Biotest Superfood? Anti-oxidant dream, or simply marketing and hype?

[AntiGlobalist]

http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1900223&cr=

Is it really possible to have the equivalent of 12 servings of fruits and vegetables in 5 grams?

The article claims it's possible to squeeze all that fruit and veggie goodness down into a teaspoon serving by freeze drying.

I'm very skeptical about supplements, especially when something sounds too good to be true... and this sounds way too good to be true.

Anyone knowledgeable about antioxidants in fruits and veggies care to chime in?

http://www.t-nation.com/portal_inclu...SuppFacts.html

[Peter LeDrew]

Originally Posted by AntiGlobalist

http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1900223&cr=

Is it really possible to have the equivalent of 12 servings of fruits and vegetables in 5 grams?

The article claims it's possible to squeeze all that fruit and veggie goodness down into a teaspoon serving by freeze drying.

I'm very skeptical about supplements, especially when something sounds too good to be true... and this sounds way too good to be true.

Anyone knowledgeable about antioxidants in fruits and veggies care to chime in?

http://www.t-nation.com/portal_inclu...SuppFacts.html

They do make it sound too good to be true. Funny thing is, this has already been done a LONG time ago... Greens+ was one of the first of now many.
And my multi already contains Ellagic acid, EGCG, Lutein, Lycopene, Quercetin, citrus bioflavanoids, Sulforaphane, resveratrol, etc... plus all the essential nutrients in their optimum forms with LISTED doses. AOR Ortho Core btw.
I think this may be a help, but would never replicate fruits and vegetables and the zillions of phytochemicals they contain.
I prefer my multi over this and the marketing does turn me off regardless. ie. Buy three before it is gone, etc... typical.

[olinerules87]

Originally Posted by Peter LeDrew

They do make it sound too good to be true. Funny thing is, this has already been done a LONG time ago... Greens+ was one of the first of now many.
And my multi already contains Ellagic acid, EGCG, Lutein, Lycopene, Quercetin, citrus bioflavanoids, Sulforaphane, resveratrol, etc... plus all the essential nutrients in their optimum forms with LISTED doses. AOR Ortho Core btw.
I think this may be a help, but would never replicate fruits and vegetables and the zillions of phytochemicals they contain.
I prefer my multi over this and the marketing does turn me off regardless. ie. Buy three before it is gone, etc... typical.

Greens+ contained testosterone lowering ingredients if I remember correctly

[nunes]

Originally Posted by AntiGlobalist

http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1900223&cr=

Is it really possible to have the equivalent of 12 servings of fruits and vegetables in 5 grams?

The article claims it's possible to squeeze all that fruit and veggie goodness down into a teaspoon serving by freeze drying.

I'm very skeptical about supplements, especially when something sounds too good to be true... and this sounds way too good to be true.

Anyone knowledgeable about antioxidants in fruits and veggies care to chime in?

http://www.t-nation.com/portal_inclu...SuppFacts.html

eat a lot of fruit and save yor money

[Neck Harness LancerV]

Fruit isnt exactly cheap

[thediesel32]

bump for more input, seems like an interesting product

[AntiGlobalist]

Any other opinions?

[rephore]

Looks good. Looks legit. Checked out the ingredients and it does indeed look like a Superfood. $40 for less than a month's serving is quite pricey.

[BRaws]

Originally Posted by rephore

$40 for less than a month's serving is quite pricey.

mehhh, a little over a dollar a day for all the veggies and fruits you could want sounds reasonable to me.

If you do start taking this stuff daily though, I'm curious as to whether you should still take a daily multivitamin

[Derock]

I actually just ordered some. I've been waiting for this for a while. After looking into a variety of other similar products, I feel that this is at least fairly equivalent although possibly a little over hyped. Some t-nation authors have recommended Greens+, but I know TC has bashed it (possibly unfairly) for some of the ingredients.

