You may have heard of chlorophyll, but do you actually know what it is, or the ah-MAY-zing health benefits it has on your body? Today I thought I would shine a little light on this incredible green goodness.

And light is the operative word, because chlorophyll is basically liquid sunshine. It is the pigment in the plants that allows them to absorb light from the sun and convert it into usable energy. The name derives from the Greek word chloros (meaning green) and phyllon (meaning leaf). It is a green pigment found in almost all algae, plants and cyanobacteria. And before you screw up your face, let me tell you the awe-inspiring benefits.

Sink your teeth into this:

• Chlorophyll is a cleansing and purifying agent, which stimulates the bowels.
• It helps to rebuild and replenish our red blood cells, boosting our energy and increasing our wellbeing almost instantly.
• It is effective against high blood pressure.
• It’s a powerful anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and wound healer.
• It helps to neutralise the pollution that we breathe in all day, every day.
• It efficiently delivers magnesium and helps the blood in carrying oxygen to all your cells and tissues.
• It is an effective deodorizer to reduce bad breath, urine, faecal waste and body odour.
• Along with vitamins A, C and E, it helps to neutralise free radicals that damage healthy cells.

These are just some of the benefits chlorophyll can have on your sweet little body — you can see why your parents went on and on about eating your greens when you were a kid!

You can’t get this sort of nutrient from anywhere else, so next time you’re doing your shopping, stock up on as many green leafy friends as you possibly can. You can then begin whipping up delicious salads, smoothies, stir-fries, juices — whatever floats your boat — and start flooding your body with green-fuelled goodness.

(If you’re a ‘busy person’ — or use that as an excuse — liquid chlorophyll from your health food store also works fine.)

My favourite way to get my green fix is by making a delicious juice first thing in the morning. The recipe below is a tried-and-true favourite in our kitchen. Give it a whirl — it’s jam-packed with chlorophyll, as well as a hefty load of other good stuff, like vitamins, antioxidants and enzymes. It’s also friggen tasty!

What You Need:

• A bunch of parsley
• A bunch of coriander
• A bunch of cos lettuce
• 2 celery sticks
• 1 green apple
• 1 cucumber
• Ginger
• Mint
• Lime

What You Do:

1. Add all the ingredients into your juicer, til you’ve got a nice, fresh glass of liquid sunshine in front of you.
2. Drink. Enjoy. Glow.

Juicing is such an amazing way to get all your nutrients in one hit. I highly recommend it, especially if you are detoxing and feel like you’re having trouble getting all your nutrients for the day.

Do you have a favorite green juice recipe? Share it with our beautiful tribe in the comments below.

Thank you so much for your awesome-ness in the comments and for always being so generous. You guys rock!