Both chlorella and spirulina have been shown to be quite effective for people suffering from anemia (blood deficiencies), poor spleen function, weak digestive absorption, and other similar "lack of vitality" disorders.

If you or someone you know is anemic, has low blood pressure, suffers from dizziness, or shows obvious signs of lack of vitality (such as having infrequent bowel movements), then chlorella is something that I strongly recommend be considered. Over time, most people find that chlorella builds vitality, improves digestion, enhances energy, improves mental clarity, and basically helps people regain their youthful energy and start rebuilding the strength of organs and tissues.

Chlorella and Spirulina For Intestinal health

The subject of intestinal health deserves an entire book, probably. The vast majority of people on the Western diet (high in refined foods, low in fiber, low in natural vitamins, high in animal protein, high in dairy products, high in sugars) suffer from dismal bowel function. Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Crohn's Disease, constipation, frequent diarrhea -- these are all obvious symptoms of dietary imbalances. There's nothing wrong with your colon! It's merely the food you're eating that causes these effects.

Spirulina and chlorella offer considerable help in the area of intestinal health, and perhaps not in the ways you might suspect. What they do best is support healthy intestinal flora -- the "friendly" bacteria in your digestive tract that protect you from disease and aid in digestion. This ability is thought to be provided by the mucopolysaccharides found in spirulina:

Another possible way to improve the conditions in the intestine is by the consumption of spirulina. While no human studies appear to have been published, intriguing veterinary research has shown that providing horses with spirulina stimulates the growth of Lactobacillus in the cecum. The researchers suggest that this may be due to the mucopolysaccharides in spirulina

- Textbook of Natural Medicine by Michael T. Murray N.D.

I've seen what chlorella can do, too, in people I've urged to try it. One person who suffered from chronic constipation (one bowel movement every three days, if you can believe that!) slowly improved until she was having one every day. This was due to chlorella only, with no other dietary changes.

People with Crohn's Disease, diarrhea or IBS, however, should be extremely careful with chlorella, since it can actually promote diarrhea in some people. In these cases, stick to spirulina at first, and then slowly introduce chlorella as the digestive system tolerates it. A simple way to look at it is to say that chlorella makes the stools "wetter." If your stools are already too wet, chlorella should be introduced very slowly to avoid worsening your condition.

Chlorella is a whole food rich in many phytochemicals, some of which have been identified but many of which are still unknown. A group of elements referred to as chlorella growth factor, or CGF, are believed to be one group of compounds in chlorella that give it its health-promoting ability. Chlorella stimulates the growth of friendly bacteria, which in turn has the probiotic effect of strengthening gut flora and resisting disease.

- Herbal Medicine, Healing & Cancer by Donald R. Yance

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