Will noni juice really cure all that ails you or is it mostly hype?

Manufacturers have been touting the myriad noni juice benefits for many years now, but to date there is no significant clinical data supporting the claims of all of the supposed health applications of the Morinda Citrifolia plant.

What is noni juice?

The extract's source is the noni fruit, also known as the nonu or Indian mulberry, which comes from the evergreen Morinda citrifolia. It is believed to have originated in Southeast Asia and made its way to the South Pacific, namely Tahiti and Hawaii. Most noni juice products come from these two places.

Many believe that it may be beneficial in relieving heart disease, high blood pressure, asthma, cancer, varicose veins, broken bones and many other afflictions.

Others believe it bolsters the immune system, aids digestion and increases metabolism.

Does noni juice really work?

To date there is no significant scientific data that points to any health benefits. Like many other herbal supplements, there are those that believe its juice has helped relieve symptoms of their conditions, and others that believe there are no noni juice benefits at all.

Some manufacturers have faced lawsuits regarding claims on their products. When manufacturers make these claims, the products become drugs, and are therefore subject to FDA drug regulations. Noni juice is a dietary supplement, and therefore these manufacturers cannot make claims as to the "use in the cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease."

Many say noni juice benefits are just marketing hype...

The active ingredient that claims to offer the therapeutic benefits is proxeronine, a precursor to xeronine. Yet there is no RDA of either of these two chemicals, nor any scientific data proving their worth.

Also benefits may be minimal due to the fact that the fruit is quite bitter, and must be heavily processed to become palatable. Moreover, an analysis of the fruit shows that it has minimal levels of B vitamins, antioxidant vitamins (A, C and E) and calcium.

So you are probably better off health-wise eating an orange than drinking noni juice.....but with millions of dollars in marketing pushing the many health benefits, it will probably continue to be used to treat a wide variety of ailments for years to come.

Is there a better alternative to noni?

As far as natural herbal extracts are concerned, there are many more effective, extensively researched options on the market.

In our opinion, if you are interested in trying an alternative treatment for arthritis, depression, memory loss or other supposed noni juice benefit, you should start with an herbal extract that has undergone more rigorous testing, that has actually been shown to help treat the condition it is popularly used for.

We discuss many different natural herbs on this site, many of which offer the same benefits, with more scientific data substantiating the claims. If you have a particular ailment that you are interested in learning more about, visit our Health Conditions section.

For information on promoting overall well-being, visit our General Health section.

As with all health supplements, please consult your physician or other qualified medical professional before taking any herb or herbal extract.

Read more on our medicine herbs page or return to the HSG home