Ultimately I came to the same conclusion, a little over a dollar a day for all my fruits and vegetables is cheaper than what I pay at the grocery store. I figure I can still eat my fruits and veges but that extra bit shouldn't hurt. Especially when cooking can destroy some of the nutrients.

[GatorsIn09]

Originally Posted by Derock

I actually just ordered some. I've been waiting for this for a while. After looking into a variety of other similar products, I feel that this is at least fairly equivalent although possibly a little over hyped. Some t-nation authors have recommended Greens+, but I know TC has bashed it (possibly unfairly) for some of the ingredients.

Ultimately I came to the same conclusion, a little over a dollar a day for all my fruits and vegetables is cheaper than what I pay at the grocery store. I figure I can still eat my fruits and veges but that extra bit shouldn't hurt. Especially when cooking can destroy some of the nutrients.

yo did you try this stuff out yet? obviously we will never know if it works without scientific tests but howd it taste? I dont believe in the "we have to grow more" marketing b.s. but if i could have this 3 days a week instead of trying to deal with fresh fruit and veggies i would be in heaven.

wish there was some data

[Derock]

Originally Posted by GatorsIn09

yo did you try this stuff out yet? obviously we will never know if it works without scientific tests but howd it taste? I dont believe in the "we have to grow more" marketing b.s. but if i could have this 3 days a week instead of trying to deal with fresh fruit and veggies i would be in heaven.

wish there was some data

It just shipped a couple days ago so I will probably get it tommorow or beginning of next week.

After going to the grocery store and buying some fruit, I realized that to actually get 10-12 servings of fruits and vegetables will cost way more than the dollar something per day this costs, especially for organic. So in a way, I'm actually surprised that they can manufature, much less sell it for that cheap.

Buy the way, I'm not shamelessing promoting biotest as I don't really use any of their supplements, and I have no idea how good this product actually is. I just think if it is what they say it is, it should be very much worth the price and who couldn't use more fruits and vegetables?

[ExtremeEnigma]

Originally Posted by Peter LeDrew

I think this may be a help, but would never replicate fruits and vegetables and the zillions of phytochemicals they contain.

this isn't trying to "replicate" fruits and veggies, it IS fruits and veggies. just minus the water. all phytochemicals will still be there.

Originally Posted by olinerules87

Greens+ contained testosterone lowering ingredients if I remember correctly

people were alarmed by licorice being one of the ingredients but the amount is too little to be of any concern imo.

Originally Posted by nunes

eat a lot of fruit and save yor money

i think buying 12 servings of fruits and veggies a day would cost me a lot more than 40 dollars a month. not to mention time saved preparing them, and effort spent eating them for those who dont like them.

Originally Posted by BRaws

mehhh, a little over a dollar a day for all the veggies and fruits you could want sounds reasonable to me.

If you do start taking this stuff daily though, I'm curious as to whether you should still take a daily multivitamin

the t-nation authors are pretty anti-multi, but they are often anti-things that they dont sell on their site. theyre reasoning doesnt cut it for me though; although i'll be buying superfood asap, i will still take my multi. it can't hurt, better safe than sorry i say.

[low_clazz]

almost finished with my first container. The taste is amazing compared to the other superfood brands. I rarely eat veggies because I can not stand them. So I would try it out.

I don't understand why people think this is trying to replicate veggies and fruit when it really is the actual fruits and veggies! I would like to see science behind superfood lined up against raw or cooked veggies just to see if freeze dryer is comparable.

[ExtremeEnigma]

Originally Posted by low_clazz

almost finished with my first container. The taste is amazing compared to the other superfood brands. I rarely eat veggies because I can not stand them. So I would try it out.

I don't understand why people think this is trying to replicate veggies and fruit when it really is the actual fruits and veggies! I would like to see science behind superfood lined up against raw or cooked veggies just to see if freeze dryer is comparable.

what do you mix it with?

