[Latin Name] Glycine max(L.) Mere

[Specification] 90%; 95%

[Appearance] White powder

[Melting point] 134-142℃

[Particle size] 80Mesh

[Loss on drying] ≤2.0%

[Heavy Metal] ≤10PPM

[Storage] Store in cool & dry area, keep away from the direct light and heat.

[Shelf life] 24 Months

[Package] Packed in paper-drums and two plastic-bags inside.

[Net weight] 25kgs/drum

[What is Phytosterol?]

Phytosterols are compounds found in plants that resemble cholesterol. The National Institutes of Heath report that there are over 200 different phytosterols, and the highest concentrations of phytosterols are found naturally in vegetable oils, beans and nuts. Their benefits are so recognized that foods are being fortified with phytosterols. At the supermarket, you may see orange juice or margarine advertising phytosterol contents. After reviewing the health benefits, you may want to add phytosterol-rich foods to your diet.

[Benefits]

Cholesterol-Lowering Benefits

The most well-known, and scientifically proven, benefit of phytosterols is their ability to help lower cholesterol. A phytosterol is a plant compound that is similar to cholesterol. A study in the 2002 issue of “Annual Review of Nutrition” explains that phytosterols actually compete for absorption with cholesterol in the digestive tract. While they prevent the absorption of regular dietary cholesterol, they themselves are not easily absorbed, which leads to a total lower cholesterol level. The cholesterol-lowering benefit does not end with a good number on your blood work report. Having lower cholesterol leads to other benefits, such as a reduced risk for heart disease, stroke and heart attacks.

Cancer Protection Benefits

Phytosterols have also been found to help protect against the development of cancer. The July 2009 issue of the” European Journal of Clinical Nutrition” offers encouraging news in the fight against cancer. Researchers at the University of Manitoba in Canada report that there is evidence that phytosterols help prevent ovarian, breast, stomach and lung cancer. Phytosterols do this by preventing the production of cancer cells, stopping the growth and spread of cells that are already in existence and actually encouraging the death of cancer cells. Their high anti-oxidant levels are believed to be one way phytosterols help fight cancer. An anti-oxidant is a compound that fights free radical damage, which is negative effects on the body produced by cells that are unhealthy.

Skin Protection Benefits

A lesser known benefit of phytosterols involves skin care. One of the contributing factors in the aging of the skin is the breakdown and loss of collagen — the main component in connective skin tissue — and sun exposure is a major contributor to the problem. As the body ages, it is not able to produce collagen as it once did. The German medical journal “Der Hautarzt” reports a study in which various topical preparations were tested on skin for 10 days. The topical treatment that showed anti-aging benefits to the skin was the one that contained phytosterols and other natural fats. It is reported that phytosterols not only stopped the slow-down of collagen production that can be caused by the sun, it actually encouraged new collagen production.

Bearded Dragon Diet & Nutritional Facts: Kale

Raw Nutritional Stats
(% indicates amount of HUMAN daily intake for reference only)

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy 117 kJ (28 kcal)
Carbohydrates 5.63 g
- Sugars 1.25 g
- Dietary fiber 2 g
Fat 0.4 g
Protein 1.9 g
Water 91.2 g
Vitamin A equiv. 681 μg (85%)
- beta-carotene 8173 μg (76%)
- lutein and zeaxanthin 18246 μg
Thiamine (vit. B1) 0.053 mg (5%)
Riboflavin (vit. B2) 0.07 mg (6%)
Niacin (vit. B3) 0.5 mg (3%)
Vitamin B6 0.138 mg (11%)
Folate (vit. B9) 13 μg (3%)
Choline 0.4 mg (0%)
Vitamin C 41 mg (49%)
Vitamin E 0.85 mg (6%)
Vitamin K 817 μg (778%)
Calcium 72 mg (7%)
Iron 0.9 mg (7%)
Magnesium 18 mg (5%)
Manganese 0.416 mg (20%)
Phosphorus 28 mg (4%)
Potassium 228 mg (5%)
Sodium 23 mg (2%)
Zinc 0.24 mg (3%)

Facts and Tips
Kale has recently been called a “Superfood” as well as the trendy topic of numerous health articles for its amazing balance of nutritional value. While perhaps its been blown a little out of proportion, Kale really does have a great balance of different vitamins and nutrients making it a great choice as an occasional ingredient in your dragon salads.

Kale seems to have a favorable flavor to most bearded dragons making it both a great treat as well as a good veggie choice for dragons that aren’t eating greens, being picky or even younger dragons that need to learn to eat greens.

While most dragons LOVE Kale, we have noticed that 1 out of every 10-15 just will not eat it. It’s interesting it works out that way, and we have no absolute answer as to why but we can assure you most dragons love the stuff.

Use Kale only occasionally as it is high in oxalates. Oxalates can complicate the body’s ability to process calcium, leading to bone density issues. While this is bad even for humans in excess, it is especially bad for domesticated dragons living inside simply because even a high quality UV lamp doesn’t come close to the UV of the real sun. Because pet dragons are already at a disadvantage for bone strengthing UV rays, doing anything else detrimental to their bone strength is a bad idea.

DON’T fear Kale, it is still a great veggie for dragons, simply just don’t use it every week.

Our current diet program is broken down into 4 week long segments, and for 1 week out of the month we include Kale in our dragons daily greens. One week a month is a pretty fair reference for how often to include Kale in your dragons diet.

How to Prepare for Dragons:
Remove all leafy greens from the main stem and collect into a pile. Chop into smaller pieces first cutting across and then perpendicularly to get easy to eat pieces.

If feeding to babies, cut much smaller into a fine chopped mix. The smaller the pieces the better.

How Often to Feed Your Dragon Kale
As mentioned above, Kale is a great veggie but with high oxalates it’s not a good idea to over do it. With that said, we feed our dragons Kale for one week out of every four and figure that is a pretty solid opportunity to take advantage of the great nutrients in Kale without endangering a risk of the oxalates creating any complications.

Have any questions? Let us know in the comments below!

Visit our site at www.BeardedDragonSource.com

Statistical Source* Wikipedia @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kale

The Today Tonight segment highlighting the benefits of Anthogenol as an anti-aging health supplement.