The Scam of Skin Antioxidant Testing
A while back, a friend of mine asked me about this product:
It's a biophotonic scanner made by a company called Pharmanex. This product measures carotenoid levels in the skin. Carotenoids are antioxidants found in many fruits and vegetables. Beta-carotene is one carotenoid that you may be familiar with. Other carotenoids include lutein and lycopene, to name just a few. Many scientists believe that carotenoids may be partly responsible for the observed associations between increased fruit and vegetable intake and lower risk of many diseases.
The company claims that this scanner can give you an "accurate and reliable biomarker of your overall antioxidant health status". They further state that, "Getting your Skin Carotenoid Score makes you aware of the antioxidant levels in your body-and gives you the push you need to improve your overall antioxidant health." To appear scientific, their website is complete with a scientific advisory board, a list of scientists, and even a list of studies that they claim supports their product.
Well, it's B.S.
OK, it's not complete B.S. The product does do what it claims to do....it measures carotenoid levels in the skin using a technique called Raman Spectroscopy.
While that's fine and dandy, what is B.S. is their claim that it is a reliable biomarker of your overall antioxidant status. There is simply no evidence that carotenoid skin levels reflect the overall antioxidant status of your body.
Carotenoid skin levels do correlate with fruit and vegetable intake, so the test can tell you if you eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. But do you need an expensive scanner to tell you if you're eating a lot of fruits and vegetables?
And what do you think the company recommends you do if you have a low skin carotenoid score? Buy their antioxidant supplements, of course.
This isn't the first time Pharmanex has spread outlandish claims. In 1997, they were fined by the Federal Trade Commission over claims they made about two supplements they sold.
The fact is that this scanner is nothing more than a fancy way to take your money and to get you to buy things that you don't need. There is no evidence that skin carotenoid status is a reflection of overall antioxidant status. You do not need an expensive test to know if you're consuming a lot fruits and vegetables. Also, there is little scientific evidence that supplemental antioxidants have any health benefits. In fact, too many antioxidants can have a pro-oxidant effect, and may also reduce your own body's antioxidant defense systems. We are a bit too antioxidant crazy in our society....a topic that I will get to in another blog post.
Philadelphia, PA (PRWEB) January 22, 2015 Judges have deliberated and made their picks for the 2015 BIG Innovation Awards. These innovations are making major impacts in today’s world. The winning organizations have led the way to new advancements and dramatic accomplishments in a variety of fields. And the 2015 BIG Innovation Award winners are . . . Biophotonic scanner: Top 16 Innovations for 2015 Celebrated by the Business Intelligence Group2015 Winners of the Business Intelligence Group’s BIG Innovation Awards: Nu Skin Enterprises Pharmanex Biophotonic S3 Scanner empowers users to track improvements to their skin as they make changes to their… Read more »
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Scam? I guess the Yale School of Public Health is in the habit of scamming people. Laser Technique Objectively Measures Fruit and Vegetable Consumption in Skin http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/100/3/930.abstract You are correct, you don’t need an expensive scanner to tell you if you are eating fruits and vegetables. You need the scanner to tell you if you are ABSORBING the antioxidants from those fruits and vegetables! You are not what you eat, you are what you absorb. And are carotenoids one measure of health status? Absolutely yes! Is it the only measure, of course not. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25313576 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24673770 http://link.springer.com/book/10.1007%2F978-1-62703-203-2 How you are going… Read more »
Whattha What was your score? Many people think their program is working by being in their 30’s, you running, taking your vitamins, you eating your fruits & veggies etc… But they recommended something for you based on your score. Most people only think about what they put in and not what’s being used or the oxidation. There are 3 types of oxidation. 1) Physical Oxidation 2) Chemical 3) Emotional. The score is also reflective that your supplements are most likely not keeping up with your life-style factors ( gas in the tank but how fast are you going to burn… Read more »
Whattha What was your score? Many people think their program is working by being in their 30’s, you running, taking your vitamins, you eating your fruits & veggies etc… But they recommended something for you based on your score. Most people only think about what they put in and not what’s being used or the oxidation. There are 3 types of oxidation. 1) Physical Oxidation 2) Chemical 3) Emotional. The score is also reflective that your supplements are most likely not keeping up with your life-style factors ( gas in the tank but how fast are you going to burn… Read more »
Yes, please tell us your score taken from our proprietary product so we can make you feel bad about being unhealthy (based on your score) and try to convince you to take our expensive supplements. Can you really put a price on health? (as we define it)
I must say I enjoyed reading this!! I attended an event last night for NuSkin and I can’t say I was sold in the slightest way. First of all, there were all these big scientific terms being thrown around that were not impressive to me (that actually made it sound even more questionable) at and then I had my “scan” done. I am in my late 30’s, I eat fairly well for the most part (veggies and fruits minimal meat), take my vitamins, and I am a runner. So, when my scan came back low I immediately thought…..ummmm okay let… Read more »
Hi Whattha …. reading your post made me cringe as well. Your experience is unfortunate and is not the way that my network educates and operates. But as you know, the same happens in traditional retail channels as well. But there’s no denying that what you experienced last night was not helpful. At the end of the day though, last nights experience does’t change what you found out. And what you do next, is your call. The fact is that your cellular concentration of carotenoid antioxidants from your nutritional intake (from F&V’s and your choice of vitamins), relative to your… Read more »
The soft sale, well done.
No, not soft sell. Raising awareness about the need to increase daily intake of fruits & vegetables, and the possibility of having to fill in nutritional gaps with a full-spectrum supplement formulation.
You can use the scanner to guage the changes made from your nutritional choices and lifestyle behavior. Pretty simplistic actually, too bad more people aren’t doing this. That’s how my network is using the scanner my friend.
Recently, the Pharmanex Biophotonic S3 Scanner was named a 2014 bronze winner from the International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA). Other products that received the bronze award included the Kia Soul, Beats New Studio Headphones and Tesla Superchargers. More Info – http://www.Nugenerationdna.pxscanner.com
Congratulations to both Marc & Paula. The scanner once again validates both of your life style choices and oxidation stress levels. Less than 5% of north Americans score in your range (Dark Blue). All of our goals should be to help take the avg North American who scores 22,000 to over 50,000.
Greg Waller
http://www.NuGenerationdna.pxscanner.com
“Skin Carotenoid Levels in Patients with Psoriasis.” This research was conducted by Anti-Aging Advisory Board Member, Dr. Alexa Boer-Kimball and colleagues at Harvard Medical School, using the Pharmanex BioPhotonic Scanner. This study found that individuals with the skin condition psoriasis have lower skin carotenoid levels than patients without psoriasis. This study was published in the November 2010 issue of the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21054574
“Skin Carotenoid Levels in Patients with Psoriasis.” This research was conducted by Anti-Aging Advisory Board Member, Dr. Alexa Boer-Kimball and colleagues at Harvard Medical School, using the Pharmanex BioPhotonic Scanner. This study found that individuals with the skin condition psoriasis have lower skin carotenoid levels than patients without psoriasis. This study was published in the November 2010 issue of the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21054574
The Pharmanex BioPhotonic Scanner has been showcased in relation with the following associations:
Experimental Biology
Gordon Research Conferences
New York Academy of Sciences
Oxygen Club of California
American Society of Nutritional Sciences
Current Topics in Nutraceutical Research
American College of Nutrition
Journal of Biomedical Optics
Spanish Society of Endocrinology and Nutrition
Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology
European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology
The Medical Association of Thailand
American Dietetic Association
International Carotenoid Society
Asian Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition
American College of Sports and Medicine
http://www.Nugenerationdna.pxscanner.com – Additional Ref’s