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Mannatech first released it's proprietary glyconutrient Ambrotose in the mid 90's. Made with Aloe Vera juice and other natural ingredients, Ambrotose is now used in the majority of Mannatechs product range, indeed it could be said to be the very foundation technology behind Mannatech's wellness science. Ambrotose AO, Manna-C, PLUS and SPORT are some of the other well known proprietary products from Mannatech. The end of the 20th century has seen a shift toward supplements as part of a nourishing diet, echoed by many health care professionals and helped along by the US Congress's law to prevent overregulation by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of 1994.
Mannatech operates in America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. A publically traded corporation (NASDAQ - MTEX), Mannatech has received many accolades including, #5 Ranking in America's "200 Best Small Companies" (Forbes, October 30, 2006) and Business Week's list of "Hot Growth 100 Small Companies." (Business Week, June 6, 2005). With 43 worldwide patents on their products and many peer reviews from scientific sources such as Medical News Today and Pubmed, Mannatech is a trusted name in healthcare today.
Mannatech takes science seriously. "To most effectively meet our ambitious research goals, we collaborate with top-notch researchers around the world."
- Dr. Rolando L. Maddela, MPH, CCRP, Global Clinical Research Manager.
Healthy adults have shown significant improvement in their perceptual capabilities during independant double blind studies.- (Stancil AN, Hicks LH. Glyconutrients and perception, cognition, and memory. Perceptual Motor Skills 2009; 10:259-270.)
Brain waves have also been enhanced during some clinical trials. Tests showed that subjects who injested Ambrotose had increased levels of attention and alertness.- (Wang C, Szabo JS, Dykman RA. Effects of a carbohydrate supplement upon resting brain activity. Integr Physiol Behav Sci 2004; 39(2):126-138.)
Concentration and reaction times were increased in yet another study,- (Wang C, Pivik RT, Dykman RA. Effects of a glyconutritional supplement on brain potentials associated with language processing. Federation Proceedings: Experimental Biology Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana, April 20-24. 1-4. 4-20-2002.)
Glyconutrients have even been shown to increase memory capabilities- (Best T, Kemps E, Bryan J. The impact of saccharide supplementation on cognition and mood in middle-aged adults. Presented at the 36th Annual International Neuropsychological Society Meeting, February 6-9, 2008, Waikoloa, Hawaii 2008.)
With such a mass of scientific research supporting Mannatechs products many find it difficult to believe people could not have phenomenal results. Yet dissatisfied testimonials abound. Possibly over-zealous salesmen are to fault for the hype surrounding Mannatech's Ambrotose, or maybe simply desperate people hoping for a miracle cure haven't read the research and expected results; afterall results will without doubt differ for everybody depending on their lifestyle and diet. Surely even such cutting edge supplements can do no more than enhance the body's natural ability to heal itself, which will of course take time.
Many reviews I have read say something like "I tried it for 3 months, it was too expensive and it didn't work". Technology comes at a cost, Mannatech offers incentives for referring customers and finding reps like any mlm business; and for most people this is the only way they will be able to pay for the product. Dissatisfied, broke sales reps will most certainly have a bad taste in their mouth if they joined Mannatech looking for a quick buck. 97% of people fail in MLM because they run out of people to talk to, money or both. Mannatech offers a 180 day money back guarantee which I think is very fair, and I don't really see what people have to object about.
So it seems to me in spite of Mannatech's growth, success and philosophy of giving there will continuously be those for which the technology is out of reach. For those who stick at it and put the work into their business there may indeed be wellbeing and monetary rewards, though I would think that a business which relies on a couple of thousand up front and hundreds per month to keep up would be hard to sell if the perception of value is compromised.
Superfluous Superfood? perhaps not, then again many may agree that a diet high in fresh fruit and vege's, supplemented with even a cheap alternative to Mannatechs products might still present benefits over the long term.
At the end of the day, if you are contemplating getting involved with Mannatech for wellbeing or finances; do your own due diligence and take responsibility for your own decision.
