? Bladder wrack
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Protista Division: Heterokontophyta Class: Phaeophyceae Order: Fucales Family: Fucaceae Genus: Fucus Species: F. vesiculosus
Binomial name
Fucus vesiculosus L.

Bladder wrack (Fucus vesiculosus) is a seaweed found on the coasts of the North Sea, the western Baltic Sea, and the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It was the original source of iodine, discovered in 1812, and was used extensively to treat goitre, a swelling of the thyroid gland related to iodine deficiency. In the 1860s, it was claimed that bladder wrack, as a thyroid stimulant, could counter obesity by increasing the metabolic rate and, since then, it has been featured in numerous weight-loss remedies. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1944x2592, 2823 KB)Knotted Wrack on Menai Strait shore line, Jan 2005 Author: User:Velela. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms (as opposed to folk taxonomy). ... Typical phyla Rhodophyta (red algae) Chromista Heterokontophyta (heterokonts) Haptophyta Cryptophyta (cryptomonads) Alveolates Pyrrhophyta (dinoflagellates) Apicomplexa Ciliophora (ciliates) Excavates Euglenozoa Percolozoa Metamonada Rhizaria Radiolaria Foraminifera Cercozoa Amoebozoa Choanozoa Many others; classification varies The Kingdom Protista or Protoctista is one of the commonly recognized biological kingdoms, including all the eukaryotes except for... Typical classes Colored groups Chrysophyceae (golden algae) Synurophyceae Actinochrysophyceae (axodines) Pelagophyceae Phaeothamniophyceae Bacillariophyceae (diatoms) Raphidophyceae Eustigmatophyceae Xanthophyceae (yellow-green algae) Phaeophyceae (brown algae) Colorless groups Oomycetes (water moulds) Hypochytridiomycetes Bicosoecea Labyrinthulomycetes (slime nets) Opalinea Proteromonadea The heterokonts or stramenopiles are a major line of eukaryotes. ... Orders Ascoseirales Chordariales Cutleriales Desmarestiales Dictyosiphonales Dictyotales Ectocarpales Fucales Laminariales(kelps) Scytosiphonales Scytothamnales Sphacelariales Sporochnales Syringodermatales Tilopteridales The brown algae or phaeophytes are a large group of multicellular algae, including many notable seaweeds. ... Genera Ascophyllum Bifurvaria Carpophyllum Coccophora Cystophaera Cystosiera Durvillea Fucus Halidrys Himanthalia Hormosira Pelvetia Pelvetiopsis Phyllospora Sargassum Turbinaria Xaphophora Fucales is an order in the Phylum Phaeophyta or Brown algae. ... Genera Ascophyllum Fucus Hesperophycus Pelvetia Pelvetiopsis Silvetia Xiphophora Fucaceae are a family of brown algae. ... Species F. serratus F. vesiculosus Fucus is a genus of seaweed that lives in the intertidal zones of rocky shores. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ... Carolus Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as , (May 23, 1707 – January 10, 1778), was a Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist[1] who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of nomenclature. ... Seaweed-covered rocks in the UK Biologists, specifically Phycologists, consider seaweed to refer any of a large number of marine benthic algae that are multicellular, macrothallic, and thus differentiated from most algae that tend to be microscopic in size [1]. Seaweeds are usually types of brown or red algae that... The North Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean, located between the coasts of Norway and Denmark in the east, the coast of the British Isles in the west, and the German, Dutch, Belgian and French coasts in the south. ... Map of the Baltic Sea. ... The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest ocean, covering approximately one-fifth of the earths surface. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iodine, I, 53 Chemical series halogens Group, Period, Block 17, 5, p Appearance violet-dark gray, lustrous Atomic mass 126. ... 1812 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... A goitre (or goiter) (Latin struma), also called a bronchocele, is a swelling in the neck (just below adams apple or larynx) due to an enlarged thyroid gland. ... The thyroid gland and its relations In anatomy, the thyroid (IPA θaɪɹoɪd) is an endocrine gland. ... // Events and trends Technology The First Transcontinental Railroad in the United States is built in the six year period between 1863 and 1869. ... A stimulant is a drug that increases the activity of the sympathetic nervous system and produces a sense of euphoria or the feeling of being more awake. ... Santorio Santorio (1561-1636) in his steelyard balance, from Ars de statica medecina, first published 1614 Metabolism (from μεταβολισμος(metavallo), the Greek word for change), in the most general sense, is the ingestion and breakdown of complex compounds, coupled with the liberation of energy, and the consequent generation of waste...

Bladder wrack is also known by the names black tang, rockweed, bladder Fucus, seawrack, sea oak, black tany, cut weed, and rock wrack. Species F. serratus F. vesiculosus Fucus is a genus of seaweed that lives in the intertidal zones of rocky shores. ...

