HEALTH Acai - My first impressions

Decided to try some Acai after overhearing some people at work talking about it. Acai berries come from the Amazon and grow on Acai Palm trees. Opinions on Acai range from miracle plant to a money making scam. I decided to find out for myself.



After some research I decided on Blauve 1500mg capsules...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Acai-Breeze-Ber...emQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item414c8d5433

I started taking them Monday... 2x capsules in the morning and 1x in the afternoon.

So here's what I have noticed so far...

1) A slight tingling amphetamine type effect... Kind of like you drank a little too much coffee but without the shakey feeling. Basically I feel like I've got a little more energy, even without as much sleep. The fact that I'm up at 1:48AM typing this should tell you something. I won't have any problem going to sleep but I feel like if I needed to stay up all night I wouldn't be that tired.

2) Enhanced sexual performance. Recovery time is much faster. 30 minutes compared to the next day. Was really surprized and had not expected this.

3) Significantly reduced appetite. This I suspect this explains the claims of weight loss.

4) Practically eliminated stiffness and soreness when getting out of bed in the morning. Feet and hands feel noticably warmer like circulation is improved.

5) An overall "feel good" feeling. This is hard to explain. A relaxed mellow calm with a tingling buzz of energy.

So far so good...

Update...

One more thing I forgot to mention...

Also seems to solve the problem of getting up two three times a night to go to the bathroom and improved flow when you do go.

Warning... There's scammers out there selling 'Acai' that is really nothing more than capsules of sugar mixed with purple kool-aid. Others are selling product that contains only a small portion of berry mixed with filler.

But a lot of people with a lot of money think this stuff works...

http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/23/news/newsmakers/100172390.fortune/index.htm

I bet you sold a bunch with that testimony! I'm glad you had such good results.

Well this is the first time I have heard of it and you have me sold!!!

Thanks for the firsthand report.

The short term benefits don't counter the long term effect.

Data suggest that acai has a positive contribution in the development of age-related neurodegenerative diseases. What's a neurodegenerative disease?? Among others there's Alzheimer's and Dementia. The two biggest fears of old age.

Wadi... can you link where that quote is from, please?

Summerthyme

summerthyme said:

Wadi... can you link where that quote is from, please?

Summerthyme

Click to expand...

Frozen fruit pulp of Euterpe oleraceae Mart. (Acai) prevents hydrogen peroxide-induced damage in the cerebral cortex, cerebellum, and hippocampus of rats.

Spada PD, Dani C, Bortolini GV, Funchal C, Henriques JA, Salvador M.
Laboratório de Estresse Oxidativo e Antioxidantes, Instituto de Biotecnologia, Universidade de Caxias do Sul, Caxias do Sul, Brazil.
Oxidative stress is implicated in several human illnesses, including neurological disorders such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. Acai is largely consumed in Brazil and contains high levels of antioxidant compounds. This work aims to study the antioxidant activity of acai frozen fruit pulp in the cerebral cortex, hippocampus, and cerebellum of rats treated with the oxidizing agent hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)). Pretreatment of tissue with acai decreased H(2)O(2)-induced damage of both lipids and proteins in all tissues tested. This fruit was also able to reduce the activities of the antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase and catalase to basal levels. We observed a negative correlation between the polyphenol content of acai and the levels of lipid (r = -0.689; P <or= .05) and protein damage (r = -0.569; P <or= .05), suggesting the participation of polyphenols in the observed antioxidant activity. These data suggest that acai has a positive contribution in the development of age-related neurodegenerative diseases.

PMID: 19857073 [PubMed - in process]


Pubmed.gov Link

Maybe I read your statement wrong, then.

It appeared that you felt there were *negative* long term effects from acai?

The short term benefits don't counter the long term effect.

Click to expand...

From your link (thank your for providing it), it appears that the "positive contribution" from acai in terms of neurodegenerative diseases is in PREVENTING them.

Or am I missing something?

Summerthyme

Wadi66 said:

The short term benefits don't counter the long term effect.

