Mangosteen Juice: Yet Another Scam Product | Mangosteen Xango World Wide Warning

Mangosteen Juice: Yet Another Scam Product
June 1, 2007

A brilliant article by Frederic Patenaude provides an insight into the world of Mangosteen Juice and talks about the scam practices involved. Here’s what Frederic has to say;

Today, I’d like to get a few things off my chest that have been bothering me for a while, namely the greed and abuse of consumers credibility of many companies that are selling outrageously expensive products for their so-called “anti-oxidant” power.

I’m going to first crush a few obvious ’scam’ products, not because I those are necessarily the worst ones out there, but simply because these products get pitched all the time and I know that a lot of honest health-seekers are wasting a lot of their hard-earned cash on them.

Then after I’m done with this rampage, I’m going to give a last uppercut to these greedy empires by showing you some of the best anti-oxidant packed foods you can incorporate in your diet on the cheap.

Xango Juice: or the Art of Abusing Credulity

I’ve never told you that, but a long time ago (over 12 years) — I briefly attempted to succeed in the “network marketing” world. For almost a year, I was involved in one such company, selling “premium dog food”, believe it or not!

So I got a lot of insights into the world of “network marketing.” While it’s certain that there are many good companies that operate under this model, there’s definitely also a whole lot of bad ones.

When I first joined this MLM (Multi-Level Network) company, the big guru told us that MLM was the future of the world. That in ten years 80% of the products would be distributed that way (which obviously hasn’t happened, 10 years later… not even close).

He also told us that because MLM bi-passes the “big distribution network”, it allowed the distribution of higher quality products at a lower cost.

My experience with many Multi-Level-Networking companies I have encountered proves this to be wrong. Generally, the products they sell are very high-priced. Unless you actually join as a distributor, you literally pay several times the actual market value of the product.

I’ve also found that while there are a few good MLM companies with good products, most companies are selling suspect items to gullible consumers. Many of these products have actually very little value, and are 90% hype, marketing and exaggerated claims. Of course, they always have a cute little story to back it up.

How the founder of the company had a “vision” and a “dream” to improve the nutrition of the entire world, and how he founded his company to fulfill his higher mission. I particularly like how they talk about this one “scientist” from Japan (ever noticed they’re all from Japan?) who found the fountain of youth in some ancient plant, and wants to share it with the western world.

Let’s talk about this Mangosteen Juice

The company Xango sells their exotic fruit drink made with mangosteen. This fruit is not related to the “mango”. When I was in Bali, I ate mangosteens by the kilo, and they were very inexpensive. In Asia, the mangosteen is regarded the “queen of the fruit” for its delicate taste.

Xango sells their mangosteen juice as a “miracle cure”. Actually, what they sell is some mangosteen product mixed with the juices of about eight other fruits. And at $32.50 per bottle, this fruit juice better be good!

Actually, if you start to believe their marketing literature, this juice is nothing short of a miracle cure. According to Xango, there are more than 20 “human health benefits” to their mangosteen juice, from “anti-microbial” to “anti-cancer”.

Supposedly, we should drink their juices because of “xanthones”, a “powerful antioxidant” that “may help maintain intestinal health, strengthen the immune system, neutralize free radicals, help support cartilage and joint function, and promote a healthy seasonal respiratory system.”

However since they don’t have any serious research to back this claim up, Xango adds this disclaimer as a footnote: “These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease”.

Xango is in the business for the bux

Anyone who knows network marketing knows how the system works. Independent distributors are selling the products but mainly recruiting other distributors in order to get a percentage off their sales.

Generally the motivated network marketer will aggressively sell the products to his own friends, relatives and neighbors. (I remember when I was in this “dog food” company and I phoned the entire list of names from my high school year, in order to pitch them the dog food product!)

With this system, the more distributors a person can recruit, the more money they can make. And the company itself provides all of the marketing material they need to generate as much buzz as possible.