[low_clazz]

Originally Posted by CaV961

what do you mix it with?

pomegrante (sp?) tea. Taste perfect. Also definte increase of energy. After I finish my multi I think I wont buy anymore and just use this stuff.

[veotis]

I think it is a great product. I say this because I had been using Emerald Balance along with Now's Acai Juice. If you've ever tried Emerald Balance, it is not a pleasant tasting product. Emerald Balance has an ORAC value (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) of over 3000, while Biotest's Superfood has an ORAC value of 5,315. Superfood also has Acai Berries in the formula, so now I am killing two birds with one stone. The cost per serving of Emerald Balance and Now Acai Juice is almost exactly the same as Superfood. The taste of Superfood is a lot better than Emerald Balance. I take this along with Controlled Labs Orange Triad, and at 41 years old, I feel great. Haven't been sick in a long time, either. Hope this helps.

[lbarber4]

I use it... I mix it with water or chocolate protein serum...

[Sklander]

Does this stuff have any added sugar? What are the calories for a serving?

[Blashy]

I don't understand why people think this is trying to replicate veggies and fruit when it really is the actual fruits and veggies! I would like to see science behind superfood lined up against raw or cooked veggies just to see if freeze dryer is comparable.

To make sure I was on the right track I asked my friend who has a PhD on matters relating to food biology and is well verse in Freeze Drying.

First, 90% of a fruit/veggy is water, 9% is sugar, cellulose (fiber) and proteins while less than 1% is all the remaining nutrients.

So take 5 fruits and 5 veggies and just 1% of each and they would easily fit in a teaspoon. So in that area it is very possible to have it packed with nutrients. Take a multivitamin as an example, they are infinitely small yet are packed with vitamins and minerals.

Freeze drying does keep the nutrients intact nothing comes close to it and it is a cosltly procedure. But even at 80$ a month (2 servings) this product would be cheaper than eating the equivalent to get those vitamins/minerals/phytochemicals/enzymes.

NOTE: I mix mine with Vanilla protein and the taste is extremely delicious.

Hope this helps.

[Blashy]

Originally Posted by Sklander

Does this stuff have any added sugar? What are the calories for a serving?

No sugars and the calories are virtually none, you just have vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and enzymes from the fruits.

[DRP7]

looks good on paper. worth trying.

[user903890348904]

ive been using a diff brand from a diff site.. they have miracle greens and miracle reds...

50US or so.. but its like 90 serving(10gram)serving size..

so its 3 months worth..

[Blashy]

Originally Posted by lucasyork

ive been using a diff brand from a diff site.. they have miracle greens and miracle reds...

50US or so.. but its like 90 serving(10gram)serving size..

so its 3 months worth..

Is the product manufactured by freeze drying? That is often what ramps up the cost. Freeze drying preserves 99.99% of the nutrients while the second best method is a measily 65% but cheaper to do.

AND is it an extract of every ingredient? You better hope it is or you are getting a severly diluted product and again it is an expensive process to use extraction method.

So 40$ for 28 servings is reasonable.

[amnorton84]

what do you guys mix this with besides water..i tried putting it into my protein shake..i can't take the taste...any suggestions???

[skyluck2001]

Originally Posted by Blashy

Is the product manufactured by freeze drying? That is often what ramps up the cost. Freeze drying preserves 99.99% of the nutrients while the second best method is a measily 65% but cheaper to do.

AND is it an extract of every ingredient? You better hope it is or you are getting a severly diluted product and again it is an expensive process to use extraction method.

So 40$ for 28 servings is reasonable.

I wonder if freeze drying removes the sugars as well? If not, there should be a lot of calories unless very little berries are included in each serve.

[Blashy]

Originally Posted by skyluck2001

I wonder if freeze drying removes the sugars as well? If not, there should be a lot of calories unless very little berries are included in each serve.

Yes it does. It removes sugars, water, fiber, cellulose... pretty much everything except the nutrients.

