Got these two messages in my email today. Would be interested to know what others think (especially if you've purchased longevinex as I have).
MESSAGE ONE
Memo: Longevinex attacked by untraceable author
Rebuttal to claims of false and misleading advertising
An author identified only as "Mark Miller" has chosen to create a website called http://www.what-if-y...-worthless.com/
The author claims that statements made by Bill Sardi, an officer of Resveratrol Partners LLC, doing business as Longevinex, has made "false and misleading" claims for Longevinex, a dietary supplement. There is no way to contact author Miller and to provide feedback or rebuttal to his uninformed and libelous arguments.
1. It appears that Mr. Miller is disturbed by the fact that Sardi has a financial interest in Longevinex and that that would make all statements by Sardi misleading. To date, free enterprise is still legal in the USA. Mr. Miller does not disclose his address or any possible financial conflicts of his own. The claims of biological activity for Longevinex are subject to legal challenge as well as FDA scrutiny for false labelling. There is no evidence that the claims made for Longevinex are false and misleading in any way.
2. Author Miller states Sardi has said "There is not one study to demonstrate that resveratrol pills are beneficial," then Miller claims that the "published results of studies on resvereatrol are overwhelmingly positive and well-documented." Yes, resveratrol as used in laboratories and traditionally provided in wine bottles, appears to produce unusual health properties. However, both wine and research-grade resveratrol are provided in air tight containers, which preserves the biological activity. The author fails to note this. One cannot equate resveratrol used in research studies or in wine bottles with resveratrol used in dietary supplements. The claim that Longevinex is the only resveratrol dietary supplement to exhibit biological activity has been confirmed by researchers at Harvard Medical School (Science Feb. 27, 2004), by Biomol, a Plymouth, Pennsylvania laboratory, and checked out by www.supplementquality.com and TIME magazine. These have been independent investigations not funded or affiliated with the makers of Longevinex. A company-sponsored study conducted by Plant Bioactives Research Institute in Utah confirms the resveratrol molecule is present in a finished dietary capsule known as Longevinex. Soon to be disclosed will be data from the first human being who has conducted an independent study using Longevinex, testing over 70 different measurable parameters in his body such as insulin levels, cholesterol, liver enzymes, etc. This report will conclusively reveal that Longevinex exhibits biological activity in a human (soon to be published). Dr. Sinclair, the Harvard researcher whose laboratory discovered that resveratrol exhibits the ability to prolong the life of yeast cells, has no financial affiliation with Longevinex. Dr. Sinclair was approached to be a consultant for Longevinex, but declined the offer for various reasons.
3. Author Miller claims that if resveratrol degrades shortly after exposure to the air that "all studies done to date would be invalid." Miller says resveratrol is "relatively stable" and "loses only 2.9% of its content when stored in solution for a week at room temperature in a dark glass vial covered with aluminum foil." The citation for this is research conducted by Goldberg in 1996 regarding a method of assaying constituents in wine. Miller notes that resveratrol is preserved in a dark container in a liquid state, the exact way Longevinex is provided. Dietary supplements as dry powdered capsules or tablets fail to do this. Miller states that "if that were the case, all studies done to date would be invalid. None of them.......were done with resveratrol encapsulated under nitrogen." Precisely, they were done with pure 100% resveratrol provided in an airtight vial, produced under nitrogen, or as a powdered extract in an airtight bag that was immediately removed from its bag and placed into cell dishes or animals for study. Here is a link to a website by Oxis International, Inc., which supplies research-grade (not for human use) resveratrol: OXIS Resveratrol. Note that resveratrol is packaged "under an inert gas," and that it should be protected from exposure to light. Here is another link for research-grade resveratrol provided by A.G. Scientific, Inc. Resveratrol[50 mg] by A.G. Scientific, Biochemical Manufacturer. Note that its purity is greater than 98%, that it is stored in a "tighly sealed vial" at -20 degrees Centigrade!
4. Author Miller attacks the statement that Longevinex may be the first reliable source of resveratrol. Miller states that resveratrol has "been consumed by humans for thousands of years in various plant foods and beverages including wine" and found in over 70 plant species. Miller says "there is no evidence that the resveratrol in such plants are either unreliable or inactive." This is again untrue. While grapes, mulberries, peanuts and other plants contain miniscule amounts of resveratrol, there are no unusual health properties attributed to eating peanuts or mulberries as there is for wine. The fermentation process used to make wine extracts and concentrates the resveratrol from grape skins, and the air tight bottle preserves its activity. The resveratrol content of wine varies by 20-fold, from zero to 2-4 milligrams per 5-ounce glass. Author Miller is ill informed here.
5. Author Miller claims there are other types of grapes, other than Pinot noir, which Sardi has said may yield greater amounts of resveratrol. The book THE ANTI-AGING PILL by Bill Sardi clearly notes that the amount of resveratrol in grapes varies by geography, growing conditions, and method of wine making. Pinot noir is "generally regarded" as the grape that yields more resveratrol. There is no false and misleading information provided here.
Here is the link to the non-traceable author, a "Mark Miller."
What If You Were Told That Your Resveratrol Was Worthless?
If anyone knows who author Mark Miller is, attorneys for Resveratrol Partners LLC would like to speak with him.
Bill Sardi
March 24, 2004
Longevinex
Email: Bsardi@aol.com
MESSAGE TWO
The appearance of a website entitled WHAT-IF-YOU-WERE-TOLD-THAT-YOUR-RESVERATROL-WAS-WORTHLESS.COM, which claims that Longevinex and Bill Sardi have provided "false and misleading" information regarding the Longevinex dietary supplement, by author Mark Miller, has been linked to the following registrant, a company in Florida that manufactures a competing product.
Administrative Contact:
Ramey, Ricki - rramey@lef.org
Life Extension Foundation
1100 W Commercial Bl
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309
US
954.766.8433
