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Mangosteen Juice

Photo Credit: David Davies
(Creative Commons)

Mangosteen juice is one of the many natural products which some people believe can be useful in maintaining health: the so-called "superfruits". There are a variety of mangosteen based products available to buy, one of the most well known brands being Xango.

So what is it, what is it supposed to do and does it work?

What Is Mangosteen Juice?

The mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana) is a tree from Southeast Asia. It's believed to have originated in Indonesia but is now found more widely including Thailand, Malaysia and Brazil. The tree produces a round fruit about the size of an apple with a knobbly top. There are various forms of mangosteen of which the most popular is the purple mangosteen - so called because the rind is a reddish purple when ripe.

The taste of the purple mangosteen is sometimes described as being a cross between a peach and a pineapple. It's been called the "Queen of Fruits" (the "King" being the Durian).

Pure mangosteen is expensive to buy in the US and products often combine it with the juice of other fruits. The extract is also available in capsule form as a supplement.

Health Benefits

The mangosteen has been eaten for centuries and appears frequently in folk medicine. Potential benefits claimed for the fruit include treating the symptoms of a wide variety ailments including arthitis, eczema and urinary disorders.

So is there any validity in these claims? Does mangosteen juice actually work or is it simply a tasty drink? We don't really know, there's not yet been any significant independent research that I'm aware of.

However we can say that - like many of the super fruits - mangosteen is high in vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants. In particular the fruit contains a class of anti-oxidant called xanthones. These unusual substances are found in the pericarp of the mangosteen and are often credited with giving the fruit its alleged health benefits.

Unfortunately there has been little solid medical research done on the possible effects on xanthones. Their presence together with the body of folklore surrounding the fruit makes the mangosteen of potential interest as a source of new medicines, however as things stand today the health claims for mangosteen juice are probably best described as "unproven".

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