What Do I Think About Isagenix or Herbalife?
Isagenix, Herbalife or the latest greatest slimming protein and supplement powders seem to be sold on great stories and dubious science. At the moment, Isagenix seems to be the latest and greatest and many people are using Isagenix because firstly, it can make you a lot of money if you engage family and friends and secondly, it offers health and happiness without much effort. Why would you not want to be involved?
Having said that, when most people are assessing a food, they will look at the nutritional panel and not bother to read the ingredients.
Whenever I look at a product, I’m not interested in the fat, salt, sugar, protein, calorie content but rather I want to know what is the food or shake or bar made from? What are the ingredients? Do they look like ingredients I would find in my pantry or my grandmother’s pantry or does it look like something from a science experiment?
Many people ask me about Isagenix and Herbalife and I just say I wouldn’t eat it, give it to my family or promote it. It doesn’t take me long to make this decision for myself. I go through each of the ingredients and look at how they are made, what they are made from and if there are any genetically modified ingredients etc. It takes a lot more time to research, especially when there are some new ingredients that I am not familiar with. Then to put it all down on paper is what takes the time.
If the protein bar was made from almonds, coconut, coconut oil, honey, sunflower seeds, chia seed, sesame seed, camu camu, currants, dates and walnuts, I wouldn’t hesitate to eat it and I wouldn’t research the ingredients as I know what they all are. But if the protein bar is made from the following ingredients, I’d be questioning exactly what they all are; Protein blend [whey crisp (whey protein isolate, whey protein concentrate, tapioca starch, calcium carbonate, lecithin), calcium caseinate, whey protein isolate], brown rice syrup, yoghurt flavoured coating [maltitol, fractionated palm kernel oil, calcium caseinate, milk protein concentrate, nonfat milk, yoghurt powder (cultured whey protein concentrate and cultured nonfat milk), lecithin, natural flavour], maltitol syrup, polydextrose, raisins (7%), gluten-free rolled oats (7%), water, high oleic safflower oil, natural flavour, cinnamon, vitamin and mineral blend (magnesium oxide, ascorbic acid, alpha-tocopherol acetate, niacinamide, zinc oxide, copper gluconate, calcium pantothenate, ferric orthophosphate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin, manganese sulfate, vitamin A acetate, thiamine mononitrate, folic acid, biotin, potassium iodide, sodium molybdate, vitamin D3, vitamin B12), maltodextrin.
Do you see what I mean? Most of the ingredients are isolates, concentrates, fractionates, non fat products with isolated vitamins and minerals and quite a lot of sugar added in the guise of maltdextrin, brown rice syrup, polydextrose and maltitol syrup, along with flavours and emulsifiers.
In May 2014, Nutritionist Natasha Longo did all the hard work for me and has written a well researched, extensive article on the ingredients of both Isagenix and Herbalife products and explained their origin, how they are made and the lies behind the company. Do I believe the sellers of this product are lying? No I don’t; they are just caught up in the products propaganda and truly believe in it, but let’s look behind the scenes and read Natasha’s brilliant research article on the ingredients.
(Natasha Longo has a master’s degree in nutrition and is a certified fitness and nutritional counsellor. She has consulted on public health policy and procurement in Canada, Australia, Spain, Ireland, England and Germany.)
Click here to read Natasha Longo’s Isagenix and Herbalife extensive article
Updated February 2020
Could you please recommend a healthier “meal replacement shake” option? l understand that you probably don’t agree with any “shake” options but thought you may be able to suggest the best of the bunch? Shakes really are working for me as a breakfast with my weight loss.
Hi Kylie,
At Changing Habits we don’t encourage ‘meal replacement shakes’ due to the many dubious and harmful ingredients that can be contained. If you are after a real food smoothy/ shake perhaps you could try any of the following recipes.
https://changinghabits.com.au/recipes/new-years-recovery-smoothie/
https://changinghabits.com.au/recipes/cyndis-seasonal-green-smoothie/
https://changinghabits.com.au/recipes/inca-inchi-mango-protein-smoothie/
https://changinghabits.com.au/recipes/the-changing-habits-blueberry-smoothie/
Thank you for writing exactly what I say everytime Im asked about Isagenix, which has been in excess of 200 times. As I am an Acupuncturist, I constantly get asked about these products. Was thinking of writing a blog myself, purely to re-ignite what I believe in, which is healthy real food, NOT processed genetically modified substances.
a colleague recently tried to sell isagenix to us in the work place. I was sus on their product so I emailed them. after going back and forth they refused to answer my question sighting they were unable to comment on a medical issue. a special note in my original enquiry THEY say “ask a nutritionist” and in their last email they claim “their customer service team is not qualified to comment or advise” wtf. also my original enquiry is at the end.
