by Dan-N on June 18, 2010
For the last 2 years we have written about various Acai Berry Scams. Look in our Acai Scams category and we have over 25 posts on the various acai scams on the market. Free Trial Offers, magic acai pills that let a 300 pound person lose 310 pounds overnight, fake news journalist like Julia Miller – we have covered it all.
What is the Point of Taking Acai Anyway?
At times it can seem like Acai is just an over hyped supplement that should be avoided. However, if you get beyond the ridiculous weight loss claims and free trial offers you start to get to the real benefits of the Acai Berry – it is one of the highest antioxidant fruits in the world. Great you say, but who are we to say what fruits have the highest antioxidants? Well, it is not us saying it – it is the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)!
The USDA List of ORAC Values – New and Improved!
In May 2010 the USDA released the “USDA Database for the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) of Selected Foods, Release 2″. Pretty sexy title huh? Here is link to the whole report -
USDA 2010 ORAC List
ORAC is a way to measure the antioxidant capacity of foods. If you want to learn more, you can read our ORAC Article, but what you really need to know is the higher the ORAC value the more antioxidants in the food. When the USDA first released this report in November of 2007 they did not test Acai, but now with Release 2 – Acai is finally included.
No, that Acai ORAC Value is Not a Typo…
Let’s take a look at some well known fruits and their ORAC value…
- A nice Golden Delicious Apple comes in at 2,670 ORAC/100 grams
- Blueberries – a summertime favorite is at 4,669 ORAC/100 grams
- Cranberries, that healthy treat tests out at an impressive 9,090 ORAC/100 grams
- Wild Blueberries get a wildly high score of 9,621 ORAC/100 grams
- Acai Berry Freeze Dried Powder – Astronomical score of 102,700 ORAC/100 grams
There is no typo or misplaced decimal point – Acai Berry Freeze Dried Powder really has over 10x more antioxidants that wild blueberries (previous considered one of the highest antioxidant fruits in the world)!
Shop Carefully and Acai Berry Really Can Be a Tremendous Addition to Your Diet
The acai that is shown in the USDA report is freeze dried Acai made from the skin and pulp of Acai Berries. If you want to enjoy the antioxidant benefits of Acai, you need to go with a supplement that only uses freeze dried Acai powder. Forget the “free trial” deals and “magic weight loss acai pills” – they all use spray dried Acai which has less antioxidants than an apple. You want to go with brands like the Perfect Acai, Sambazon and Amazon Thunder – all which state that they only use Organic Freeze Dried Acai Berry Powder.
by Dan-N on June 10, 2010
We have all seen the commercials for Ivory Soap – 99.44% Pure! I do wonder what the remaining .56% is in that bar of soap, but 99.44% pure seems about as pure as you could get.
Resveratrol Supplement tests out at 99.7% Pure – Take That Ivory Soap!
We have talked a good deal about resveratrol supplements on this blog and our opinion on them is pretty clear. If you want to try a resveratrol supplement, you need to make sure it is made with 99% Trans-Resveratrol and it is free of emodin. Emodin is a nasty little substance found in many resveratrol supplements that can lead to side effects like an upset stomach and diarrhea.
The folks at Perfect Supplements, the makers of the Perfect ResGrape Resveratrol just sent us these test results…
Click To See ResGrape-Resveratrol-Analysis
The results show that the Trans-Resveratrol content is actually 99.7% – the highest level we have ever seen in a resveratrol supplement. In addition, there is no emodin in the product.
Don’t Fall For the Old Supplement Industry Bait and Switch
Often you will find some impressive studies and potential health benefits surrounding an ingredient. For example, there is a lot of excitement about the anti-aging potential of resveratrol. Supplement companies will draw you in by talking about all the health benefits of resveratrol, but they will then distract you to the point where you forget to really determine if what they are selling you is pure resveratrol. Remember, it does not matter if resveratrol has strong health benefits if you what you ending buying is not pure resveratrol in the first place. Don’t put the cart before the horse – first determine if you can get pure resveratrol and then decide if the potential health benefits are worthwhile.
Why You Need to See Extensive Testing for the Supplements You Buy
The important thing about the above test is that it was done by Perfect Supplements, the manufacturer of the Perfect ResGrape. The company that supplied them with the resveratrol provided a document that said the resveratrol was 99% pure, but Perfect Supplements took the extra step of re-testing the resveratrol to make sure it was pure and free of emodin. This may not sound like a big deal, but it is rarely done in the supplement industry and really a very important check.
Given that supplements do not need to be tested by the FDA before coming to market, it is very important that before you purchase any supplements you demand to see extensive testing. Do not settle for tests from the ingredient supplier, demand to see independent tests that the manufacturer has done once they receive the ingredient.
Perfect Supplements is the leading way in quality testing when it comes to resveratrol supplements. In addition to the resveratrol test shown above, they have also tested their ResGrape product for ORAC antioxidant levels -
Click Here for Perfect ResGrape ORAC Results
We believe that all supplement companies should follow the lead of Perfect Supplements (and the handful of other companies that do full testing) and provide full and transparent testing results. Yes, it cost the companies some money to run these tests, but as consumers let’s let them know that we will not buy until we see the test results. Come on, say it with me… Show Me the Tests, Show Me the Tests…
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