Description

Fucus vesiculosus is a very variable alga. It can grow to 60 cm long and is be easily recognised by the small air vesicles which occur in pairs on either side of a central midrib running along the centre of the strap-like frond. Ascophyllum nodosum also has air vesicles, however they are not in pairs but in series along a frond which is not flattened and without a midrib. Both are common species on most shores of the British Isles. A centimetre (US: centimeter) is a factor of the SI unit of length: there are one hundred centimeters in the base unit of measure, the metre. ... Binomial name Ascophyllum nodosum (L.) Le Jolis Knotted wrack (Ascophyllum nodosum (Linnaeus) Le Jolis) is a large, common, brown, edible seaweed of the northern Atlantic Ocean. ...

Medical and nutritional uses

A common food in Japan, it is used as an additive and flavoring in various food products in Europe. Bladder wrack is commonly found as a component of kelp tablets or powders used as nutritional supplements. It is sometimes loosely called kelp, but that term technically refers to a different seaweed. World map showing Europe Political map Europe is one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europes borders. ... Families Alariaceae Chordaceae Laminariaceae Lessoniaceae Phyllariaceae Pseudochordaceae Kelp are large seaweeds, belonging to the brown algae and classified in the order Laminariales. ... In the United States, a dietary supplement is defined under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 as a product taken by the mouth that contains a dietary ingredient that is intended as a supplement to the diet. ...

Close-up of bladder wrack's eponymous vesicles

Primary chemical constituents of this plant include mucilage, algin, mannitol, beta-carotene, zeaxanthin, iodine, bromine, potassium, volatile oils, and many other minerals. The main use of bladder wrack (and other types of seaweed) in herbal medicine is as a source of iodine, an essential nutrient for the thyroid gland. Bladder wrack has proved most useful in the treatment of underactive thyroid glands (hypothyroidism) and goitre. Through the regulation of thyroid function, there is an improvement in all the associated symptoms. Where obesity is associated with thyroid trouble, this herb may be very helpful in reducing the excess weight. It has a reputation in helping the relief of rheumatism and rheumatoid arthritis, both used internally and as an external application upon inflamed joints. A chemical constituent of bladder wrack called alginic acid swells upon contact with water; when taken orally, it forms a type of "seal" at the top of the stomach, and for this reason is used in several over-the-counter preparations for heartburn. The same constituent gives bladder wrack laxative properties as well. Other proposed uses of bladder wrack include treating atherosclerosis and strengthening immunity, although there is no scientific evidence at present that it works for these purposes. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 894 KB)Close-up of bladder wrack, Fucus vesiculosus, washed up on Porth Trecastell, Anglesey, Wales. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 894 KB)Close-up of bladder wrack, Fucus vesiculosus, washed up on Porth Trecastell, Anglesey, Wales. ... Mucilage is a thick gluey substance, often produced by plants. ... Mannitol or hexane-1,2,3,4,5,6-hexol (C6H8(OH)6) is an osmotic diuretic agent and a weak renal vasodilator. ... Carotene is a terpene, an orange photosynthetic pigment, important for photosynthesis. ... Zeaxanthin is one of the two carotenoids contained within the retina. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iodine, I, 53 Chemical series halogens Group, Period, Block 17, 5, p Appearance violet-dark gray, lustrous Atomic mass 126. ... General Name, Symbol, Number bromine, Br, 35 Chemical series halogens Group, Period, Block 17, 4, p Appearance gas/liquid: red-brown solid: metallic luster Atomic mass 79. ... General Name, Symbol, Number potassium, K, 19 Chemical series alkali metals Group, Period, Block 1, 4, s Appearance silvery white Atomic mass 39. ... Minerals are natural compounds formed through geological processes. ... Rheumatism or Rheumatic disorder is a non-specific term for medical problems affecting the heart, bones, joints, kidney, skin and lung. ... Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, inflammatory autoimmune disorder that causes the immune system to attack the joints. ... Alginic acid (algine, alginate) is a viscous gum that is abundant in the cell walls of brown algae. ... A laxative is a preparation used for encouraging defecation, or the expulsion of feces. ... In a medical sense, immunity is a state of having sufficient biological defenses to avoid infection, disease, or other unwanted biological invasion. ...

Bladder wrack should not be used in cases of hyperthyroidism or cardiac problems, or during pregnancy and lactation. Excessive dosage (many times the recommended dosage) may lead to hyperthyroidism, tremor, increased pulse rate and elevated blood pressure. Hyperthyroidism (or overactive thyroid gland) is the clinical syndrome caused by an excess of circulating free thyroxine (T4) or free triiodothyronine (T3), or both. ... Pregnancy is the carrying of one or more embryos or fetuses by female mammals, including humans, inside their bodies. ... Kittens nursing Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands, the process of providing that milk to the young, and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young. ... For other uses, see Tremor (disambiguation). ... In medicine, a persons pulse is the throbbing of a persons arteries as an effect of their heart beat, which can be felt at the wrist and other places. ... Blood pressure is the pressure exerted by the blood on the walls of the blood vessels. ...