From: Kerry
Sent: Tuesday, 17 March 2015 10:31 AM
To: ‘AU Customer Service’
Subject: RE: [255-1C98AF49-8401]
Maggie are you serious.!?!?!? This is NOT a medical issue.! Nor is it a medical question.! This is a typical “American” response and your AU/NZ.
I have ALREADY on a number of occasions emails and filled in the question/comments on the web page and I am STILL getting the run around.
I put it to you that there ARE GMO ingredients in your so called quality products. I shall spread the word 🙂
Thank you for dancing around the subject in the most typical manner that comes as no surprise.
I shall now send these responses far and wide. Good luck selling GMO products to the educated.
From: AU Customer Service [mailto:customerserviceanz@isagenixcorp.com]
Sent: Tuesday, 17 March 2015 9:56 AM
To: Kerry
Subject: [255-1C98AF49-8401]
Dear Kerry,
Thanks for your email.
I have followed this up for you however Isagenix is a nutrition company and our Customer Service Team is not qualified to comment or advise on medical issues. Hence, this is why i have refered you to the links below as they are the sites which have been written by our Nutritionists. They have valuable information in regards to your enquiry. As well, there is a search feature available to help you locate key information. You can also submit a question through the “Questions/Comments” feature on the right side of the page. Please note any questions of a medical nature will not be answered.
We apologise for this inconvenience.
Kind Regards,
Maggie R
AU Customer Service
Isagenix International, LLC
http://www.Isagenix.com
________________________________________
From: Kerry
Sent: Mon, 16 Mar 2015 15:40:31 -0700
To: ‘AU Customer Service’
Subject: RE: [255-1C98AF49-8401]
Maggie I’ve read your GMO sheet and STILL I am not getting a yes/no answer, all I am getting however is drivel.
Please can you advise if there is GMO in your products, it really is quite simple to answer.
If you are unable to answer me than please pass this enquiry onto a manager or supervisor.
I wish to make an informed decision regarding your products and without this information I am unable to.
Your lack of honesty raises red flags to me so at this point I believe you DO use GMOs in some form or another in your products.
I understand American’s are subjected to GMOs whether they like it or not but we have choices here with our produce so please enlighten me.
There are approximately 10 people here that are questioning your company’s integrity due to the responses I’ve received.
I also get the feeling if your company are hesitant to say yes, as it is going to be detrimental to your business.
I really do appreciate your time.
Sincerely Kerry Neilson
From: AU Customer Service [mailto:customerserviceanz@isagenixcorp.com]
Sent: Tuesday, 17 March 2015 8:39 AM
To: Kerry
Subject: [255-1C98AF49-8401]
Hi Kerry,
Thanks for contacting Isagenix ANZ~
This information is available on IsagenixHealth.net.
GMO: http://www.isagenixhealth.net/faq/isagenix-policy-on-gmo-ingredients-and-labeling/
Synthetic: http://www.isagenixhealth.net/vitamins-natural-versus-synthetic/
Thank you.
I hope this information is helpful. If you have any further questions, please let us know by responding back to this email. We are always happy to assist you. If you would prefer to speak with a Customer Service Consultant, please contact us on 1300 651 979 )(AU) or 0800 451 291 (NZ). (Weekdays from 8am-6pm, Sydney Time)
Kind regards,
Maggie R
AU Customer Service
Isagenix International, LLC
http://www.Isagenix.com
________________________________________
From: AU Customer Service
Sent: Mon, 16 Mar 2015 15:09:20 -0700
To: Kerry
Subject: [255-1C98AF49-8401]
Hi Kerry,
Thanks for contacting Isagenix ANZ~
This information is available on IsagenixHealth.net.
