I'm not sure how we've managed to make it onto StemTech's spambot list of blogsites, but we've just been patiently deleting them as they come in.
Today, I changed my mind and instead of just going ahead to hit delete, I've decided to dedicate an entire post entry to them due to the fact that they have been actively making their rounds in Malaysia.
One bottle of algae based supplements sells for RM 200+ per bottle (I'm told by those who have bought it) and is supposed to raise your own body's endogenous stem cells by an amount significant enough to increase one's sense of well-being.
My colleague Prof. Aw - who by the way is a recent convert to supplementation- was contacted by one of the StemTech agents/ distributors before. He asked them to send him journal papers (which they claimed they had) and on a second encounter, asked them to do a proof of concept trial by checking on the amount of stem cells raised after taking the supplements for a month.
NO REPLY was forthcoming.
I was even more surprised when I discovered that the french neurologist scientist who is the founder of the organization was invited to present at one of the major hospital's inaugural lecture series here. Due to the heavy downpour, none of us were able to attend but we were most curious as to whether they had received some sort of approval from our government, or whether the major hospital chain was endorsing their product.
I've asked some of the people who are taking this supplement to subject themselves to a simple trial which we'll conduct to see if what they've claimed is true. If I'm able to convince them, I'll be sharing the results with you.
If you're from StemTech and you're reading this, you might like to sponsor the trial if the confidence you have in your product is high.
If not, please stop misleading the public and don't use the term stem cells - call it what it probably is- a vitamin supplement.
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As we age, the number and quality of stem cells that circulate in our body gradually decrease, leaving our body more susceptible to injury and other age-related health challenges. StemTech Health Science's Stem Enhance is the alternative to the controversial stem cells we hear about in the news. Patented Product StemEnhance supports the natural release of stem cells to promote optimal healing and stem cell physiology.
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Note to StemTech: Please stop spamming us.
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13 comments:
After digging in a little deeper, it appears that the spamming is coming not from the company itself, which is headquartered in the USA, but from some of its overzealous distributors. I found the company's website and there is indeed a comprehensive study about their stem cell enhancer, StemEnhance. Go to www.stemtechhealth.com and there is a link to a study summary at the top right corner. I also found an impressive study that was published in an independent peer-reviewed journal, Cardiovascular Revasculization Medicine, in 2007 (July-Sept issue). The data showed that the StemEnhance product resulted in an increase of circulating stem cells that averaged approx 25 percent - quite significant.
I would like to state clearly here that the company you are referring to is by the name of STEMTech Malaysia Sdn Bhd, and it has no links whatsover to StemTech International Sdn Bhd. Please indicate the names clearly on your blog site to avoid any confusion to the public. Thank you.
StemTech International's PR Department
Thank you all for your comments.
Bruce, I'm wondering whether based on the data, you are convinced enough to take the product and let us know if:
1) your stem cells do indeed increase by up to 25% (claims by agents and companies are to be expected)
2) if long term stimulation of your bone marrow from nascent state is free from side effects. (let's not forget that not all biochemical pathways in the body are fully understood) - so maybe short term only.
As for StemTech International Sdn Bhd, the link from the blog site clearly links away to a site which states who they are (in addition to the comments above), and the above information is to alert our discerning readers to the fact that there is another product out there that the public may be confusing with your brand.
As for the STEMTech Malaysia Sdn Bhd and the "overzealous distributors" out there, if your product is a drug, and you'd like to advertise your product on this blog, please publish your drug license and write to us officially.
Best regards,
Sharon
Dear Sharon,
I agree with you with regards the so called stem cell "enhancers". Its load of crap(pardon my french). A brief intro, i'm head marketing for Stempeutics malaysia. I was not able to attend the "vitamin talk " in the Big hospital but i sent my sales person. We get a lot enquiries about stem cells and its uses, mostly from patients with no medical hope. They are looking for a straw which is not there and are easily duped. I've had patients call in to ask if this pill will help them "walk". This is how desperate some people are. The way this company is positioning their product is wrong. If it really works and will benefit the public, then sell it like how other pharmaceutical company sells their drugs/supplements. There were "big shots" during the seminar but unfortunately, nobody asked the speaker any intelligent questions to assertain his claims. The fact that this talk was held in a major private hospital, implies that the hospital endorses the product. Is this ethical?
naveen
I deeply apologize for the inconvenience that may have been created by having our distributors contact you or your colleague. We ask that our distributors do not contact medical people, as the communication at times takes place in a manner that is disruptive or unpleasant for medical professionals. Most of the time, distributors are not qualified and do not have the basic knowledge to share relevant information with medical professionals. You claim to have asked information from one our distributors pertaining to a publication and a proof of concept trial; distributors are not qualified to provide this kind of information.
