Nopalea's Taste and Ingredients

In a past TriVita Weekly Wellness Report, TriVita's Chief Science Officer, Brazos Minshew, answered questions regarding TriVita's newest product, Sonoran Bloom Nopalea. I've shared the majority of the questions in previous posts, and have written about the most common concerns regarding Nopalea.

You can read some of my previous posts by clicking on the links below:

Is it Safe to Take Nopalea with My Medications?
How much Nopalea should I take?
Water, Nopalea, and Your Health

One area not discussed up to this point is the taste of Nopalea, and what makes it taste so good? Many users of the product always comment of its taste. Even after holding several tasting parties, the one comment mostly shared is about the taste of Nopalea. How could something that is supposedly so good for you taste so good? IS it loaded with sugars? Does Nopalea use artificial sweeteners?

To answer those questions, I will leave it up to TriVita's Chief Science Officer once again.

Q: Does Nopalea contain any sugar, artificial sweeteners, colors or flavors?

A: No. The fruit of the Nopal cactus naturally tastes sweet. Agave has been added as well. Agave is a succulent cactus from the Sonora Desert that concentrates a syrup or nectar in its root. We juice the Nopal fruit and filter the Agave nectar as the chief ingredients in Nopalea. We have also added many other fruits and vegetables to enhance both the flavor and function of Nopalea.

Some of the vegetables we added to Nopalea have a slightly bitter taste to them. The sweet leaf Stevia cuts the bitterness completely! So, I use a microscopic amount of Stevia to neutralize the bitter notes.

There are natural colors in Nopalea. They are made from the skin of cherries because cherries have an intense red similar to Nopal fruit. There are also natural flavors in Nopalea. These are made by distilling the aromatic oils and phenolics (compounds that give plants their aroma and color) from the fruit. Seasonal harvests of Nopal fruit vary from year to year, but natural flavors and colors keep our product more consistent than many other natural products. With Nopalea, you always know what you are getting!

Seeing that Nopalea contains other ingredients other than the fruit of the nopal cactus, I decided to take a look at the other ingredients. So off to the Google I went. Since there was not a lot of information, I decided to just stick with Wikipedia (www.Wikipedia.com).

First we'll look at Agave nectar:

Agave nectar (also called Agave syrup) is a sweetener commercially produced in Mexico from several species of Agave, including the Blue Agave (Agave tequilana), Salmiana Agave (Agave salmiana), Green Agave, Grey Agave, Thorny Agave, and Rainbow Agave. Agave nectar is sweeter than honey, though less viscous. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agave_nectar)

Then we will look a Stevia.

Stevia is a genus of about 240 species of herbs and shrubs in the sunflower family (Asteraceae), native to subtropical and tropical regions from western North America to South America. The species Stevia rebaudiana, commonly known as sweetleaf, sweet leaf, sugarleaf, or simply stevia, is widely grown for its sweet leaves. As a sweetener and sugar substitute, stevia's taste has a slower onset and longer duration than that of sugar, although some of its extracts may have a bitter or licorice-like aftertaste at high concentrations.

With its extracts having up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar, stevia has garnered attention with the rise in demand for low-carbohydrate, low-sugar food alternatives. Medical research has also shown possible benefits of stevia in treating obesity and high blood pressure. Because stevia has a negligible effect on blood glucose, it is attractive as a natural sweetener to people on carbohydrate-controlled diets. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevia)

There has been some concern that Stevia may not be safe. However, after several scientific studies, the facts remain that "despite all of the scientific evidence, both positive and negative, no clear agreements have been drawn about the dangers of stevia."

"On the one hand, stevia has been in wide use in Japan for the past 30 years, and to date, no evidence of any adverse reactions have surfaced during this time." (http://safety.lovetoknow.com/Dangers_of_Stevia)

If you have any concerns regarding Nopalea, its ingredients, and is it safe, you should always contact your health professional or your medical doctor. I'm not a medical professional, or a scientist, nor do I profess to know all about this product. All I know is that regular users have been getting tremendous results, especially when it comes to fighting inflammation. And, I believe there is enough scientific evidence to back up that statement. All you have to do is do the research - DO NOT take my word for it.

To learn more about Sonoran Bloom Nopalea, click on the previous link. If you have further questions about Nopalea, contact your medical doctor or healthcare professional.

Jeffrey Sloe
TriVita Independent Business Affiliate, 12871028
440-725-3729
jeff@internetmarketingadvisors.net
Inflammation Fighter

The above information presented herein is intended for educational/informational purposes only. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent disease. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it's always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.