Maca Extracts
Maca Extracts Additional Information
Liquid Maca Extracts
We're happy to be the first company anywhere to offer a complete selection of maca extracts in liquid form. You can choose from red maca extract, black maca extract, yellow maca extract and tri-color maca extract. These are all made with maca root chips and non-GMO vegetable derived glycerin. They are incredibly high quality, potent and very convenient.
What Is Maca Extract?
Liquid herb extracts have been used for thousands of years to help maintain and improve health. They are made by combining an herb or food with a solvent, which “dissolves” the active health promoting constituents of the plant. In the case of our maca extracts, the active nutrients of maca root are concentrated in a base of vegetable glycerin.
The main advantages of herbal maca extracts in comparison to the whole maca root chips, maca powders or maca capsules are:
- Freshness and longer shelf life - this is due to preservation and suspension of the active nutrients of a plant in the extract medium.
- Better bio-availability - By extracting the active constituents of maca root from both indigestible cell wall components and inactive constituents such as starch, maca enters the body in a more predigested state. This is great for people with sensitive digestion.
- Faster acting – dried maca may take more than an hour to digest, while liquid maca extracts begin to assimilate in about 15 to 20 minutes. When extracts are held under the tongue before swallowing, active ingredients are absorbed even quicker and directly into the blood stream.
- Ease of use – maca extracts are convenient to use, can be easily carried with you and can be taken at any time of the day.
Why We Use Glycerin for Our Maca Extracts
The most common solvents used to make extracts are water, alcohol and glycerin. We’ve chosen vegetable glycerin to make ours as we’ve found them to be superior to alcohol on various levels.
- Our glycerin maca extracts are suitable for children, people with alcohol sensitivities and diabetics. Glycerin also tastes slightly sweet which makes taking maca much easier for more people.
- Unlike alcohol, glycerin does not affect or denature active constituents of maca. In fact, it preserves maca’s aromatics, enzymes, and polysaccharides.
- Glycerin preserves the natural taste of the maca, which is important to maximizing its benefits. Glycerin on its own also initiates an immediate salivation response, bringing enzymes essential to absorption into action.
- Glycerin is low on the glycemic index as it converts to sugar very slowly. This means greater potential for overall absorption of nutrients.
- Glycerin is a compound that is a part of all plant and animal tissues. It occurs everywhere in nature as far as living systems are concerned, always bound with fatty acids (also called ‘lipids’). That’s why it absorbs in our body so well, and it is so natural to our body systems. Alcohol, of course, is not.
- Glycerin is very pure, sterilizing bacteria by depriving them of water.
- Glycerin by itself has some nutritive properties and has been shown to aid in removal of toxins from tissues, especially the liver, a quality not shared by alcohol.
How Are Maca Extracts Made?
Before we committed to making maca extracts we researched many different companies to produce them. We finally settled on a great small U.S. based company that has a unique 4-part process for extracting the maximum amount of active health promoting constituents from our maca. Their proprietary process produces the best tasting and most potent extract that we’ve come across. And it's also important to note that we use whole maca root chips when making our extracts. This is because more vital nutrients are extracted during the process.
Certified Organic Maca Extracts
We use our certified organic maca chips for our maca extracts. However, we can’t claim that the whole product is certified organic. The vegetable glycerin we use comes from red palm. It is grown without pesticides or chemical fertilization and is harvested in a sustainable way. It, however is not yet certified as organic. Our supplier is currently working to obtain that certification. The only viable alternative for certified organic glycerin at this time is corn oil. We have chosen not to use corn-based glycerin because it is impossible to verify that it is Non-GMO.
Frequently Asked Questions About Maca Extracts
What Is Maca Extract For?
Maca extract has a variety of uses, but in general terms maca works to support overall hormone health and balance. Because the hormones affect so many aspects of our health, people report that taking maca extracts helps with everything from reducing acne, to growing hair to increasing libido.
What Do Your Maca Extracts Taste Like?
Because our liquid maca extracts are made with vegetable glycerin instead of alcohol, they have a pleasant taste. They do conserve the earthy, malt-like taste of maca root, but are at the same time somewhat sweet. The sweetness is still low glycemic, which makes the extracts safe for diabetics. Most people report enjoying the taste of our liquid maca extracts.
How Much Maca Extract Do You Have To Take?
In general terms, we recommend 1/4-1/2 teaspoon (2-4 droppersful) 3 times a day. You can vary this as appropriate for your wellness goals.
Note that although maca extracts are generally regarded as safe for anyone, including children, it’s important to consult with a competent and knowledgeable healthcare provider before taking maca extracts if you have any specific concerns.
Can You Take Maca Extract Along With Maca Powder Or Maca Capsules?
This is possible and many people enjoy taking both. For example, it is possible to take a standard maca powder or maca capsule serving in the morning and then supplement that by enjoying a serving of liquid maca extract in the afternoon.
What Is The Side Effect of Taking Maca Extracts
To this point maca root products, including maca extract, are not associated with any side effects at all. Maca can reduce blood pressure, so people with hypertension should consult with their doctor when starting maca.
Does Maca Extract Increase Testosterone or Estrogen?
Many people use maca to help reverse hormone sensitive conditions because maca root products can affect hormone levels. But it’s important to know that maca does not contain any type of hormone, including testosterone or estrogen. Rather, it stimulates the body to produce a balanced hormonal state. So yes, maca extracts can increase testosterone or estrogen, depending on an individual specific health and needs.
What Are The Benefits of Maca Liquid Extracts?
Our maca extract is easy to take, tastes great, easy to digest and nutritionally potent. Taking maca in extract form is also very convenient and easy to do while you are on the go.
In general terms, maca extracts offer the same benefits as other maca products. Maca root benefits for females include:
- Alleviation of menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes
- Boosting energy
- Improving desire and function
- Enhancing memory
- Elevating fertility
- Improving mood
And general maca root benefits for males include:
- Promoting prostate health
- Improving performance
- Increasing energy
- Building muscle
- Heightening concentration
Maca Extract vs. Powder?
When properly processed maca extracts contain the nearly identical amounts of the active ingredients in maca root. Although it isn't as filling as maca powder, maca extract is easier to take and requires that you take a bit less to achieve similar results.
Where Can I get Liquid Maca Extracts Near Me?
At the moment finding a good quality form of liquid maca extract is challenging in most locations. The best is to shop maca extract online. We are working to get The Maca Team products in more small health food stores and hope to be in several 100 stores soon.
If you have any questions about our maca extracts or anything else please let us know. We look forward to serving you.
Enjoy the day!
