Launched in 1992, USANA is a direct sales multi-level marketing company. Dr. Wentz is a specialist in infectious diseases and during his career has served as Director of Microbiology and Immunology in three major US hospitals. The USANA founder firmly believes that most disease on the planet can be traced back to poor nutrition. In this USANA products review we’ll have an in-depth analysis of the company as well as partly talk about the products it offers.
Since the company’s Launch, USANA has gone on to have sales representatives in twenty-four different countries.
Between 2004 and 2006, Forbes listed USANA as one of 200 Best Small Companies. By 2015, it made to the list of the twenty-fourth biggest multi-level marketing company worldwide.
USANA retails a wide variety of health and personal care products. The best part is 90% of these products are produced in their own facility in West Valley City, Salt Lake County, Utah. The products are not available through normal sales outlets but are marketed and distributed by their large network of associates. They are also available online for you to order.
USANA specializes in nutritional vitamins and mineral supplements; diet and energy products such as protein shakes and meal replacements, as well as skin and hair care products. As you can imagine, most USANA business reviews found online are overwhelmingly positive.
Carefully Selected Ingredients
First thing first: USANA chooses pure, safe ingredients for the manufacture of our products.
The company insists on non-genetically modified testing protocols for raw materials. The methodology includes procuring non-GM ingredients like soy protein, pea protein and many more. Additionally, all USANA products have been tested by independent laboratories, which specifically rules out genetically modified organisms.
USANA uses many different ingredients in their products, and it would be impractical to list them all here.
Some of those are sourced from plants, such as our vitamin E soy extract, for example. Other ingredients, on the other hand, are obtained by fermentation, sourced synthetically, or are natural, modified products.
While we recognize that most consumers assume that natural is always better than synthetic, other factors, such as safety and potency should also be taken into account.
Not everything that is sourced from nature is stable and pure. For this reason, USANA does sometimes use the chemical form of minerals and vitamins, provided they are efficiently absorbed by the body, free of contamination and proven safe.
How biologically active a compound is depends a lot less on where it’s been sourced, and much more on its chemical makeup. In fact, it makes very little difference whether a supplement is derived naturally or chemically.
A few ingredients that are used in USANA products are outlined below:
- Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) – a compound that functions in energy metabolism. It helps to increase antioxidant enzymes, thereby reducing oxidation.
- Green Tea – contains large amounts of catechins and caffeine, which assist weight loss efforts. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published a study that spoke of green tea’s thermogenic properties that promote fat oxidation. A clinical trial published in Obesity magazine showed that ingesting catechins regularly (found in green tea) reduced body fat without any other lifestyle changes. It’s also high in antioxidants.
- Resveratrol – a good source of polyphenols, which are potent antioxidants that reduce inflammation in the body.
- Inositol – a vitamin-like compound sometimes known as vitamin B8. It has wide-ranging effects in the body, from aiding the effects of insulin to maintaining the health of every cell membrane. It is also used to aid in weight loss.
- Olive Extract – taken from the fruit and the seeds of olives, the extract has many health benefits. USANA has developed their own superior extract called Olivol® It’s high in antioxidant polyphenols that aren’t easily found in other dietary sources. Now that’s part of the reason, which makes the famed Mediterranean diet so healthy.
- Choline Bitartrate – Just like the B vitamins, this ingredient can improve athletic performance and mental clarity.
- CoEnzyme Q10 – a naturally produced antioxidant used by every cell in the body for growth and maintenance.
- Turmeric Extract – more and more research is showing the benefits of this amazing spice. It helps improve the body’s antioxidant capacity and fights inflammation on many levels.
- Lycopene – this chemical occurs naturally and gives tomatoes, guavas and other fruits their red color. Another powerful antioxidant, lycopene has a range of benefits from sun damage protection to lowered risk of certain types of cancer.
- Alpha Lipoic Acid – a report in the American Journal of Medicine quoted a study that showed that supplementing with Alpha Lipoic Acid leads to weight loss.
- Trace Minerals – USANA’s Core Minerals product contains many essential minerals such as calcium, manganese, zinc, and others.
Pros and Cons of USANA Products
First, the Pros
All USANA vitamin supplements are independently rated. They are meticulously checked to ensure that the products contain the claimed amounts of each ingredient. They’re also tested, and approved, to ascertain whether the vitamins disintegrate and if they lead to contamination of any kind.