Like all similar products sold through the same kind of system, Xango has some kind of resemblance of scientific truth that they exaggerate to the extreme to sell their product. Many of their claims are completely exaggerated and unsubstantiated. For a neutral perspective on Xango, read the Wikipedia page on the subject.

Countless Other Products

The marketing, the claims, and the suspicious research behind Xango’s success resembles mysteriously to a lot of other similar products we’ve seen marketed over the last few years. I’m referring to:

The same story here, the same scam, with a different product. In fact, I’ve found that both the Chief Financial Officer AND the president of Xango worked previously for Tahitian Noni International, another company selling their own miracle cure.

When I look at a $35 bottle of “anti-oxidant-rich” mangosteen juice, I can’t help to laugh and think to myself, “what kind of idiot would spend that kind of money (plus shipping) for a bottle of fruit juice?”

Let’s not forget what these companies are after. A few years ago, more than one person wanted to take advantage of my “big mailing list” to sign me up as a Xango distributor. They tried to convince me that I would make “so much money” if I used the power of my mailing list to sell this product, and recruit other distributors.

I didn’t consider for a single second to do that and never gave replied to those requests (one came from a friend of mine). What’s interesting is that everyone who came to me to tell me about mangosteen juice spent more time to explain how much money I could make with it, rather than try to convince me it was a really good product. It’s almost as if the product is irrelevant, as long as the rest is in place.

Some Anti-Oxidant Rich Foods: Cheap Alternatives

Okay, now that I feel a little better to have expressed my truth about this mangosteen juice, let me give you some quick tips that these companies certainly don’t want you to know.

1- Berries — Berries are by far the one of the richest sources of antioxidants, particularly wild blueberry. I suggest having as many berries as you can. Plus they are particularly enjoyable to eat. When wild blueberries are in season, freeze them in ridiculous quantities and use them throughout the year.

2- Pomegranate Juice — Pomegranate Juice is a very high source of cancer-fighting anti-oxidants. You can either purchase fresh pomegranates and make the juice yourself, or purchase pomegranate concentrate (which is still a high source of anti-oxidants). The good thing is that even a big jug of pomegranate juice will only cost you about $7, so 5 times less than the mangosteen juice (which is made mostly with other juices). And best of all, you can find it in most health food stores.

3- Prunes — According to recent studies, prunes rank really high on the “anti-oxidant” score. Good thing, because they are also very delicious.

4- Greens — Dark green leafy vegetables are also an excellent source of anti-oxidants. But not just that. Greens contain more nutrition than any other foods! For the full story, sign up for the Green for Life Program.

5- Mangosteen — Finally, you can also get the health benefits of mangosteen… by trying them out fresh. They are very delicious. You can find them in many Asian markets. Even at $5 a pound, you’re still going to get a better deal than you would get on the Xango juice. And if you ever travel to Costa Rica in September, or Asia in the winter, you’ll get all of the mangosteens you can eat, at dirt cheap prices.

In a future issue, I’ll go deeper into this fascinating topic of anti-oxidants.

Know that next week, for less than the price of two bottle of mangosteen juice (I think I’ll start talking like that for a while…), you can join me in a powerful, truly “results-oriented” Green Cleanse — one of my most popular and effective diet detox. There’s a few spaces available, and the cleanses starts on June 4th. Sign up here.

Adam Has wrote on December 4, 2007 at 11:15 pm

Why our and other countries goverments allow to do this kind of business ??? Only really desperate people join MLM with a lot of hope to make some high money.
Unfortunately, their hope makes money only to people who are at the top of f….. piramyd.
Be carefull please, this is not the way to do legal business.