Data suggest that acai has a positive contribution in the development of age-related neurodegenerative diseases. What's a neurodegenerative disease?? Among others there's Alzheimer's and Dementia. The two biggest fears of old age.

Click to expand...

Science speak... "Positive contribution" in this context means "preventative".

"This fruit was also able to reduce the activities of the antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase and catalase to basal levels. We observed a negative correlation between the polyphenol content of acai and the levels of lipid (r=−0.689; P≤.05) and protein damage (r=−0.569; P≤.05), suggesting the participation of polyphenols in the observed antioxidant activity. These data suggest that acai has a positive contribution in the development of age-related neurodegenerative diseases."

Your "positive contribution" quote is from an abstract of a paper submitted to the Journal of Medicinal Food. The actual paper, if you had read it, might have clued you in to the meaning of "positive contribution" in the abstract.

"Several studies have shown that the consumption of fruits and vegitables is associated with a reduced risk of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzhiemer's. Fruits and vegitables synthesize a vast array of secondary chemical compounds that, although not involved in primary metabolism, are important for a multitude of beneficial effects that have been reported for fruits.

The palm fruit of Euterpe oleraceae Mart., commonly known as acai, is consumed in a variety of beverages and food preparations, mainly in Brazil. This fruit supplies several antioxidant compounds such as polyphenols, carotenoids, and ascorbic acid. Acai has been demonstrated to possess strong antioxidant capacity and potent anti-inflammitory activity in vitro and shown to inhibit lipid peroixidation in humans in vivo. The pharmokinetics of acai pulp in humans has also been investigated.

The brain is especially susceptible to oxidative stress... [read rest of text here]... http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/abs/10.1089/jmf.2008.0236

Its a little confusing the way its worded. The "positive" contribution is actually a negative impact.

Free Radicals cause inflammation. Inflammation of the brain causes Alzheimer's.

Two antioxidants (superoxide dismutase and catalase) eliminate free radicals. By reducing the activity of superoxide dismutase and catalase (stated earlier in the report), free radicals go unchecked leading to inflammation of the brain.

Mason

I would suggest you listen to Dr. Joe McCord about antioxidants at this link. Its a VERY interesting interview. Click here.

McCord is the world's foremost expert on free radicals and oxidative stress. He's the one that discovered superoxide dismutase in 1969.

Short bio here

Tell ya what, I'll be seeing Dr. McCord in a couple weeks. If I remember to I'll ask him about the Acai berry. I pretty much already know what he'll say, but for you I'll make sure.

Mason, did you listen to Dr. McCord yet?

By the way, I did read the article. But if you don't know that [FONT=Verdana,Arial]reducing the activities of the antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase and catalase to basal levels is actually opposite of what is needed, then everything sounds peachy keen.
[/FONT]

'Mr. Mason', this is NOT an accusatory post, just a simple question:

Are you at all related to or compensated by, in any way shape or form, that E-Bay offer you posted in your original post?

Again, just a question, I'm not implying anything.



HB

A word of warning. There are lots of non-stop ads on every website for "mom loses weight following this one simple rule.." which advertise an acai based product.

Read the fine print on those acai berry scam ads, many charge month after month for repeat shipments of products whether you want them or not and they are not cheap..

Not a valid test. You need to have somebody give you the pills without telling you what they are and track the results. When you buy something, you are immediately biased toward a belief in its efficacy and placebo effect is unavoidable. Testimonials are the contagious stage of the placebo effect.

Wadi,
I listened to Dr. McCord, and ended up buying some GliSODin, though from LEF.org, not the company McCord mentioned. Sounds like its a pretty powerful antioxidant.

The trouble with these kind of supplements is, when you don't see any visible results after a month, it's hard to talk yourself into continuing to spend the money.

knepper said:

Wadi,
I listened to Dr. McCord, and ended up buying some GliSODin, though from LEF.org, not the company McCord mentioned. Sounds like its a pretty powerful antioxidant.