The supplements contain ingredients not found together in other brands, such as the special olive fruit extract, green tea extract, extract of bilberry fruit, turmeric, and lycopene, for instance. Plus they all provide antioxidants and many other beneficial ingredients.
Another positive factor is that USANA’s in-house experts and special scientific advisory council are made up of highly qualified people, many of whom are MDs and PhDs.
Together, they’ve published a great deal of research and scientific papers in partnership with a number of reputable universities in the US.
When USANA’s products were put head-to-head with 1500 other products, they were as a whole named Editor’s Choice by NutriSearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements, Consumer Edition.
Two of the products, namely Essentials and HealthPak, were awarded a five-star rating plus a gold medal of achievement.
The Cons
If you decide to enjoy the benefits of the full USANA health regimen you will need to take eight tablets a day. Some people might find that sounds like quite a lot. Also, for best results, we advise the tablets should be taken twice a day, which some people may find difficult to remember. Other consumers may consider the cost of our products prohibitively high.
Some concerns have also been raised about the high doses of folic acid and niacin in USANA supplements. We can assure you that while the doses in the products may well be at the upper limits of the daily recommended amount, they are legal and perfectly safe.
A few consumers have raised the issue of the lack of iron in the Multi-mineral Plus supplement. The reason for this is that it’s generally not necessary to add iron for men. Women can take it as an extra supplement if they need it.
Does USANA Deliver the Goods as Promised?
The supplement regimen, if taken as recommended, definitely provides all the vitamins and minerals necessary to maintain and improve health. For instance, the US Vita Antioxidant and the US Core Minerals are supposed to be taken twice daily with a meal.
Each bottle contains a month’s supply. Like with any supplement, USANA does not claim to replace a healthy diet and lifestyle, but the products certainly pack a punch.
Why Are Some USANA Reviews Negative?
As a company, USANA took a huge knockback in 2007 when the company came under investigation by the FBI. At that time, their product range had been experiencing a rapid growth in popularity.
The problem arose when Barry Minkow, a convicted stock fraud felon, published a report stating that USANA was a pyramid scheme involving several illegal undertakings in order to facilitate their amazing profits.
These allegations caused enormous problems for the company, and USANA’s stock prices plummeted.
What most people don’t realize is that the investigation came up with nothing, and the conclusion was that no incriminating practices had occurred.
No further action was deemed necessary and the investigation was dropped.
Ironically, the quality of the company as a multi-level marketing company, plus the viability of the product range was actually proven by these investigations.
As a result, USANA bounced back and today is remarkably strong.
Let’s talk numbers.
Over 200 of USANA distribution representatives have earned over a million dollars. This is double the number of millionaire representatives compared with most MLM companies where average annual earnings are around $76,000.
Like any successful business, USANA has been the target of some negative reviews.
This has happened for a couple of reasons.
Firstly, other companies (thankfully just a few) tend to call other products a scam in a misguided attempt to promote their own products.
Secondly, because USANA is a multi-level marketing company, it relies on its sales representatives to sell and market its products. Many join enthusiastically, thinking it’s an easy way to make money, but they lack the skills and work ethic to make a success of it.
In order to do well in any network marketing business, a representative needs the right skill set to sell the products, generate more sales on a daily basis and close deals. Some quit too soon before achieving any type of success, not realizing that it takes time and hard work to build up a client base.
USANA Yay or Nay?
Despite tremendous struggles, the company has not only survived but also thrived. USANA holds five patents for several products and our highly anticipated InCelligence product patent is pending.
The company has a highly qualified in-house team of researchers who between them have generated and published many research studies.
USANA has time and again engaged the services of unbiased third parties to research their products. These studies have yielded positive results over and over again. For instance, Consumer Lab.com tested the nutritional products in 2011, using pharmaceutical and FDA guidelines.
USANA products passed with flying colors.
USANA is one of the biggest players in the MLM game, and you can decide for yourself whether the products are worth your investment.
If you’re looking to sell USANA products and build a business, we won’t delude you- it’s going to take a lot of hard work on your part before you start to see a return.
But if you’re going to give it all your time and attention, hop right in following the link below.
We’d love to have you in our team—as an associate as well as a customer.
NO obligation join usIf you would like to find out more about our products or the opportunities of joining the USANA distribution network, you can call us at 800-800-8000. We’re always more than happy to answer any questions you might have.