Biting off a big chunk...
Please bear with me/us during this period of the last couple of months during which my blog entries have been minimal and we have not been sending out our regular newsletters.
Our admin resources have been stretched in dealing with the implementation of our new website and the inevitable 'bugs' that came with it partly by introducing the new online customer accounts. Added to this has been the introduction of the new skin care range and the 'settling in' of these, and further, the need for us to prepare for the release of the new generation Total Balance which includes three new versions for adults plus a childrens Total Balance.
Included with the release of the new generation Total Balance will be a new Multi-Xtra product that we have developed (which is an advanced Multi Vitamin/mineral tablet) for those people whose budget cannot stretch to the Total Balance. In other words we have manufactured and will be releasing 8 new complex products. This has been a major exercise.
These will all be released by Wednesday/Thursday next week.
It has been a bit like the 'perfect storm' with a series of situations all converging at the same time. Fortunately, our manufacturing division is 'immune' from all this as that just keeps ticking along nicely. They don't have to worry about the labels or the purchasing of the raw ingredients etc as that is an admin responsibility. Accordingly, a lot of one of pressure has been put on our admin and customer relation staff having to cope with the learning curve associated with many of these very much improved systems.
But, happily we are almost through the other side of the storm and I for one with many of our staff will be able to start living semi-normal lives again unstead of the constant 7 day weeks and very long days and evenings.
But...it has been exciting and in addition to the product improvements we have made our customers will also soon see further improvements in our customer support.
I hope to be back to normal with both newsletters and blog entries within the next 2 weeks. I will endeavor to answer questions on the blog in a timely manner but the next couple of days I will be tied up in helping finalize draft regulation for the NZ supplement industry.
Thank you for your understanding.
Warren Matthews
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Reader Comments (17)
Exciting news!
Just keep "tell(ing) it as it is."
Thanks you're good people.
May you live every day of your life.
Thomas
Thought you and your readers might be interested in reading a fascination book on healthy eating that will only further support your xtend-life program.
You can check it out at http://www.EatingforEnergy.ca
Yuri
P.S. I'd be happy to send you a copy.
How about you send me a copy as well. Will be happy to read it. For fellow Xtend-Life members. :)
Will you be introducing a daily cleanser as well? I am using the cleansing mask currently and it's great but a daily cleanser would
even be better :)
Actually we are looking into that possibility at the moment. In the meantime I find the best type is one of the natural face wash gels that you can find in a big supermarket or a health food store.
I just wanted to get an update on the release of your new Total Balance formula.
Thank you.
Actually we started shipping it out a couple of days ago as we have run out of the old generation. But...through pressure of work there is still some content that I have to personally complete. That should be done by later today.
We are planning on going 'live' with all the info at 1pm tomorrow (Monday NZ time).
Congratulations on the new generation release of TB.
I have been taking USANA for a year or so and now started to take TB. I noticed my energy levels increase which is truly amazing.
NSF in the US has given USANA the seal in which what's on the bottle is the true ingredients. Meaning that some other third party has proven that the labels are correct.
Does TB have that same seal or other types of seal.
What I am saying is how do we know what's in those bottles and is it true.
I truly do believe that you are honest and offer the public what's on the label. Just that a second opinion is worth a lot to many people.
Thank you for taking the time to read my comment and reply.
Cheers,
Mike
I am pleased to hear of the positive results you have been getting from Total Balance. You will find that the new version will give you an even further 'leap forward', particuarly if you use the premium version.
The point you raise about NSF is a good one and one that we are acutely aware of. We know that our products are true to label. If they were not then I would be damaging myself as I rely on them for my own good health. But, it is hard to prove to our customers that this is the case.
Earlier this year we sent our Quality Assurance manager to the US to attend a seminar on the new US GMP rules and to discuss with a couple of organizations what we would need to do in order to have our facility in New Zealand certified under these new rules.
NSF is one of the organizations with whom we are talking and considering using as our certification agency and as our auditors.
We are hoping that we can arrange to have them come and audit our facility later this year, or at latest early next year. So...it will only be a matter of time before hopefully we can provide third party evidence that everything we claim is for real.
In the meantime any customers who are in NZ are always welcome to visit us and we would give them a tour and explain our systems, paper work and how we ensure that the products are true to label and only the best ingredients are used.
Congratulations on the next generation of TB - very exciting. I haven't compared the changes to ingredients in detail however I did notice you seem to have dropped use of Quercetin. As you know Quercetin has a wide range of benefits (well documented on your website/blog and elsewhere). I am very curious and a little concerned as to why this is not part of the next generation.