GMO: http://www.isagenixhealth.net/faq/isagenix-policy-on-gmo-ingredients-and-labeling/
Synthetic: http://www.isagenixhealth.net/vitamins-natural-versus-synthetic/
Thank you.
I hope this information is helpful. If you have any further questions, please let us know by responding back to this email. We are always happy to assist you. If you would prefer to speak with a Customer Service Consultant, please contact us on 1300 651 979 )(AU) or 0800 451 291 (NZ). (Weekdays from 8am-6pm, Sydney Time)
Kind regards,
Maggie R
AU Customer Service
Isagenix International, LLC
http://www.Isagenix.com
________________________________________
From: Kerry
Sent: Sun, 15 Mar 2015 13:59:54 -0700
To: “‘CustomerServiceANZ@IsagenixCorp.com'”
Subject:
Good morning
I recently enquired about GM/GMO/GE/Synthetic ingredients in Isagenix products. Although I appreciate the response given I feel the answer to my question has been danced around.
Can you please advise if any of your products contain any GM/GMO/GE/Synthetic ingredients please with a simple yes or no.
Kind regards
Kerry Neilson
South Australia
Dear Kerry:
Thank you for contacting Isagenix through our Health Blog, http://www.IsagenixHealth.net. Please note the information on our website and in the below e-mail response is intended as educational and to support, not replace, your relationship with a personal physician.
Isagenix appreciates consumers’ rights to make informed dietary choices, including the knowledge of whether or not the foods they purchase and consume contain GMO ingredients. As a policy, Isagenix makes every effort to use only non-GMO or GMO-free ingredients in its products. The company diligently seeks out suppliers that adhere to their own policies for avoiding GMO crops as sources for their raw materials, including any additives or processing aids.
While Isagenix would like to include non-GMO labeling on its products, we are not doing so at this time as GMO labeling comes with considerable technical challenges: (1) lack of validated methods for required detection (of novel DNA); (2) lack of testing capabilities for pooled animal-derived ingredients; (3) lack of traceability methods or testing capability for ingredients such as derivatives (where DNA fragments have been eliminated); and (4) unclear or vague definitions and varying standards by verification organizations. Until there is a more defined and standardized methodology available, and the presence or lack of GMO raw materials can be confirmed with certainty, we will continue with our own responsible labeling practices.
In all cases of Isagenix product manufacturing, the company ensures compliance to its No-Compromise Ingredient Policy, and consumer safety remains a foremost priority. The policy is extensive and thorough, covering all details of ingredient sourcing and manufacturing guidelines according to Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMPs). Given our commitment to safe and sustainable sourcing, along with rigorous testing of ingredients, consumers can feel confident that the quality of Isagenix products is unsurpassed.
For more information, please refer to the following articles posted on our health blog, http://www.IsagenixHealth.net:
What It Means to Have “No Compromise” Quality
We hope this information is helpful. Be sure to add http://www.IsagenixHealth.net to your Internet favorites and check back often for new articles. You can also follow Isagenix Health on Facebookand Twitter.
To your health,
Stephanie O.
Isagenix Health
Isagenix International, LLC
http://www.Isagenix.com
_____
From:
Sent: Thu, 12 Mar 2015 20:08:32 -0700
To:
Subject: Web Information Request
Ask a Nutritionist
Name: Kerry
Isagenix ID: 0
E-Mail: Kerry
Subject: Ingredient Question (non-medical)
Message/Question:
Does Isagenix in any way shape or form use GM/GMO/GE/synthetic produce/products.? And if not do you use organic produce
Selected Options:
they cannot be trusted period.
Hi, I am just trying to access the extensive article mentioned above on Isagenix and Herbalife – can you please assist as it seems the link no longer takes you to the site.
Thank you so much – value your insights.
Hi Belinda, Apologies we will fix the broken link up as soon as we can, I have just googled it and this is what popped up: http://preventdisease.com/news/14/052114_Isagenix-Lies-Distributors-Consumers-GMOs-Preservatives-Artificial-Ingredients.shtml I hope that helps 🙂
I’m no expert (and not claiming to be), but in my own experience I’ve had about 10 close friends try Isagenix. Around 6 or 7 of those got good to great results, and the others weren’t totally satisfied. I guess it’s not for everyone, but if it forces you to consider what you’re putting in your body then it’s a good thing.