIUM CHLORIDE IN COMMERCIAL GRAPEFRUIT SEED EXTRACTS"): "Confirming an earlier study by researchers in Germany we found that some commercial grapefruit seed extracts contain benzethonium chloride, a synthetic antimicrobial agent commonly used in cosmetics and only approved for topical use, at relatively high levels of
8%."
The Institute of Pharmacy, Ernst Moritz Arndt University, in
Greifswald, Germany in a study found that "The antimicrobial efficacy as well as the content of preservative agents of six commercially available grapefruit seed
extracts were examined. Five of the six extracts showed a high growth inhibiting activity against the test germs Bacillus subtilis SBUG 14, Micrococcus flavus SBUG 16, Staphylococcus aureus SBUG 11, Serratia marcescens SBUG 9, Escherichia coli SBUG 17, Proteus mirabilis SBUG 47, and Candida maltosa SBUG 700. In all of the antimicrobial active grapefruit seed extracts, the preservative benzethonium chloride was detected by thin layer chromatography. Additionally, three extracts contained the preserving substances triclosan and methyl paraben (synthetic petrochemical preservatives). In only one of the grapefruit seed extracts tested no preservative agent was found. However, with this extract as well as with several self-made extracts from seed and juiceless pulp of grapefruits (Citrus paradisi) no antimicrobial activity could be detected (standard serial broth dilution assay, agar diffusion test). Thus, it is concluded that the potent as well as nearly universal antimicrobial activity being attributed to grapefruit seed extract is merely due to the synthetic preservative agents contained within. Natural products with antimicrobial activity do not appear to be present."