Noni Juice

  •   #1  
    CIRCLES's AvatarCIRCLES , 04-12-2004 05:05 PM
    Has anyone ever tried this or know anything about it? A friend swears by it. From what I was able to find on line it seems to be another on of those cure all things. Didnt find anything negative about it, was hoping someone had a little information about it.



    Thanks
  •   #2  
    Suzanne 3FC's AvatarSuzanne 3FC , 04-12-2004 05:35 PM
    I get the impression your gut instincts are warning you away from this. There's probably good reason! There are a ton of sites devoted to noni juice. Of course ALL of them sell it, so any information you find there will be with the purpose of making a sale. Noni juice is an MLM product, which means the main purpose of the product is to make money.

    The resident nutritionist with BellaOnline has written a very helpful article on noni juice.
    http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art4883.asp
    and
    http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art5214.asp

    Apparently, noni juice is mostly sugar water.
  •   #3  
    MrsJim's AvatarMrsJim , 04-12-2004 06:13 PM
    Good one Suzanne!
    Here's another...

    http://www.quackwatch.org/04Consumer...News/noni.html

    Quote:
    Attorneys General Curb Claims for "Tahitian Noni"

    On August 26, 1998, the Attorneys General of Arizona, California, New Jersey, and Texas announced a multi-state settlement with Morinda, Inc., a multilevel company headquartered in Linden, Utah. The states had charged that Morinda had made unsubstantiated claims in consumer testimonials and other promotional material that its "Tahitian Noni" juice could treat, cure or prevent numerous diseases, including diabetes, depression, hemorrhoids and arthritis. Such claims rendered the beverage an unapproved new drug under state and federal food and drug laws and should not have been sold until it received approval. Under the terms of the agreement, Morinda must:

    No longer make drug claims, or claims that the product can cure, treat, or prevent any disease until "Tahitian Noni" is approved and cleared for those uses by the U.S. Food and Drug Adminstration.
    Not make any other claims, whether health claims or others, regarding the benefits of "Tahitian Noni" unless such claims are true and the company can substantiate the claim by reliable scientific evidence.
    Not use testimonials which imply that the advertised claimed results are the typical or ordinary experience of consumers in actual conditions of use, unless Morinda possesses and relies upon adequate substantiation that the results are typical or ordinary.
    In addition, Morinda must refund to any consumer who requests a refund in writing, the full purchase price paid for the product. The agreement also calls for Morinda to pay $100,000 for investigative costs.


    Regulatory Action in Finland
    Press Release: November 23/30, 1998
    Temporary ban on sales of NONI fruit juice from Tahiti
    In its decision (E 27/216/98) of November 26, 1998, the National Food Administration has banned the importation, exportation, trade stocking, offering and all other supplying, of the fruit juice marketed under the name of NONI until such time as the brochure which must be supplied in conjunction with sales, and other information, has been corrected in accordance with the Food Act and the regulations legislated on the basis of this Act.

    NONI fruit juice is sold throughout Finland by means of network marketing, and in conjunction with sales of the product claims associated with health, and pharmaceutical information on the foodstuff, are systematically presented which are prohibited under section 6 of the Food Act. In the material in the brochure connected with sales, reference is made to the effects of the product in regard to the prevention of illnesses, their treatment and cure by, among things, listing the complaints that NONI has been shown to relieve. Among the complaints listed are HIV, cancer, diabetes, rheumatism, blood pressure, cholesterol, psoriasis, allergies, heart rhythm abnormality, chronic inflammation, and aching joints. To prevent any possible side-effects of NONI fruit juice, the brochure even urges people to reduce the dosage of prescription medicines. The information given in the brochure in conjunction with marketing, and other information, is also to be considered misleading to the consumer, since an impression is given of the nature of the product and its properties leading one to believe that the product is a medicine, not a food.

    In addition to the brochure material contravening the Food Act regulations, the product contains a food ingredient from a plant (Morinda citrifolia) the utilization of which in the EU has thus far been extremely slight. Thus, it is possible that the ingredient is a novel food complying with the Novel Food Regulation (258/1997) which should have been brought on to the markets in a way compliant with stipulated procedures.

    After careful deliberation, the National Food Administration has decided that protecting the consumers' health and economy from misleading marketing calls for immediate steps to be taken in regard to banning the sale, marketing and importation of this product.

    For the lifting of the temporary ban the National Food Administration orders the importers, vendors and marketers responsible for the product to rectify the brochures and other information used for marketing and selling so that these no longer portray health effects contrary to the Food Act regulations according to which the product would have effects preventing, treating or curing illnesses. For supervising adherence to the regulations, information is required to be supplied to the National Food Administration on entrepreneurs and persons acting as network vendors, marketers and importers for the product. The National Food Administration also directs the parties responsible to determine whether the product is a novel foodstuff compliant with the Novel Foodstuff Regulation.