The trouble with these kind of supplements is, when you don't see any visible results after a month, it's hard to talk yourself into continuing to spend the money.

Click to expand...

It looks like the one you got is an antioxidant while the one McCord talks about is not an antioxidant at all, its a catalyst. The difference is that the catalyst tells the cells to produce more enzymes SOD and CAT (superoxide dismutase and catalase). These enzymes eliminate up to 1 million free radicals per second and then go after another million, second after second. While an antioxidant eliminates 1 free radical and then is expelled from the body. Given that our bodies produce 300 sextillion free radicals per day, the amount of antioxidants you would have to consume is astronomical. A cup of wild blueberries (for example) contains approx 13427 antioxidants. Divide that number into 300,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 and you'll see how much you have to consume. The downside is that trying to consume that much will turn the antioxidant into a pro-oxidant. Making matters worse.

Oxidative stress is responsible for over 200 diseases (and counting). So if you know that by getting rid of oxidative stress lessens the chance that you'll get any one of those 200 diseases, wouldn't that be a good enough reason to fit it into your budget?

As for not seeing any visible results I understand. As I tell others, that's really a good thing. It means you've gotten to the oxidative stress BEFORE it has damaged your tissues or led to a medical condition. But understand what is taking place and stay with the program.

I've been using Protandim since mid August. After the first 3 days I could tell that my blood circulation was better and after about 10 days my 'catchers knees' like me again. What a blessed relief to not wake up in the middle of the night in pain as I tried straightening my legs or bending them.

Something I didn't know until listening to Dr. McCord in a different presentation is that oxidative stress alters our DNA. So after puberty (when production of SOD and CAT slows down) we're building up oxidative stress in our bodies, altering our DNA and having children. This altered DNA is passed on to them. As McCord says, that's why we have genetic diseases today. Look around at kids today and see what's happening.

I tried Acai and...

...Could not stop sharting myself.

I can't say otherwise whether I felt any different, though the juice
tasted pretty good...

-Steve in Burbank

Haybails said:

'Mr. Mason', this is NOT an accusatory post, just a simple question:

Are you at all related to or compensated by, in any way shape or form, that E-Bay offer you posted in your original post?

Again, just a question, I'm not implying anything.



HB

Click to expand...

No.

Mr. Mason said:

Decided to try some Acai after overhearing some people at work talking about it. Acai berries come from the Amazon and grow on Acai Palm trees. Opinions on Acai range from miracle plant to a money making scam. I decided to find out for myself.

After some research I decided on Blauve 1500mg capsules...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Acai-Breeze-Ber...emQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item414c8d5433

I started taking them Monday... 2x capsules in the morning and 1x in the afternoon.

So here's what I have noticed so far...

1) A slight tingling amphetamine type effect... Kind of like you drank a little too much coffee but without the shakey feeling. Basically I feel like I've got a little more energy, even without as much sleep. The fact that I'm up at 1:48AM typing this should tell you something. I won't have any problem going to sleep but I feel like if I needed to stay up all night I wouldn't be that tired.

2) Enhanced sexual performance. Recovery time is much faster. 30 minutes compared to the next day. Was really surprized and had not expected this.

3) Significantly reduced appetite. This I suspect this explains the claims of weight loss.

4) Practically eliminated stiffness and soreness when getting out of bed in the morning. Feet and hands feel noticably warmer like circulation is improved.

5) An overall "feel good" feeling. This is hard to explain. A relaxed mellow calm with a tingling buzz of energy.

So far so good...

Update...

One more thing I forgot to mention...

Also seems to solve the problem of getting up two three times a night to go to the bathroom and improved flow when you do go.

Warning... There's scammers out there selling 'Acai' that is really nothing more than capsules of sugar mixed with purple kool-aid. Others are selling product that contains only a small portion of berry mixed with filler.

But a lot of people with a lot of money think this stuff works...

http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/23/news/newsmakers/100172390.fortune/index.htm

Click to expand...

Thanks for your impression of acai - I've been wondering about that stuff!

