by Dan-N on November 19, 2009
We sure like to put the word “super” in front of anything in this industry. Superfoods, SuperFruits, SuperSize …whoops - that one is for the fast food industry! Around this time of year you hear a lot of talk about what will be the top SuperFood of 2010. Of course, that question would be easier to answer if we could all agree on a definition for superfoods.
What is a SuperFood Anyway?
Here is how Wikipedia defines a SuperFood -
Superfood is a term sometimes used to describe food with high phytonutrient content that may confer health benefits as a result.
That clears it all up, right? No, such a broad definition of SuperFood would make almost any fruit, by definition a SuperFood. When every fruit can fall into a definition, that definition loses any significance. If every fruit is a superfood or superfruit, what makes one fruit more super than the next???
How Does the FDA Define SuperFoods and SuperFruits
They don’t! It is important to understand that there is no legal definition of SuperFoods or SuperFruits. There is no science to apply to a food and determine if it is a super food. As far as the FDA is concerned, all this talk about Superfoods is just marketing.
What About Acai, Muscadines, Resveratrol, Noni, etc. - I thought they were SuperFoods?
We do believe that Muscadine Grapes, Acai Berries and Resveratrol all have super nutritional profiles and some impressive health benefits. So, it seems fair to call these elite fruits SuperFoods - and almost everyone does. However, if you twist our arm and ask us what scientific formula we use to determine if a food makes it to SuperFood status - we have a one word answer - Oprah!
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by Dan-N on October 23, 2009
Call it H1N1, call it Swine Flu - call it whatever you like but it looks like we are heading for a very bad flu season this year. While there is lots of talk in the media about treatment, vaccines and shortages - there is no shortage of marketing companies trying to prey on your fear!
Swine Flu - Sure We Have A Cure for That!
You know those Apple iPhone commercials that say “We have an app for that” - it feels like some of these marketing companies have the same approach for any disease or illness you may have. The only difference is they replace the word “app” with “cure”. I can just hear them saying - “Swine Flu, sure we have a cure for that”
The FDA and FTC Get Nasty With their Swine Flu Hall of Shame
We have knocked the FDA and FTC in the past for being very slow to shut down the numerous acai scams and the resveratrol scams . So, we now need to give credit, where credit is due. The FDA and FTC are moving quickly to make sure that companies do not take advantage of people’s fears when it comes to H1N1 or Swine Flu. The FDA has sent hundreds of warning letters and even created a searchable, public online database of all the products that have received warnings from the FDA.
Click Here for the FDA Database of Products that may be fraudulently claiming to help with Swine Flu
You see they have them all - gloves, masks, air purifiers, shampoo and of course supplements.
So, before you waste your money on some product that claims to help with swine flu - you might want to do a quick search on the FDA site.
Dr. Andrew Weil caught in the wide FDA Swine Flu Net
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by Dan-N on October 6, 2009
Let’s not beat around the bush here. It is a sunny Tuesday morning so what better time than to answer this simple question - Can we be healthy and live to be 150?
It used to be even asking this question moved you into the realm of fringe, sci-fi thinkers. However, when the New York Times starts writing about this, you know it has gone mainstream…
“Meanwhile, it is a pleasant and not wholly unfounded thought that, just possibly, a single drug might combat every degenerative disease of Western civilization.”
- Quest for Long Life Gains Scientific Respect, New York Times 9/28/09
Wow, you have to admit that is a pretty strong comment from a New York Times Science writer.
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by Dan-N on September 28, 2009
We have just returned from 4 days at the Natural Products Expo East (NPEE) show in Boston. What is the Natural Products Expo East you ask…
NPEE is a trade show that showcases all the latest products in the Natural and Organic world. Everything from supplements, foods and personal care items - if it is a natural product, you can be pretty sure it will be at NPEE. In all, more than 21,000 industry members, including retailers, journalists, pioneers and entrepreneurs, explored more than 1500 booths to find the leading natural products of tomorrow.
What Were the New Trends in Natural?
By walking the aisles and attending all the educational seminars we discovered two things. First, we learned about new products and research in the world of supplements and foods. Second, we learned that walking and talking to over 1500 vendors is exhausting! Since you probably do not care much about our second discovery, we will focus on the first.
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