[MachineGhost]

Originally Posted by skyluck2001

I wonder if freeze drying removes the sugars as well? If not, there should be a lot of calories unless very little berries are included in each serve.

As the ingredients are not extracts, there is very little gross volume to a serving in the first place. Freeze drying only removes water and the reduction ratio is around 5:1, so a 5g servng of the product is equivalent to 25g of whole food, or about 1/6th of a cup. Who eats only 1/6th of a cup of fruits or veggies?

In other words, Biotest Superfood is just an overpriced antioxidant supplement with a question if there are too many "pixie-dust" ingredients for any single one to reach a therapeutic phytonutrient amount. That is where the advantage of extracts lie.

Getting enough ORAC is relatively easy, it just becomes a question of cost. Heck, 1000mg of Vitamin C has a value of 5 per gram, thus a 5,000 ORAC. There are also a few extract supplements out there with values in the 150+ per gram range (15,000+ ORAC) that cost less than BioTest SuperFood or even freeze-dried Acai.

[vazquez]

Originally Posted by MachineGhost

As the ingredients are not extracts, there is very little gross volume to a serving in the first place. Freeze drying only removes water and the reduction ratio is around 5:1, so a 5g servng of the product is equivalent to 25g of whole food, or about 1/6th of a cup. Who eats only 1/6th of a cup of fruits or veggies?

In other words, Biotest Superfood is just an overpriced antioxidant supplement with a question if there are too many "pixie-dust" ingredients for any single one to reach a therapeutic phytonutrient amount. That is where the advantage of extracts lie.

Getting enough ORAC is relatively easy, it just becomes a question of cost. Heck, 1000mg of Vitamin C has a value of 5 per gram, thus a 5,000 ORAC. There are also a few extract supplements out there with values in the 150+ per gram range (15,000+ ORAC) that cost less than BioTest SuperFood or even freeze-dried Acai.

please post these extract supps you speak of.

[Blashy]

Originally Posted by MachineGhost

As the ingredients are not extracts, there is very little gross volume to a serving in the first place. Freeze drying only removes water and the reduction ratio is around 5:1, so a 5g servng of the product is equivalent to 25g of whole food, or about 1/6th of a cup. Who eats only 1/6th of a cup of fruits or veggies?

In other words, Biotest Superfood is just an overpriced antioxidant supplement with a question if there are too many "pixie-dust" ingredients for any single one to reach a therapeutic phytonutrient amount. That is where the advantage of extracts lie.

Getting enough ORAC is relatively easy, it just becomes a question of cost. Heck, 1000mg of Vitamin C has a value of 5 per gram, thus a 5,000 ORAC. There are also a few extract supplements out there with values in the 150+ per gram range (15,000+ ORAC) that cost less than BioTest SuperFood or even freeze-dried Acai.

Freeze drying is PART of the process, when you freeze dry you remove EVERYTHING except the nutrients and enzymes. And in NO way do they account to 1 5th of a fruit. I do not know where you got that logic but fruits and veggies are all over 90% water and the rest is cellulose, sugar, fiber. Much less than 1% is where you find all the nutrients (vitamins, phytochemicals, enzymes, etc...) in fruits & veggies.

So a 5 gram scoop of JUST nutrients is easily equivalent to eating 6+ vegetables.

As for superfood, sure they hype the ORAC value but they should hype how you are getting all the equivalent nutrients of eating 6 veggies/fruits in ONE scoop.

I asked my scientist friend who works in the GMO field and he stated that you can get that much nutrient in such a small amount the only issue is how it is processed, if the company is doing it properly the cost will be high and the loss in nutrient when being converted using freeze drying is less than 1%.

In short, if Biotest is having the process done properly then you are getting 6 servings of veggies/fruits in one serving and the cost of the product will be elevated.

Just take 8-10 grams a day of Chlorella (1 gram tablets from NOW foods from bb.com) and never worry about fruits/veggies again. I take 9 grams.