There is a fruit grown in Southeast Asia commonly known as Mangosteen (Garcina Mangostana). I use the word, "common," only as a descriptive term because, according to a growing number of people around the world, the fruit is anything but common in what it can do medically. Besides its most widespread curative powers in apparently reducing inflammmation, it has legions of believers who claim it can cure everything from heart disease to cancer. But does it?
What about the Mangosteen fruit? Well it grows in the dense rainforests of Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and other areas of Southeast Asia. And it has a remarkable history. For centuries the natives apparently used the fruit for its medicinal and health values as they had no other choice. Medical care as we know it wasn’t available. Because of its supposed healing powers, it became “Queen of Fruits.” And, it tasted good. The fruit from the Mangosteen plant looks a little like a purple apple. Inside you find a white center that resembles a flower cradled in the midst of the fruit. That is the edible sweet spot. However good it tastes the real healing power seems to come from the fruit’s skin.
The Rainforest Pharmacy
Before we cover more details about Mangosteen, let’s discuss the plausibility that a plant or fruit could provide what some call “miraculous” powers. Well, it isn’t as far fetched as you would think when you consider that virtually all of the drugs we have today are derived from a plant or fruit. Quinine, steroids, cancer drugs, and muscle relaxants are but a few of the medicines derived from the “Rainforest Pharmacy.” In fact, it is estimated that more than 7000 medicinal compounds came about because of what the world’s rainforests offer.
Benefits?
Now, what about claims that the Mangosteen fruit can provide so many benefits all by itself? Well, that doesn’t seem so unusual either when you consider that today one single drug (aspirin) is considered virtually an all-purpose medicine with new benefits being discovered all the time. Whether Mangosteen can indeed do all its supporters claim it can, it certainly seems to do something. Dr. Frederic Templeman, MD talks about the research. “Rarely has a fruit that has been heretofore been so unknown been so studied, examined, researched, and scrutinized by science.” The secret, of the fruit, according to Dr. Templeman, seems to be in producing antioxidants that fight free radicals which are a threat to our immune systems. “One class of powerful antioxidants is called, ‘Xanthones’ which have been the subject of recent intense study.” This substance is found in great abundance in the pericarp, or rind, of the Mangosteen fruit. “This is the mother lode of beneficial Xanthones.”
The healing evidence is bolstered by a study by Dr. James Duke, a leading ethno botanist at the University of Maryland. According to the good doctor, the Mangosteen fruit can cause cancerous tumors to either shrink or disappear, slow down the aging process, lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, act as an antibiotic, prevent and/or treat arthritis, lessen depression, prevent or reverse arteriosclerosis, and generally act as an anti-inflammatory agent. Quite a menu to be sure. And, we are assured, there is much more to come.
Bogus Claims?
However, not everyone it seems is a cheerleader. Researcher David Mendossa admits the fruit tastes great but as for the supposed benefits the jury is still out. He cites comments form Dr. Ralph Moss’s article, A Friendly Skeptic Looks at Mangosteen, in which Dr. Moss notes that studies of the fruit have not yet included the medical gold standard, namely randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials. And Dr. Steven Bratman, author of the Natural Pharmacist, and a physician in Fort Collins, Colorado, is a little more harsh in his judgment. “There is zero meaningful clinical research that shows…any useful action in human beings. It is no more likely to produce any health benefits than any other plant chosen at random out of the botanical universe.” He continued, “…if a study appeared in which people with infections were given mangosteen or a placebo, and the people in the Mangosteen group got better faster, that would mean something but nothing like that has been done.”
Personal Stories
Do these contrary views dampen the believers. Not likely. As a matter of fact they point out that for centuries the tribes living in Southeast Asia didn’t need double blind studies to tell them if they were cured or not. And, there are testimonials, two of which were relayed first-hand to your author. One involved a young man living in Las Vegas who discovered a suspicious spot on his back. He just got a great job and his whole life was ahead of him. As a precaution he visited a local dermatologist who examined him and ran some tests. A few days later came some grim news. The young man had a full blown melanoma and was extremely serious. Aggressive chemotherapy was begun. As weeks passed the disease continued to progress and finally the patient became fed up with the whole process. He was tired of being sick from the treatment and he decided to stop chemo treatments. At that point he didn’t care if he lived or died. And, he was dying. His father had heard about the Mangosteen fruit in the form of a juice. They both decided to give it a try. After all, what could it hurt? The result was that in a few weeks the young man was feeling better so he decided to go back to his doctor to get his opinion. Well, no one was more surprised than the doctor who stated that the melanoma was completely gone.
A further testimonial came from a middle-aged woman in Dallas, Texas. She had had cancer for well over a year and had undergone all kinds of tests and treatments at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Hospital in Houston, Texas. She had her ups and downs and she said she was sick most of the time- from the radiation and chemo treatments. Finally, things reached a critical stage. The doctors were running out of options and they feared that if the cancer didn’t wind up killing her, the treatments may. Just as her depression deepened she heard about the Mangosteen juice from a relative. Like the young man in Las Vegas, she decided to try it. After all she had nothing to lose. A month later she had another session at the hospital and the doctors noticed something amazing. Her cancer had gone into remission. They asked what she was doing and she talked about this new fruit juice. Their reaction was, “well we don’t really know much about it but something is happening.” They told her to continue taking it because apparently it was all that was standing between her and cancer.
So, clearly we’ve got two sides to this issue. But is it really surprising? After all, in any discovery there are bound to be skeptics, and rightfully so. Also, despite vitamins still being taken by millions each day, many researchers don’t subscribe to all the supposed benefits.
The Juice
It was mentioned earlier that the most common way to experience Mangosteen is in juice form. A company in Salt Lake City, has already built a multi-million dollar sales empire by processing and bottling the fruit. The resulting drink is, Xango. The rind of the fruit is harvested in Southeast Asia and shipped to Germany where it is processed into liquid form. It is then bottled in the U.S. and ready for market. Little is added to the Mangosteen juice itself except other fruit extracts to sweeten it because at first many thought it was too bitter. Not only is the juice available in the U.S. but it is now being shipped to countries all over the world. Just like aspirin, Xango may one day be everywhere.
An Added Benefit
While skeptics continue to cast a cautious eye on the product, there is no doubt that it is a success – at least sales-wise. The product isn’t available in stores. Instead Xango is only available through local distributors, i.e. multi-level-marketing (MLM). Health benefits aside – the money benefits are real and apparently significant. Your author has seen several monthly checks ranging from $5000 to $23,000. Of course this by no means everyone in the company. That’s the way MLM works. In the meantime, does the Mangosteen juice really work? To those selling it, it does. And after all, it probably won’t hurt you.