Goji Juice: Hype or Healer?

Goji Juice: Hype or Healer?

There is a new natural health product sweeping its way into North America, and with the help of widespread media exposure and grassroots promotion through a marketing network, its popularity is increasing exponentially. And not just among users, but in the scientific community as well. Goji berries have been revered for centuries in Asia as a powerful medicinal plant with natural anti-aging properties and a wide variety of other benefits, but does scientific scrutiny back up the longstanding claims about the berries?

Do a quick search on Google for the term "goji juice" and a vast array of marketing websites will come up, most of them touting the same information word for word from a few sources, especially from the main
marketing network's promotional material. Indeed, the hype about these berries just seems a little overboard.

Is the Hype Justified?

It is no surprise that many people are skeptical about a berry claiming to have such dramatic health benefits. Noni juice, which came along only a few short years ago, helped to start a massive natural health trend, claiming to treat everything from cancer to arthritis. Unfortunately, the claims made by the main company selling the juice never panned out, and although noni juice is certainly healthy to drink, one would do much better to simply purchase a bottle of pomegranate juice at their local grocery store for much less, as the antioxidant levels in pomegranates far exceed the levels found in noni berries (if you are going for the anti-cancer benefits).

So, what about goji? The main claims about goji juice include the claims that it is a natural anti-aging supplement, contains many anti-cancer agents, is the most nutritionally dense food on the planet, contains higher antioxidant levels than pretty much any known food, and various other claims.

Goji Juice Research

If we look at the Pub Med medical database published by the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health, we can immediately see that there is a lot of scientific interest in goji juice and goji berries, particularly in Asia. Many traditional medicinal plants that have been used for centuries in Asia are now beginning to enter into the mainstream in the West after rigorous scientific scrutiny and indeed, many of our common drugs have been derived from such plants.

In terms of studies relating to the polysaccharides in goji berries, there are several. One study showed that seventy nine people in advanced stages of cancer who were treated with polysaccharides isolated from goji berries actually demonstrated a high rate of regression. When combined with a common cancer treatment drug patients showed a 40.9% regression rate, as compared to a 16.1% regression rate for patients treated only with the drug.

Another study showed that the blood pressure in hypertension rats could be lowered significantly by treatment with polysaccharide. Another showed that polysaccharide isolated from the berries significantly inhibited the growth of tumors in mice and encouraged the production of beneficial antibody agents, noticeably improving their immune system.

Yet another study showed that a "purified component" of polysaccharide significantly enhanced muscle performance of mice, enabling muscles to recover more quickly after strenuous activity and perform better all around.

Nutrition Information and Antioxidants

In my research on goji juice, probably the most indisputably interesting thing about them is their nutritional value, including their extremely high levels of antioxidants. To give you an idea of just how high the antioxidant levels are, we can compare them to levels of antioxidants found in the most antioxidant-rich foods we are familiar with. The standard measure of antioxidant levels in food is known as the ORAC test. It is commonly given as a measure per 100 grams of food.

The foods we are aware of in the West that have the highest antioxidant levels include: black raspberries, with an ORAC score of 7,700, prunes, with a score of 5,770, bilberries, with a score of 4,460, and pomegranates, with a score of 3,307. Other foods high in antioxidants include raisins, at 2,830 and blueberries, at 2,400. Astonishingly, goji berries have a score of 25,300. This means that a person has to eat only 20 grams of the berries to get their daily recommended intake of antioxidants (it is best to get antioxidants from a variety of sources though, so it is extremely important to eat many different fruits and vegetables).

But antioxidants aren't the only thing the berries are high in. They are also high in iron, protein (they contain a complete protein), fiber, vitamin C (far more than oranges), vitamin E, essential fatty acids, beta carotene (more than carrots) and many other things. They also contain various anti-cancer agents including selenium, germanium, cyperone and physalin. The claim by many websites that the berries are the most nutritionally dense food on the planet is actually not so far out there, it seems.

The question is, is it worth it to buy goji berries or goji juice? Although it is indisputable that the berries contain unusually high levels of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and other beneficial agents, it is up to you to decide whether or not they are worth the money or not to buy. There may, in fact, be options for you if you can't afford the $35 juice. Buying berries in bulk would be a cheaper path, and growing your own berries would be even cheaper (plus, you'd get the fatty acids and whatever else is in the seeds, which aren't included in the juice)! Just make sure to do your research before making a purchase. For example, look for organic berries or juice, as these contain higher amounts of nutrients and far fewer chemicals.