Andrew
You are right, Quercetin is a great ingredient. But, the problem is that in order to really get the benefits of it, the dose rate has to be quite high. To have included it in the new generation would have meant either increasing the number of tablets a day which would not have been acceptable for many customers, or, leaving out other new ingredients. A conscious decision was made to replace it with other more potent compatable ingredients. We did not save any money by doing so as Quercetin costs less than the ingredients we used to replace it with. But, we do have a more potent formula as a result.
I too was curious about the changes made to the new generation of TB. I've noticed that several ingredients were removed and others that stayed had their dosages lowered. I wonder whether this was done to have room for the new ingredients while keeping the daily intake of tablets from increasing much or if because of the new ingredients the others were not needed or needed in such great amounts as before. I for one want the best I can have for my health and well being and if that means taking for example 10 tablets instead of 6 then I have no problems with that. In fact I take more than that now since I use other products of yours like Neuro Natural Memory, Male Rejuvenator, Bone-Protec, and your fish oil. I just want to be sure that no corners are being cut since this is the Premium version and as such should include the best of what we need even if the daily dosage of tablets increases greatly.
Firstly the lithium. The amounts that were in the earlier version were very minute and would have had very little impact on energy. Interestingly, I and other people I have spoken to have all had an increase in energy since switching to the new generation. Hopefully Michael you will also find this as well soon.
The prime reason it was removed is that many countries are are now treating it as a drug and it is a prohibited substance...and more countries are set to follow.
This issue was discussed at length with our chief researcher Prof. Dr Munem before the change was made and other ingredients were adjusted to help compensate.
With regard to the other ingredients, all adjustments were made with view to increasing the potency and broadening the range of activity. The premium versions have more total active ingredients than the earlier version.
The emphasis was getting the best possible results for free radicals, glycation, methylation, inflammation and DNA repair. Previously for the mens and womens versions we were fitting this into 6 tablets per day, but in order to increase the potency further we had to increase it to 7 tablets a day.
We have the optimal practical levels of nutrients in the Premium version when factoring in their interactions with each other.
Agreed we have had to remove some ingredients but then these have been replaced with more effective ones such as Calcium D-Glucarate which is a very potent (and expensive) anti-cancer nutrient, not to be confused with a normal calcium salt.
We have also added SAMe which is the most effective methylator available...much more effective than the B vitamins for reducing homocysteine in the blood which is a major factor in heart disease.
We have also increased the amount of resvertrol which has exceptional health benefits.
What I will do as soon as I can is prepare an article which better outlines the changes that were made and why they were made.
I can confirm though that we did not make any compromises and I am satisfied that it is not possible to make a better general health supplement in the number of tablets that we are currently using.
I will also prepare a document which helps explain the steps we go through when preparing a new formula or., upgrading an existing one.
My husband and I both started the TB prior to the removal of Lithium. Within the first week we had increased levels of energy, we slept better through the night and my daily headaches which I have had for twenty years had subsided.
My timing on reorder was a little off and I was out of stock for about five days and anxiously anticipating the arrival of my next order. I had slipped backwards to the way I used to feel. Once my new order arrived and a few days had passed, I noticed that I was still not improving. I examined the bottle to make sure I had not ordered wrong and then I realized the formula was different.
I immediately inquired and was informed of the changes. I understand that the variety of ingredients which are being used as the Lithium substitution are supposed to be more effective, however, my system is not reacting to it.
I spoke with my doctor who said that the trace amount of the Lithium was most likely just enough to regulate my moods and stress level and give me that overall improved sense of well being and better sleep. He recommended I find another product with the same dose as an alternative to a pharmaceutical prescription.(Which I have done, but I don't want to advertise what it is for fear the regulatory pests will ban that, too!)
Thank you again, all of you at Xtend Life for caring about your customers and being actively involved.
~You guys rock!
We are having discussions with the regulatory authorities to see if there is some way that we can put back in a small amount of lithium. It is really quite a silly regulation...but sadly it is not the only silly one in this area.
I remember Lois mentioning your situation to me, and from memory I think that you switched to the new Total Balance standard. May I suggest that you revert to the Premium version. The reason for this is that in the Premium version we have a very special Bacopia extract which replaces the DMAE and the Lithium. According to Prof.Dr Munen this extract has a very similar action.
Might be worth a try...but, as you said, as an alternative you may be able to find a low dose lithium supplement.
You may also find that it takes a bit longer to get that specific benefit so I wouldn't give up on the possibility that it may achieve what you are hoping.
I would be interested to learn how you get on. Please drop Lois a note when you can and let know and she will pass it on,
Good luck