From: Sal De Lello <saldel@erols.com>

Subject: Re: Noni, traditional plant juice in Tahiti: Any experience?

> From: Mary Carol Williams <mcwms@lanl.gov>

> Subject: Noni

>

> I read a newsletter about "Noni", a plant juice used for years in

> Tahiti for its medicinal value. The testimonials from medical professionals

> and users sounded too good to be true. It helped pain, cancer, MS,

> arthritis,carpel tunnel syndrome..... Anyone on the list have experience with

> this magical liquid?

>

> Mary Carol Williams

> ESH-3/CIC-18

> MS B-252

> Los Alamos National Laboratory

> Los Alamos, NM 87545

> 505-665-5880/ fax 505-665-3812

> e-mail mcwms@lanl.gov

Dear Mary:

Tahitian Noni juice is produced by Morinda, a start up MLM. Other MLM

companies have picked up on this product because of its hype value. The

Morinda product is good tasting and supplies a high quantity of selected

micro-nutrients. It is a "super-food" like blue-green algae, and as such

is very effective when the subject has poor dietary nutrition and has

major deficiencies among those provided by the super food. However, no

"super food" provides optimal overall nutrition that can benefit the

masses.

There are supplement manufactures like USANA, which provide complete and

systematic orthomolecular nutrition and broad based high potency

anti-oxidants and free radical scavengers.

The health claims by USANA and such companies are similar since the

illnesses described in your e-mail are often caused or exacerbated by

one or more micro-nutrient deficiencies or by excessive free radical

damage. However, the scope of individuals benefited by Noni, or any

single super food, are anecdotal and will be much smaller than those

obtaining the same or greater benefit from broad based and balanced

product lines like USANA or any other high quality balanced product

line.

To my knowledge there are no studies to prove any claims about Noni

juice and I have not been able to obtain a nutrient analysis from any

company promoting the product. The newsletter you read may simply be

promotional material by an independent distributor. Any health claims

should be verified through the manufacturer since they will most likely

be more conservative due to FDA regulations about such health claims.

The literature is filled with studies showing the tremendous affects

that proper nutrition has on degenerative disease. Consequently, the

complete and balanced approach taken by companies like USANA can be

documented by the literature which demonstrates the synergetic effective

produced in such cases. However, most medical doctors have no training

in nutrition or knowledge of nutritional advancement of the past 5 years

and dietary "authorities" refuse to acknowledge the deterioration in the

nutritional quality of the food supply, or the fact that lifestyle and

environmental factors have increased free radical exposure far beyond

that which any food combination can protect against.

Hence, while some people will attain a true beneficial effect from Noni

or other "super foods", the highest correlation will most likely be

between mirco-nutrients deficiencies and the super foods that meet same,

rather than any specific disease and the super food. There is no

panacea. Complete and balanced nutrition is the answer.

Sal De Lello

.