» NONI: A Super-Fruit? (Or just a super smelly fruit?) CUBAN TRANSITIONS

NONI: A Super-Fruit? (Or just a super smelly fruit?)

May 5, 2012 by admin

A couple of times while in Cuba—at the organopónico in Alamar and again at the ruins of Buena Vista—our tour guides grabbed a funny little fruit up off of the ground and spent a moment emphasizing the supposedly amazing health benefits of “noni” (whose scientific name is morinda citrifolia). Inspecting the fruit for the first time, I certainly wouldn’t call it visually appetizing: its yellow and lumpy with small dark spots all over, and it gives off the distinct smell of bad cheese (I know this last detail might sound like an exaggeration, and I didn’t believe it either until the guide prompted us to smell the noni and we found ‘bad cheese’ to be a surprisingly accurate description). Basically, the “amazing” noni stinks and actually looks more like an oversized insect’s cocoon than a fruit.

Both the guides who introduced the fruit claimed that current research is discovering that noni may have cancer-preventative benefits. I must admit, I was skeptical about these claims—could it really be true that this rather repulsive fruit could be the next açai, acerola, or goji, or some other “super fruit” that has nutrition experts and health fiends singing its praises? Are we likely to start seeing the phrase “includes Noni-extract” on every dietary product and health food product?

Known by many other names, including moringa, Indian mulberry, dog dumpling (which I personally feel to be quite appropriate), and pace, is related to the coffee bean plant. Just as our guides both said, noni is native to Southeast Asia. Noni trees carry fruit throughout the year, and (as I would like to add mostly for personal validation) multiple sources note that noni “tends to have a very pungent odor when ripening (also known as the cheese fruit or vomit fruit).” High in fiber, vitamin A, protein, iron, and calcium, noni is considered by many health experts to be particularly beneficial for the digestive system. Typically noni is considered pretty bitter for a tropical fruit, and is usually consumed either raw (often with salt) or else cooked into a stew.

As it turns out, maybe our guides weren’t exaggerating. Noni has been a common ingredient in the diet of many Southeast Asian nations for as long as 2000 years, and “has been reported to have a broad range of therapeutic and nutritional value.” (Wang 1127) Additionally, various parts of the noni tree, in addition to the fruit itself, have long been used for food, drink, medicine, and colorful dye. Traditional medicines in Southeast Asia have used the plant

“for different kinds of illnesses such as arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, muscle aches and pains, menstrual difficulties, headaches, heart disease, AIDS, cancers, gastric ulcers, sprains, mental depression, senility, poor digestion, atherosclerosis, blood vessel problems, and drug addiction.” (Wang 1127)

In other words, traditional medicine considers noni useful for treating just about anything.

Modern scientific research on the benefits of noni is still limited, but it is certainly already clear to researchers that the plant has a long list of health benefits. In particular, research is considering the connection between this extensive list and the fact that

“the Noni fruit contains a natural precursor for Xeronine…named Proxeronine.” Xeronine can help “when a protein…is not in the appropriate conformation [and] will not work properly. Xeronine will interact with the protein and make it fold into its proper conformation. The result is a properly functioning protein. Whenever a problem arises in the cell due to a protein structural problem, Xeronine’s presence would be beneficial…[This] hypotheses may explain why TAHITIAN NONI JUICE (TNJ) can help in health problems in different ways.” (Wang 1128)

But before you’re convinced to jump out of your chair and head to the health food store, I should probably mention the principle downside of noni consumption: namely, price. Noni juice usually goes for about $39 per small bottle! My biggest question is: is the stinky cheese smell included?

http://listverse.com/2011/07/08/top-20-fruits-you-probably-dont-know/

http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-500165_162-4903095.html

Wang, Mian-Ying, et al. “Morinda citrifolia (Noni): A literature review and recent advances in Noni research.” Acta Pharmacol Sin. 2002 Dec; 23(12): 1127-41. http://www.chinaphar.com/1671-4083/23/1127.pdf

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