Phytochemicals ( Noni Benefit )

The history of published medical research on noni phytochemicals numbers only around a total of 110 reports, which began appearing in the 1950s (searched in September 2008). Just since 2000, over 100 publications on noni have been published in medical literature, defining a relatively young research field. Noni benefits research is at a preliminary stage, as it is mainly still in the laboratory as in vitro or basic animal experiments.

Noni fruit contains noni benefits phytochemicals for which there are no established DRI values. Examples:

  * lignans - a group of phytoestrogens having biological activities shown by in vitro experiments
  * oligo- and polysaccharides - long-chain sugar molecules that serve a prebiotic function as dietary fiber fermentable by colonic bacteria, yielding short chain fatty acids with numerous potential health properties not yet defined by scientific research on noni
  * flavonoids - phenolic compounds such as rutin and asperulosidic acid, common in several Rubiaceae plants
  * iridoids - secondary metabolites found in many plants
  * trisaccharide fatty acid esters, "noniosides" - resulting from combination of an alcohol and an acid in noni fruit
  * free fatty acids - most prominent in noni fruit are caprylic acid and hexanoic acid, responsible for unique pungent (cheese-like) aroma of ripe noni fruit
  * scopoletin - may have antibiotic activities; research is preliminary
  * catechin and epicatechin
  * beta-sitosterol - a plant sterol with potential for anti-cholesterol activity not yet proven in human research
  * damnacanthal - a potentially toxic anthraquinone, putatively an inhibitor of HIV viral proteins
  * alkaloids - naturally occurring amines from plants. Some internet references mention xeronine or proxeronine as important noni constituents. However, as no reports on either of these substances exist in published medical literature, the terms are scientifically unrecognized. Further, chemical analysis of commercially processed juice did not reveal presence of any alkaloids.

Although there is evidence from in vitro studies and laboratory models for bioactivity of each of the above phytochemicals, the research remains at best preliminary and too early to conclude anything about human health benefits provided by noni or its juice. Furthermore, these phytochemicals are not unique to noni, as nearly all exist in various plant foods.

Laboratory experiments demonstrated that dietary noni juice increased physical endurance in mice. A pilot study in distance runners showed increased endurance capacity following daily intake of noni juice over three weeks, an effect the authors attributed to increased antioxidant status. more