Indeed I presented at the Pentai Hospital a proof of concept and an overall description of our concept. The presentation focused on Induced Endogenous Stem Cell Mobilization as a means of tapping into the potential of adult stem cells. Unfortunately, at the request of the organizers of the lecture series, I did not present the data pertaining to our product. This information was published in Cardiovascular Revascularization Medicine, vol. 8, September 2007, 189-202.
We have an approval from the government for the sales of the product, but outside of this we have no special approval or any endorsement by the Pentai Hospital.
You can perform the simple trial that you are describing, but this may not give justice to the phenomenon. It took us a few years to develop a method to reliably quantify relatively small changes in stem cell population. Many things can interfere that can reduce statistical significance. As you certainly know, stem cells are a very small portion of the overall leucocyte population.
Confidence in our product is not an issue. We are currently conducting many clinical trials with very reputable labs in a number of countries. One such trial has been completed, was presented at the annual meeting of the International Society for Stem Cell Research in 2008, and will be published soon. It clearly supports the claims we make. Contacts were made in Malaysia, which I hope will leads to some trials in Malaysia as well. As described in the publication cited above, StemEnhance does increase the number of stem cells, and the results reported by consumers are very real.
Given the limitation of a blog, I hope that this answered your question.
Sincerely,
Christian Drapeau
The increase postulated by these products is not higher than one induced physiologically by a 5 km run or a session of weight lifting! Get out there and exercise, proven to increase circulating CD34+ significantly!
Dr Kostas
Dr. Kostas, I appreciate your comment, which could be applied to so many aspect pertaining to medicine. There are many health problems that would be taken care of if people exercised more, ate better, and adopted a better lifestyle. Indeed exercise is known to enhance stem cell mobilization, though it normally takes quite significant physical activity to affect mobilization (while a marathon does affect mobilization, a half marathon was reported to have no effect). This being said, on one hand there are many people who do not run 5km every day, and certainly not 2-3 times a day. On the other hand, in spite of all its benefits, running 5km per day does not bring the kind of benefits seen with StemEnhance. Without in any way intimating that exercise is not important for good health, the benefits obtained with StemEnhance are definitely superior to what is obtained by simple exercise.
Dear Naveen,
It all depends on who invited the company in to give the talk in the first place. Usually speakers and organizations should be thoroughly vetted prior to any presentations, but having said that, I am not entitled to know by what process nor who decides how this should happen.
Since Dr. Christian Drapeau and his distributors are now also readers of this blog entry, they can probably enlighten us how many clients they managed to garner at the talk event and whether they've convinced the hospital to sell it as a product.
Further, Dr. Drapeau has also stated that their distributors do not usually engage the medical community but only the public and layperson and that they are not equipped to support or substantiate the claims with any information.
Presently in Malaysia its:
CAVEAT EMPTOR
not Caveat venditor
Best regards,
Sharon
Dear Sir (CD), belittling the indisputable benefits of exercise and its effects on CD34+ is fitting your strategy. To suggest that the purported and unproven increases in stem cell numbers by your concoction have benefits is like salmon flavored potato chips having native omega-3 benefits! Moreover, exercise costs nothing and has many more benefits than sitting in a couch taking vitamin pills.
me too! see here:
http://www.stem-cells-news.com/1/2009/03/italy-protein-regulating-neural-stem-cell-growth-discovered/comment-page-1/#comment-48
So, did you guys just do the experiment? I'm sure anyone in the medical community can just sponsor the product and test it out in your labs. Thanks!
Dear Dr. Kostas I.P,
One question, i think no one can argue with the fact that exercise is good, but how does someone who is chronically ill, or sickly, be expected to run 5km or do weights.
Just something to ponder.
FYI, i am neither supporting or against the product, but am merely doing my due diligence and researching all things related to this product online.
Thanks!!
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