Acai Berry Juice

O

Orleander

OH JOY!!!!
Valued Senior Member
My husband and I have a friend who just quit his engineering job to get rich selling Mona Vie Acai berry juice. Its $45 a bottle. :wallbang:

Is there any proof this berry is good for you?
And why do seemingly smart people get sucked into things like this? They now have no insurance, no steady paycheck, and in this economy, who can afford $45 for a botle of juice?
 
I've never even heard of the Acai berry. What kind of berry is it? I'll have to go look that up.
 
I know a woman with serious pain issues who's always used RX pain killers. She is crazy about this stuff, says it really works for her.

I say it's gotta be better eating pills like candy day in and day out. Could be wrong, though.
 
clusteringflux said:
<snip> She is crazy... <snip>
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You could have stopped there. She probably liked Noni juice too... or any placebo that cost a ton of money and provided her with the attention of a sales person or doctor for long enough to feed her needs. Just like all the other Fibromyalgia sufferers... it's done wonders. Maybe because it's all in their head, or at least could be corrected with diet and exercises anyway. The vast majority of the Acai berry providers put other nutrients and vitamins in their juice and they are finally getting enough nutrition. Add exercises to that and they'd probably be set for life. I felt pretty sick and pained for a while a few years ago, and we realized it was simply a Vitamin D deficiency and I've felt great ever since we added supplements.

Of course, a balanced diet, a trip to the dietitian for a deficiency check and supplements for the vitamin deficiencies and a walk around the block would probably do the same thing.
 
Acai is a Brazilian fruit. It's very popular down there. We just eat huge bowls of acai blended with granola, oats, banana, whatever you want to put in it. It's supposed to be really good for you, but all fruits are. But just like any other fruit, they are no cure to anything. They are supposed to be a part of a balanced diet.
It's dirt cheap over there, it's absurd how much they charge you for it up here.
 
Thanks varda!
Do you peel it or just mash it up? Can you eat the seed (liek a raspberry) or does it have to be removed?

And this berry was touted on Oprah, so its everywhere now.
 
Liebling said:
You could have stopped there. She probably liked Noni juice too... or any placebo that cost a ton of money and provided her with the attention of a sales person or doctor for long enough to feed her needs. Just like all the other Fibromyalgia sufferers... it's done wonders. Maybe because it's all in their head, or at least could be corrected with diet and exercises anyway.
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You're claiming Fibromyalgia isn't real then?
 
Until today I never heard of it but:

"Claims

Marketers of this product make claims that it provides increased energy levels, improved sexual performance, improved digestion, sleep aid, detoxification, high fiber content, improved skin appearance, improved heart health, reversal of diabetes and other chronic illnesses, and reduction of cholesterol levels as well as expanding size of manhood and increasing sexual virility and sexual attractiveness to women, however, there are no studies backing up any of these claims at this time."

So could your friend send me a couple of pounds over here?
 
Reality check:

http://longevity.about.com/od/antiagingfoods/a/acai_aging.htm

" It is true that the acai berry has about 10 times the antioxidants of grapes and twice the antioxidants of blueberries, but that is not enough nutritional punch for all the claims above. There is also some amount of omega-3s in the acai berry as well as a good amount of vitamins. There was one study by the University of Florida where an acai berry extract slowed the growth of leukemia cells (not proven in the human body, but in a laboratory setting)."

"A week’s supply of acai berry juice will cost you about $40 (over $2,000 a year). For that much money, there are a lot of more proven things you can do to increase your health. Acai juice is often sold by individuals in a “networking marketing” type arrangement. You may find yourself cornered by a wayward cousin or friend who is selling this juice. Don’t feel pressured into buying it. None of the claims have been evaluated by the FDA and there is very little research on acai berry juice and health.

At best, acai berry juice is a quick and convenient substitute for all the other fruits that you should be eating anyway. "

Also:

http://www.health-report.co.uk/acai.htm#warning
 
"I just know I'm gonna get rich off of this scheme, and quick!" Homer Simpson

Acai berries, or goji berries, or chinese gooseberries, are nothing special. They have a fair amount of vitamins and antioxidants. This is just like the dark chocolate or red wine or cranberry or green tea trend.

And if this is like the green tea trend, I'm going to spend $50 on diet pills, $35 on skin products, and I'm still going to have blackheads and ten lbs. I can't lose.
 
darksidZz said:
You're claiming Fibromyalgia isn't real then?
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I didn't say that. What I said was that other things may fix the symptoms of Fibromyalgia better than a few ounces of Acai berry juice.

I am extremely skeptical of Fibromyalgia, and I think that it's the result of not taking better care of yourself over the years and being generally unhealthy. There are no tests and no way of measuring this supposed disease, only a guess on the symptoms that women describe... Here are some interesting things about it;

http://www.cdc.gov/ARTHRITIS/arthritis/fibromyalgia.htm said:
Fibromyalgia is a disorder of unknown etiology characterized by widespread pain, abnormal pain processing, sleep disturbance, fatigue and often psychological distress. People with fibromyalgia may also have other symptoms; such as,
Morning stiffness
Tingling or numbness in hands and feet
Headaches, including migraines
Irritable bowel syndrome
Problems with thinking and memory (sometimes called "fibro fog")
Painful menstrual periods and other pain syndromes
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It's more a brain/nerve processing disorder than it is an actual disease.

http://www.fibromyalgia-symptoms.org/Fibromyalgia-Research.html

It's not genetic, or contagious. It's usually caused by a traumatic event or period of mental illness, and 90% of the suffers are middle aged women. The majority of the women are mild to grossly overweight and do not lead active lifestyles. A lot of patients who are seen by a dietitian, are treated for vitamin deficiencies and start on a routine exercise program see a drastic improvement in their symptoms.

So it's real, but it's still all in their heads.
 
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ah, like Amway.
So our friend wouldn't make money selling the juice, he would have made his money signing up people to sell juice.
 
Syzygys said:
Reality check:

http://longevity.about.com/od/antiagingfoods/a/acai_aging.htm

" It is true that the acai berry has about 10 times the antioxidants of grapes and twice the antioxidants of blueberries, but that is not enough nutritional punch for all the claims above. There is also some amount of omega-3s in the acai berry as well as a good amount of vitamins. There was one study by the University of Florida where an acai berry extract slowed the growth of leukemia cells (not proven in the human body, but in a laboratory setting)."

"A week’s supply of acai berry juice will cost you about $40 (over $2,000 a year). For that much money, there are a lot of more proven things you can do to increase your health. Acai juice is often sold by individuals in a “networking marketing” type arrangement. You may find yourself cornered by a wayward cousin or friend who is selling this juice. Don’t feel pressured into buying it. None of the claims have been evaluated by the FDA and there is very little research on acai berry juice and health.

At best, acai berry juice is a quick and convenient substitute for all the other fruits that you should be eating anyway. "

Also:

http://www.health-report.co.uk/acai.htm#warning
Click to expand...

It's not as convenient in the US as it is for us in Brazil. Over there you can just order a half kg serving at any restaurant and pay less than $2 for it.
 
Orleander said:
Thanks varda!
Do you peel it or just mash it up? Can you eat the seed (liek a raspberry) or does it have to be removed?

And this berry was touted on Oprah, so its everywhere now.
Click to expand...

We throw a whole bag of the little fruits in the blender, similar to what you would do if you wanted to make a blueberry smoothie.
 
darksidZz said:
Rio de Janeiro?! Hell varda tell me you don't live in paradise : spins : can I come join you and ur hubby up there for 1 month !
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I was born in Rio, lived in Sao Paulo my whole life, moved to Chicago last july.
 
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