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Seamoss vs. Irish Moss?
People often mistake these two for the same thing, even large companies who harvest seamoss call them the same thing, but they are not. There are actually thousands of different species of seamoss all over the world. But the main ones are Irish seamoss (Chondrus Crispus) and Jamaican or St. Lucia seamoss (Genus Gracilaria).
To start, sea moss is a thicker, more stick like seaweed. It goes by scientific names like Eucheuma and Gracilaria and grows in a more tropical climates like the Caribbean, southern Asia and southern Africa. You can find sea moss in a variety of colors. Most popular are gold and purple, but you can also find rare blue/green varieties.
Both sea moss and Irish moss are red algae, rich in the proteins that form collagen in the body. Collagen is associated with healthy skin, joint, bone, and heart health. Whichever you use, you will have a reliable source of collagen.
Irish Moss, scientifically known as Chondrus crispus, is a seaweed with flat, fan like leaves. It generally has a dark, purple color. Irish Moss grows in colder regions such as Europe, North America, Canada and Peru.
Chondrus crispus was consumed by the Irish during the Irish Potato Famine of 1845-1849. This was a period where food was scarce in Ireland. With millions of people dying from malnourishment related diseases, the Irish turned to the sea for their food. Thus, birthing the name, “Irish Moss.”
While Sea moss is much more abundant and accessible, Irish Moss is harder to come by. It is quite rare that you’ll find a vendor for real Irish moss. Because they are so often incorrectly exchanged, you could search ‘Irish Moss,’ but you’d get results for Gracilaria seamoss. And also the fact the Irish Seamoss can only be harvested in their summer months vs Gracilaria can be harvested all year round.
Because Irish seamoss can only be harvested during summer months, it makes it impossible to farm. Seamoss all kinds should always be wildcrafted. Meaning they grow naturally on rocks, and because Irish seamoss grows in colder climates, it can only grow on rocks. Gracilaria grows all year round. Making it easy for people to farm. Some people actually try to grow seamoss in pools, and you get no benefits from that seamoss. It’s purely a gmo’d seamoss. Never buy pool grown. Another way people can farm Gracilaria is growing it on ropes in the sea.. since it’s still growing in the sea, you still get most of the benefits but not all. When it’s grown naturally on rocks, it absorbs the nutrients from the minerals in those rocks.
My seamoss is wildcrafted!! Harvested straight from rocks and never rope farmed!
Another similarity between Irish moss and, specifically, purple sea moss (Gracilaria ) is the presence of Anthocyanin. This is also found in other purple veggies: purple cabbage, eggplant, blueberries. Anthocyanin can prevent cancer, and can improve memory. But Gracilaria also has other colors including but not limited too green seamoss which is full of chlorophyll. Chlorophyll can help aid the body in detox, heal wounds, eliminate fungus, clean your intestines and much more.
**Capsules, flakes and powders are usually cooked at high temperatures and that depletes most, if not all the nutrients.
Just buy the good stuff!! Lol