Mona Vie: Any Better Than Welch’s?
Looking at the numbers, the answer is “probably not.”*
There’s actually a study that’s been done on Mona Vie, which proves that Mona Vie “works.” Subjects given 120 ml (that’s approx. 4 one ounce servings) showed modest improvements in serum antioxidant capacity (about 10% by 2 h post-consumption) and a decrease in lipid peroxidation. The measured ORAC value of the juice was 22.8 umoles TE/ml, and the total phenolics were 1.48 mg GAE (gallic acid equivalents) per ml.
These are good numbers, to be sure…and I’m sure that the Mona Vie pushers are delighted with them. Of course, this study looked at Mona Vie as a standalone – it wasn’t compared to anything.
That’s where another study comes in…
“Antioxidant potency, ability to inhibit LDL oxidation, and total polyphenol content were consistent in classifying the antioxidant capacity of the polyphenol-rich beverages in the following order: PJ [pomegranate juice] > red wine > Concord grape juice > blueberry juice > black cherry juice, açaí juice, cranberry juice > orange juice, iced tea beverages, apple juice.”
Actually, this study looked at three different concord grape juices, of which Welch’s was only one (the other two were Knudsen – Just Concord, and Lakewood – Pure Concord Grape). And what were the numbers on these?
ORAC:
- Knudsen: 26.4 + 1.9 umoles TE/ml
- Lakewood: 30.5 + 1.4 umoles TE/ml
- Welch’s: 20.8 + 2.2 umoles TE/ml
Total Phenolics: 2.6 + 0.4 mg GAE/ml
Plain ol’ purple grape juice clearly comes out on top.
Good ol’ Welch’s concord grape juice actually has a pretty extensive profile of phenolics, too, according to one detailed analysis. There are documented health effects as well:
CGJ supplementation provided significant antioxidant protection to serum, plasma proteins, and LDL as evidenced by changes in serum ORAC activity, concentrations of protein carbonyls in native plasma, and LDL oxidative resistance. These results are in agreement with those of other studies, which showed the in vivo antioxidant activity of red grape juice concentrate or purple grape juice (19–21). However, our study is the first to show that CGJ has an apparent antioxidant effect on endogenous protein oxidation.
Purple grape juice may also improve memory function, markers of cardiovascular disease and blood pressure.
Is Mona Vie terrible, no good stuff? Of course not. But it is vastly overhyped, and sooooo not worth the price that the MLM profiteers try to extract from gullible customers who don’t realize that there are alternatives. There is NOTHING in Mona Vie – or many other so-called “superfruit” supplements and beverages, that can’t be had from a variety of ordinary foods/juices available in your local supermarket, for a lot less $$$.
Don’t know what to look for? Check out this database on ORAC values for selected foods/beverages for ideas: http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/12354500/Data/ORAC/ORAC07.pdf
* Just to stress the point: the numbers and comments pertain to Concord (purple) grape juice – not the white or red varieties.
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Paul on 05 Jan 2009 at 10:24 pm #
A co-worker suckered my girlfriend into buying a bottle of MonaVie from her for $50. She could have bought 10 bottles of grape juice for this! Oh well, it does come in a lovely box, and the bottle is very nice too!
Elissa on 05 Jan 2009 at 10:55 pm #
Aaargh! Doesn’t she check with you about this stuff, first?
Randy on 22 Jan 2009 at 2:52 pm #
I realize that grape juice is good. But it is still grape juice. My question if you have one juice with just grape juice and then you have one juice with grapes and acai and 13 other fruits then just by what is in it I would think it just might be better. I don’t know if I am missing something but 13 is better than one. And the last I checked I don’t recall the purple juice ever paying anyone to drink it.
Elissa on 22 Jan 2009 at 4:21 pm #
Ok, riddle me this: what makes 13 better than one? Where’s the proof of that?
“More is better” is a common fallacy that marketers use to their advantage. Even worse, when confronted with a large, complicated blend, you have no idea how much of each component you’re getting. It’s quite typical for marketers to add vanishingly small amounts of many ingredients, just to “pad” the label.
You can’t get sucked in by marketing hype. The phrase “but it is still grape juice” shows you can’t quite get past the notion that something so utterly banal and common as grape juice could be as good as something packed in a lovely wine bottle and selling for 10X as much. The perceived value trumps the actual value.
Erika on 03 Apr 2009 at 12:31 am #
Randy is obviously a Mona Vie supporter/seller/profiteer.
My mother and I almost got sucked into the whole Mona Vie pyramid scheme. I knew something was fishy when the guy trying to get us on board kept saying how much money he was making but couldn’t really explain to me “how”. That’s because he gets paid to sucker people like my mom and I into the scheme.
I’ve relied on UltimateFatBurner.com’s reviews for years when it comes to diet supplements and I meant to check out whether there had been a review of acai and Mona Vie. I should’ve known you guys would be all over it! Thank goodness I figured it out just by reading all the negative information about Mona Vie on the web. Keep up the great work!