The first country in the world to greet the New Year, each and every year, is Tonga in the South Pacific. That is because it lies very close to the 180th parallel (12 hours ahead of Greenwich). It sits directly on the International Dateline.

Tongans value their relationship with God and others. The whole first week of the New Year is called Uike Lotu (prayer week). Every day church congregations meet and pray morning and evening, and in between they feast together. Bands all over the island take their instruments, sometimes-homemade banjos, bass and guitars, and go from home to home hoping for some provisions in exchange for their music.

The people of Tonga take the New Year very seriously. When we lived in Tonga, at 12:01 the first minute of the New Year, people would start walking, trying to be the first to greet their relatives. You could see people walking all over the paths and roads looking for their kin. When they would meet, which may be halfway between their homes, they would embrace and uma (kiss). Then they would sit down and have some cookies and Milo before leaving to find other relatives. It was a time of meeting, praying and feasting. The older people would talk and reminisce about the old times and express their gratitude for being able to make it to the New Year.

The young men would construct fana pitu (bamboo cannons) and you could hear them all over the islands booming as their kerosene contents are lit. The boys will try hard to outdo each other in this cannon marathon. It sounds like a war is going on in the villages with all the cannons going off.

After greeting all the relatives, and a long nap, most everyone heads for the beach. January 1st is during the hottest time of the year in Tonga, unlike the white snowy Christmases others are used to. The whole family will go to the beach and have a swim. Food for the New Year is usually baked in an umu (underground oven), and may include lu pulu (beef, onion and coconut milk wrapped in taro leaves), root crops like taro, kumala (sweet potato) manioke (tapioca), and seafood. The men fix the umu, and every one enjoys it.

Not only the villagers celebrate the coming of the New Year. On January 1, 2009 members of the royal family as well as cabinet ministers and distinguished guests received an audience with his Majesty King George Tupou V shortly after midnight. Even the monarch tries to strengthen his relationships during the new years celebration.

Truly, the people of Tonga are proud that time begins in their country. Their monarch, Taufa'ahau Tupou IV fought for them to have this distinction so they would be the first in the world to offer up their prayers in the New Year. They even have a hotel called the International Dateline Hotel.

For centuries all around the globe, seaweed has been used for its immense health benefits. Of the many varieties found internationally, one in particular has gained much favor and currency with health gurus and dietitians. This particular seaweed strain is called limu moui, and it hails from the exotic South Pacific island of Tonga.

Considered a “superfood” by many nutritionists, the plant contains a storehouse of minerals and vitamins that supplant your body’s daily needs, essential amino acids and polysaccharides to boost immune system function, and polyphenols to assist the body in defending against harmful free radicals. Many other seaweeds offer similar health benefits, but this particular strain is set apart and praised for one particular asset that it has in abundance.

This notable characteristic is the presence of a substance called fucoidan, a sulfated polysaccharide. Stripped of confusing scientific jargon, fucoidan is merely a chemical compound found within the cell walls of Tongan seaweed. Certain leading pharmaceutical studies have conducted preliminary data on fucoidan that shows great potential boons for the health industry.

Currently, it has been shown to have possible antitumor effects as well as neuroprotective benefits. There is much research that remains to be done in human application, but the present groundbreaking data shows that the plant has a lot of potential for good.

One pharmaceutical company quoted that their initial research shows that the potential uses of the chemicals found in limu moui are wide in range and varied. They include combating allergies, bacterial infections, hypertension, immunostimulation, inflammation, and defense against viral infection.

Beyond the research that is being carried out right now by billion dollar companies, there is proof in the location of origin that the fucoidan-rich plant was found. The island of Tonga has been a place of great scientific curiosity for many years due to the frequency of very old (one hundred years and over!), very healthy individuals within the Tongan community. There is also a lesser frequency of disease and other health-related problems within the Tongan population as compared to similarly structured, populated, and environmentally-similar islands.

What sets Tonga’s population apart from the rest is their frequent consumption of their particular brown sea plant, a diet staple on the island. Scientific studies on the population have yielded strong correlation between the high presence of limu moui and fucoidan–among the Tongan seaweed’s other varied benefits–and the ubiquitous health of the Tongan population.

The particular characteristics of the Tongan sea-plant are unique compared to the benefits of other seaweeds specifically because it is germane to Tonga. A substantial amount of the nutrients that are found within the plant are there because of how the plant absorbs them from the water. However, it can just as easily absorb toxins and pollution that are present in water as it can easily absorb nutrients. It does not do this because of its location in the pristine, virginal waters of Tonga’s surrounding sea. The waters there have been untouched by the ravages of industry and mass manufacturing and so retains its strong natural powers.

The health benefits of limu moui are numerous and documented. Though these certainly aren’t some kind of panacea–and no one substance should be treated or touted as a miracle cure-all– they are healthy foods that are an asset when integrated into anyone person’s diet and health.