Also, I just have to tell you that your comment, "Enhanced sexual performance. Recovery time is much faster. 30 minutes compared to the next day." was...ummm...interesting. The next day - yikes! That could be a real drag!

Well I'll admit that when I first read Mr. Mason's claim that "increased sexual performance" was one of the results experienced I was thinking, "Yeah, yeah, sure, sure."
However...I was at a friend's this evening and she mentioned that both she and her husband have been drinking the Mona Vie juice, which is primarily acai berry with 19 different fruits mixed in (depending on the blend-there are four I think). Her sister is drinking it for cancer as one of the blends is a powerful anti-oxidant.
Anyway...

To phrase this delicately, she said her husband has been experiencing a much increased "libido" since he began drinking this. I almost laughed because just minutes before she'd been complaining that sometimes she doesn't feel interested when he is and she feels so guilty when she isn't. The acai juice blend HAS been helping her sore back and aching legs though (she sits all day at her job). I don't know, the different effects on the both of them strikes me as humorous.

FWIW, we drink Mona Vie's emv energy drink and love it! They keep you alert, but without the edginess and the sudden letdown.

Has a nice fruity taste, and you can smell the fruit blend once you crack open the can. I was a major Diet Coke/Monster Drink/coffee inhaler until we switched over to that.

Quite a few local athletes I know swear by the Active blend. Come to think of it, there are some professional teams and athletes that use it...

Wadi66 said:

Tell ya what, I'll be seeing Dr. McCord in a couple weeks. If I remember to I'll ask him about the Acai berry. I pretty much already know what he'll say, but for you I'll make sure.

Click to expand...

Okay Mason, I'm back from having spoken with Dr. McCord. And he pretty much said what I thought he would. Acai berry, while providing a lot of antioxidants, is not good enough. It can and will provide some temporary relief, but not enough to combat the problems free radicals cause. Direct antioxidants, what we consume, are not powerful enough to eliminate the amount of free radicals we produce naturally every day. And if we increase the amount we consume we actually run the risk of increasing our level of oxidative stress (oxidative stress is oxidation, rusting from the inside out). Like cutting off part of an apple and leaving it exposed to the air. Pretty soon it starts turning brown, that's oxidation. And that's the effect free radicals have on our tissues, oxidation on the inside.

What an awesome man!!! So quiet, so humble, so brilliant. Anytime I stepped out of the meeting I would see this soft spoken man surrounded by 15-20 people, all quietly listening as he's answering yet another question. At one point he was discussing the need of putting the research findings in layman's terms and how impressed he was that everyone in the meeting 'got it', we understood what he was telling us.

In his presentation he told us that continued research was progressing very rapidly. Although obviously excited about their findings, he wasn't able to elaborate. One clue however was that Protandim increases not only SOD and CAT, but over 100 other enzymes that are critical for the healthy function of our bodies. Researchers at the Webb-Waring Institute at the University of Colorado are like kids in a candy store. A breakthrough in scientific research has opened so many doors they're like 'hey, how does it affect this?' or 'I wonder about.....'. Can you imagine what its like to show up for work everyday excited over the next potential development?

As recipients of their research and as an onlooker seeing other people's health improve so dramatically, how can you effectively convey "thank you"? Near the end of our 2 day meeting my husband was standing next to Dr. McCord. Hubby stretched forth his hand and said "Doc, on behalf of everyone here (over 600), thank you". Dr. McCord, with a tear in his eye, said 'you're welcome'.

For the same Acai berry capsules as seen on Ebay, go to Swanson at: http://www.swansonvitamins.com/SW1082/ItemDetail?n=0

These are the same 500 mg capsules with the same 4:1 concentration. The only difference is in the wording on the bottles. The Ebay talks in "servings" with the serving size being 1500 mg composed of 3, 500 mg capsules. On Ebay you pay $19.99 for 90 capsules (30 servings) while at Swansons you pay $7.59 for 120 capsules.

acai

anything new to report Mr Mason.......