Thank you for that input.
There are two issues here. Business issues, and medical safety and effectiveness. The mention of any company in Forbes or other business media means only that the company makes money. Many huge companies in the drug industry are in such media, and still engage in medical fraud. The recent examples of Pfizer are typical. So just because a company makes MONEY successfully does not mean people should blindly trust everything that company promotes.
Places like this where people come together to discuss and ask questions, are useful in sorting out complex products and therapeutic situations.

And yes, a patent is for protecting the owner of the patent and therefore product. It is not for protecting the public.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent
This Wiki article explains MLM in more detail for those interested who wish to learn further. Often MLM companies rely on word of mouth, friends encouraging their friends to buy from them, or relatives. People are more likely to buy from someone they know and trust.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-level_marketing


There is a blog concerning Reliv products that is on the net which is interesting to read. It has many comments by people who are dissatisfied with Reliv products. This blog illustrates how some supplements are not useful for some people, and may actually result in harm. This is why people should research and ask questions like the originial poster, krank is doing here. Notice the word "cure" in his post? Always be careful when you hear that word.

On that blog is a copy of a letter from the FDA chastising Reliv to change its claims about Arthaffect.
http://relivwatchdog.blogspot.com/20...thaffects.html
(this is the link to the FDA copy of the same letter:
http://test.fda.gov/ICECI/Enforcemen...ucm1107191.htm)


So back to Arthaffect. I am using this one product as an example. I don't have time to study all their offered products and chose this one because of issues contained within it. This contains glucosamine, which many years ago enjoyed some positive press and encouragment. A book was written about the combination of glucosamine and chondroitin, in fact by a doctor who used it in his practice. But as time has passed more studies are showing that this combo is less effective than previously thought. Also the presence of Bioperine (piperine) in the product poses some risk to people taking prescription drugs. Bioperine enhances the absorption of things in the GI tract, and is sometimes included in supplements. It also enhances the absorption of drugs, whose basic dosing was arrived at in human subjects NOT using enhancing substances. Drugs with narrow therapeutic windows may be absorbed more than wanted therefore with Bioperine and cause problems for the user. I really think this should be spelled out on the label of the products that include it.

Dr. Sahelian has this to say about Bioperine:
from http://www.raysahelian.com/piperine.html
You will notice from his website where he sells products, that he does include medical research to help the reader make more informed choices.
And there are other warning letters from the FDA to Reliv:
This one in 2006:
http://www.casewatch.org/fdawarning/...01/reliv.shtml

So what is the bottom line? 1) can you afford this product, and is it worth the price it charges?
2) Have you researched the ingredients carefully before deciding on using any of their products. Don't only use their website for information, go to other non connected sources to confirm your searches. Don't accept word of mouth praises. Everyone is different and people may be taking drugs that interact with supplements, for example. They may have allergies or food intolerances. And be aware that products with many ingredients on the label, will be difficult to sort out, should you have a negative reaction. You will be hard pressed to figure out exactly what is causing side effects.

People who know me here, know that I am professionally trained and very careful about supplements in general. I use many myself, and research them all carefully. I do not recommend any product by ANY manufacturer/distributor that has proprietary blends listed on the label, for example.
A long look at the proprietary blend of Arthaffect shows Licorice root in that 988mg blend. Is there enough of this to be effective? Enough to cause the typical side effects of licorice root on the kidney? There are no real answers to this question for this product. Licorice root has serious consequences for some people:
http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/licorice-000262.htm

So do be careful in choosing any supplement. Do your homework also.

I couldn't agree more with your last paragraph. Everyone should do their homework and investigate any supplement before purchasing. But, I would like to add that they make sure that they depend on reliable sources for that information.

Remember that especially when investigating on the internet. Anyone can post a web site and make claims without backing up those claims. If available, check out the clinical studies.

Even though Wikipedia is a common source of information just remember that according to their own page "Wikipedia is written collaboratively by largely anonymous Internet volunteers who write without pay. Anyone with Internet access can write and make changes to Wikipedia articles (except in certain cases where editing is restricted to prevent disruption and/or vandalism)." It may be a good initial source for investigating but cannot be relied on to be 100% correct.

The blog you mentioned was interesting to read, although I only saw many comments by one person, not many people. That person admitted that many people had seen good results from the product but many of that person's comments about the company were inaccurate, as was pointed out in their own blog by readers. Distributors are taught constantly not make claims that the products "cure."

Regarding the two FDA warning letters, yes two not three. The third link was another copy of the second letter. I would like to point out that one of the complaints about supplement companies is that they are not regulated. This shows that the FDA does regulate these companies. So in a period of 22 years Reliv received two warning letters. The first one, because the claims sounded too much like what would be said about a drug and since supplements don't go through the same approval process that a drug does for the FDA, they cannot make those claims. It didn't mean that the claims were not true, or false. Just that they are not allowed by the FDA to make those type of claims.

The second letter (July 27, 2001) referred to a labeling issue due to what was a recent change by the FDA at that time. As stated in the letter, "Most of the above violations concern certain new labeling requirements." Both of these issues were corrected immediately and the company has been in compliance since then.

I too am professionally trained and also recommend that everyone check out both the supplements and the companies that manufacture them, as well as the companies that sell them. Yes, many companies do not manufacture their own products.

Sorry, mrsD, another long reply and I must get back to my other work. Keep up the good work!