    Further information:

    Chief Inspector Jorma Pitkänen, National Food Administration, tel. 358-(0)9 7726 7620
    Barrister Hanna Brotherus, National Food Administration, tel. 358-(0)9 7726 7603
    Manager Kalevi Salminen, National Food Administration, tel. 358-(0)9 7726 7600
    Basically, if it sounds too good...then it generally is a bunch of crap.
  •   #4  
    stef's Avatarstef , 04-12-2004 06:54 PM
    Here's another from www.supplementwatch.com - I particulalry like the entry under "Theory"


    Supplement Noni (Morinda citrifolia)

    Description Noni (Morinda citrifolia), is also known as Tahitian Noni and Indian mulberry. The plant is a small tree found in the Pacific islands and Polynesia. The fruit of the Noni tree is foul-smelling and tasting and resembles a cross between a warty avocado and a pitted mango (not a pretty sight). Noni fruit passes thru several stages of ripening, where it turns from green to yellow to white - and is generally regarded as becoming more disgusting with each stage of ripeness.

    Claims You name it - they claim it…
    · "Miracle cure" for Arthritis, Infections, Cancer, Chronic Fatigue, Diabetes, Heart Disease, Digestive disturbances, Inflammation, and many others.

    Theory Only if you were starving to death, would you force yourself to eat noni fruit. Because of its foul odor and bitter taste, nobody except the most desperate Polynesians would force themselves to consume noni (and only during times of famine or widespread sickness). Traditional Polynesian healers ("medicine men") have reportedly used noni fruit for treating everything from constipation to ankle sprains - and there are accounts in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) of noni roots being effective for "strengthening" the digestive system.

    Scientific Support Despite the fact that noni has been heavily promoted by multi-level marketing companies for virtually every ailment under the sun, there is no convincing evidence that it is has any beneficial effects for any specific condition. Studies do exist, however, to show that noni juice provides a small measure of antioxidant activity (but so do the juices of almost all fruits) and even a few unique polysaccharide compounds that may help immune system function - so these findings may lend a shred of credence to common claims of anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer effects.

    Safety Noni is not associated with any adverse side effects. Commercial preparations are extensively processed to remove and/or mask the horrendous taste and smell of the native noni fruit, so there is probably more of a safety concern from the added flavors, colors and sweeteners in these concoctions than from the actual noni fruit.

    Value Some people will always assign a high mystical value to bad-tasting things from far-off islands - and this is certainly the case with noni juice. Our advice, if you want to drink something that is truly good for you, is to try some orange juice (more antioxidants than noni plus potassium that noni lacks), a V-8 (chock full of carotenoids) or even some apple juice (also packed with antioxidants).

    Dosage Commercial noni products are available as juice, tablets and capsules - but there are no scientifically accepted dosage levels for these products. The juices tend to be the most heavily promoted (hyped as cure-alls) with typical dosage recommendations in the range of 4-6 ounces per day. Concentrated forms of the juice may be recommended in lower daily doses of 1-2 tablespoons.

    References 1. Salleh MN, Runnie I, Roach PD, Mohamed S, Abeywardena MY. Inhibition of Low-Density Lipoprotein Oxidation and Up-Regulation of Low-Density Lipoprotein Receptor in HepG2 Cells by Tropical Plant Extracts. J Agric Food Chem. 2002 Jun 19;50(13):3693-7.
    2. Wang MY, Su C. Cancer preventive effect of Morinda citrifolia (Noni). Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2001 Dec;952:161-8.
    3. Liu G, Bode A, Ma WY, Sang S, Ho CT, Dong Z. Two novel glycosides from the fruits of Morinda citrifolia (noni) inhibit AP-1 transactivation and cell transformation in the mouse epidermal JB6 cell line. Cancer Res. 2001 Aug 1;61(15):5749-56.
    4. Suarez-Almazor ME, Kendall CJ, Dorgan M. Surfing the Net--information on the World Wide Web for persons with arthritis: patient empowerment or patient deceit? J Rheumatol. 2001 Jan;28(1):185-91.
    5. Wang M, Kikuzaki H, Jin Y, Nakatani N, Zhu N, Csiszar K, Boyd C, Rosen RT, Ghai G, Ho CT. Novel glycosides from noni (Morinda citrifolia). J Nat Prod. 2000 Aug;63(8):1182-3.
    6. Mueller BA, Scott MK, Sowinski KM, Prag KA. Noni juice (Morinda citrifolia): hidden potential for hyperkalemia? Am J Kidney Dis. 2000 Feb;35(2):310-2.
    7. Wang M, Kikuzaki H, Csiszar K, Boyd CD, Maunakea A, Fong SF, Ghai G, Rosen RT, Nakatani N, Ho CT. Novel trisaccharide fatty acid ester identified from the fruits of Morinda citrifolia (Noni). J Agric Food Chem. 1999 Dec;47(12):4880-2.
    8. Hirazumi A, Furusawa E. An immunomodulatory polysaccharide-rich substance from the fruit juice of Morinda citrifolia (noni) with antitumour activity. Phytother Res. 1999 Aug;13(5):380-7.
    9. Hirazumi A, Furusawa E, Chou SC, Hokama Y. Immunomodulation contributes to the anticancer activity of morinda citrifolia (noni) fruit juice. Proc West Pharmacol Soc. 1996;39:7-9.
    10. Hirazumi A, Furusawa E, Chou SC, Hokama Y. Anticancer activity of Morinda citrifolia (noni) on intraperitoneally implanted Lewis lung carcinoma in syngeneic mice. Proc West Pharmacol Soc. 1994;37:145-6.
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