STEVE S. wrote on January 29, 2008 at 8:06 am

Scam or no scam this is the most relief my wife has experienced because of mangosteen, Bad Knees, prone to sinus and bronchitius infections easily, have all been deterred thanks to mangosteen and she had all the meds to prove it which only proved limited relief..Mangosteen proved longer relief than her meds did…A recent visit with her daughter who had an infection of her own meant my wife would have ended up with the same infection a day or 2 later..thanks to mangosteen another infection tried to take hold (did not go past coughing and sneezing)that was it, My wife was back to normal..I know for a fact if my wife wasnt taking the juice she would be miserable right now…

Linda wrote on February 28, 2008 at 7:34 pm

I basically would like to say I have a very good friend who is kind to everyone. She believes in what scammers say not because she isn’t smart, but because she is trusting and would never hurt anyone, so therefore no one would hurt or scam her. I,on the other hand am always somewhat skeptical but not totally a non believer until I have done my research. I think it is a shame for these MLM/Network marketers/pyramids to be legal and take advantage of someones goodness. Yes, I saw where there were SOME good ones, but I suspect they are few and far between. Folks, if you read this, please do some reasearch before you get into one of these deals. It just may save you a lot of time money and heartbreak.
Linda

Alicia wrote on March 11, 2008 at 11:21 am

I have to say that although this article is good, it is not accurate and I don’t believe that the writer has done adequte research on the Mangosteen and it’s heath properties. First of all you can eat all the Mangosteens that you want but yu won’t eat the rind. And oddly enough, that’s where all the Xanthones are. Secondly, there are many years and stacks of research on this fruit and all can be found on pubmed.gov. It makes me chuckle that people will hop online read an article and believe what someone else says without researching it completely for themselves. They’ll watch a 30 second commercial on TV about the newest prescription drug that has upteen side effects, and put that in their body, but not believe that there could actually be a great fruit that has medicinal properties.

Lastly, it also seems that this author is really not fond of MLM companies. Only the top people make the money, etc. Well, look at ANY company. Who makes all the money? The person sitting in the cubicle typing away, or the BIG GUYS/GIRLS in upper mgmt? Ever heard of a company called AVON? MARY KAY? TUPPERWARE? PARTYLITE? PAMPERED CHEF? LOGENBERGER? All MLM’s. I agree there are some fraud companies out there. And in the beginnning, I too was privy to a couple of BAD MLM companies. But I can say that Xango has been a great company and has been on the up and up. I ahve also had many testimnonies of how there formula of juice has helped people. I guess you just don’t believe it unless you see it.

My advice is that if you are looking for an answer to a physical problem, and have the opportunity to try Xango, what do you have to lose? But I will say eating a whole bunch of the fruit part of the Magosteen is NOT where the benefits are. Eat the rind.

dorian bly wrote on March 12, 2008 at 7:40 am

If you haven’t had the opp to drink this juice and see for your self the positive health benefits, you’ve been brainwashed by the FDA. I am willing to bet any one who speaks ill of xango is doing so because they are in bed with corporate world who can’t control this product for their own bottom line. I drink xango because I was dying from tobacco use. I am healthy to day because I opened my mind to the possible that our Government might let major corporation sell us dangers and deadly drugs that do not cure anything and in most cases cause more problems. Wake up all you brainwashed sheep your sickness is cause by all the stuff the FDA approved for you to consume.

Vanessa wrote on April 4, 2008 at 7:52 pm

I am not a distributor of Xango, however, I do actively take it and HAVE noticed a drastic improvement in my health in just a few weeks. I was having severe headaches for quite a while and no type of painkiller would work. I also experienced a significant decrease in “womanly pains” which I have been experiencing for the past month. On top of all of this, I was in a severe car accident last week which totalled my car. I got a black eye and it healed in one day and my soreness never got as bad as it should have (I’ve been in several accidents.) My concentration level is up and my grades in college are improving. It could all be coincidence but don’t knock it till you try it.

Bob wrote on April 22, 2008 at 7:41 am

I have read many blogs such as this. It is true that there are scams out there, and some products that are not all they are cracked up to be. But as Linda stated, do your research before entering any kind of business opportunity or before consuming something that is suposed to be good for you. I have done such research on a berry called the Acai and a juice containing it, called MonaVie. I have tried it and seen and felt benefits for myself, not taking the word of anyone. My doctor even agrees with the concept. http://www.thegreatproduct.com/tryacai is the site where you can find more information on this berry and product.

