Mangosteen juice is the new “it” cure for just about everything from diabetes and panic attacks to cancer. You will find similar claims with goji berry juice, noni fruit juice and aloe vera juice. If you believe everything you read, you will find that mangosteen juice can heal tumors, help you drop those stubborn pounds, soothe arthritis, kill bacteria, etc… Hopefully you don’t believer everything you read.
If you have heard these health claims made by mangosteen juice (and other) vendors, you have likely wondered if it is a scam. While mangosteen juice is not exactly a scam, the anecdotal claims are not back by actually studies and this juice appears to provide the same benefits as other 100 percent natural juices, just at a much higher price tag.
The mangosteen is the size of an apple and has a dark purple rind that encases a white fruit. Mangosteen has, until recently, been largely unknown in Europe and North America, but people in Southeast Asia have been using this fruit for hundreds of years as a remedy to cure any number of conditions.
No major studies have proved that drinking mangosteen juice daily will offer any significant improvement with disease. That said, increasing your daily dosage of antioxidants has proved to boost the body’s absorption of vitamins, therefore strengthening immunity. The bottom line is that mangosteen juice will provide no significant advantage over enjoying a healthy diet of vegetables and fruits rich in antioxidants.
It is known that free radicals attack and damage the body at the cellular level. Free radicals have been linked to the aging process as well as a number of degenerative diseases, including cancer. Antioxidants help neutralize and then eliminate free radicals. Since antioxidants counter the free radical damage, it is easy to see where having antioxidants in your diet is important.
Mangosteen is abundant in vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin B1, B2, B6, vitamin C, potassium, calcium and iron. So are other fruits. Fruits are naturally high in antioxidants so drinking fruit juices can definitely help diminish the effects of free radicals. Fruit juices vary in the amount of antioxidants and potency and research shows that the juices made of 100 percent natural products have the best antioxidant properties. Additionally, there is research that suggests that the antioxidant kick is more potent with the darker juices.
Pomegranate, blueberry, grape and cranberry are all high antioxidants, as is green tea. All of these juices can be purchased for a fraction of the cost of mangosteen juice, which relies on a MLM (multiple level marketing) module to hawk its wares.
The Knudsen juices, for instance, are 100 percent juice. The Just Blueberry and Just Cranberry juices will cost about $10 for the same amount that the $33 bottle of mangosteen juice will cost.
While the pure mangosteen juice benefits might be over exaggerated, there don’t appear to be any mangosteen juice side effects. So, if you like the taste of the mangosteen juice blend and don’t mind paying top dollar for it, enjoy. You will get a good dose of antioxidants and that is good. If you want the same benefits but don’t want to pay the price, go to the organic section of your local grocery store and pick up a bottle of 100 percent pure juice, preferably from a dark fruit.
While we are on the topic of antioxidants, here are five other antioxidant rich, yet inexpensive foods.
Berries: Berries, and especially the blueberry, are of the richest sources of antioxidants. Eat as many berries as you can, as often as you can. The added benefit is that they are quite enjoyable to eat.
Greens: Dark leafy green vegetables are also an excellent source of anti-oxidants and contain more nutrition ounce for ounce than any other foods. As with berries, eat as many as you can, as often as you can of these antioxidant fat burning foods.
Prunes: Prunes rank high up on the “anti-oxidant” chart score. These are calorie dense so don’t go too crazy on the prunes.
Mangosteen; Your best benefits will be from eating this delicious fruit fresh. Look in Asian markets for fresh mangosteen. They will cost about $5 per pound, which is still a better deal than the juice.
Pomegranate Juice. This juice is also a great source of cancer-fighting antioxidants. There are a number of juicer recipes that include pomegranate so you can make juice out of fresh pomegranates or buy pomegranate concentrate. A big jar of pomegranate juice will cost only about $7, which is five times less than what you would pay for mangosteen juice. You can find pomegranate juice at health food stores or your grocery store organic section.
There are many ways to detoxify the body, including the lemonade diet detox cleanse. These will help clear the body of free radicals as well and because of that, allows the body to better absorb nutrients. All health plans should include a detoxification first, followed by a diet high in nutrients.