Bud McAlister wrote on June 14, 2008 at 2:07 pm

Talk about scam artists. Where can I go to read an expose’ on Frederic Patenaude? This man shows no credentials, no education and writing a book certainly does not make you an expert. Just “do what he says AND buy his books”, sound familiar????

Jenny Bosmans wrote on June 15, 2008 at 6:29 pm

I have cancer.

I have read the articles, drunk the juice and I still don’t know. Tupperware, Mary-Kay and Avon are not anti-cancer products, no, no one claims this about their noni fruit juice, goji fruit juice or xango fruit juice but it is inferred. The desperate people are people like me not the distributors. Those of us who have the money will try what we can. When we are still alive after our diagnosis we are left to wonder why. Was it the xango juice, the ncd,the fervent hope? Which do we continue to do?

D Gossett wrote on July 1, 2008 at 1:17 pm

The information below is from different websites as I was researching this topic. There is much more information out there if people would just take the time to do the research. This fruit and its properties certainly deserve a lot more scientific research. Personally from what I have read on the subject, I think I will stick with fresh fruits and vegetables and save my money.

The rind of partially ripe fruits yields a polyhydroxy-xanthone derivative termed mangostin, also ß-mangostin. That of fully ripe fruits contains the xanthones, gartanin, 8-disoxygartanin, and normangostin. A derivative of mangostin, mangostin-e, 6-di-O-glucoside, is a central nervous system depressant and causes a rise in blood pressure.

Mangosteen twigs are used as chewsticks in Ghana. The fruit rind contains 7 to 14% catechin tannin and rosin, and is used for tanning leather in China. It also yields a black dye.

Xanthone is an organic compound with the molecular formula C13H8O2. It can be prepared by the heating of phenyl salicylate.[2] In 1939, xanthone was introduced as an insecticide and it currently finds uses as ovicide for codling moth eggs and as a larvicide.[3] Xanthol is also used in the preparation of xanthydrol which used in the determination of urea levels in the blood.

Information below is from the Xango website. This is the same thing they use to make insecticide, ovicide and larvicide. Compare the molecular formula.

xan•thone – n. C13H8O2 a unique class of biologically active compounds possessing numerous bioactive capabilities, such as antioxidant properties. Xanthones—found in the whole mangosteen fruit—may help maintain intestinal health, strengthen the immune system, neutralize free radicals, help support cartilage and joint function, and promote a healthy seasonal respiratory system.*

Sorry think I’ll pass!

Mrs. H wrote on August 27, 2008 at 8:47 am

I am just coming into the knowledge of Mangosteen, I went to my first meeting on Monday evening. To make a long story short, there were several credible people in that meeting who have been drinking the juice. One in particular was a client of mine, she had crippling arthritis in her hands. Her hands had been a mangled mess and she could not even turn a door knob. Needless to say her hands have streghtened out and the many knots that were in her fingers are going away! Several other stories were in that room…it definately has peaked my interest. However, I did not immediately sign up for this, I am going to start drinking the juice for myself and learn about it so that I can give first hand experiences if I indeed do decide to take on a distributorship. I say bravo to Xango! and will do my best to be knowledgeable and understanding of anything I do…and if I happen to become wealthy from it then what a perk! It is just like going to church, you can’t take everything the preacher says about the Bible, you have to go home and do the research for yourself…live it, apply it and then see the results! Too many people are trying to play that they have all the answers to it all, when in actual we all need to do our own homework!

Doris Rout wrote on September 7, 2008 at 10:21 am

Whether this is a scam or not, my own experience with XanGo has had dramatic results. My blood sugar readings (diabetic type 2) have been consistently low - maybe too low - regardless of what I’ve been eating (carb junkie) since I started taking 1 oz. 3 times/day with meals. Obviously, I’ll continue, but keep in mind the story of the fellow who contracted acidosis.