Yet the testimonials remain. We personally heard quite a few while talking
with the sea of distributors in the Gand Hyatt. One thought kept rolling over
and over in our minds -- these can't be true. Perhaps this was just our
Westernized brain's quick defense mechanism to label anything controversial
and foreign as "mumbo jumbo". We found ourselves coming away not knowing
what to believe. It's difficult to listen to a story of how a person overcame
asthma, or how another's ulcers cleared up, or how high blood pressure has
been lowered, and have the person we're talking with say with absolute sincerity,
"It happened to me," and not believe.
Then again, we can's help thinking back to Darcy with his finger tapping on his
temple saying, "It's all up here," and find ourselves re-evaluating the powers of
myth. History and medical science have proven the seemingly magical
effects of a placebo., the power of faith healing, the power of the mind, the
effect a philosopg and positive attitude can have on a person. If they just
believe, they will get better.
Does Chen's philosophy of regenration produce a subtle form of conditioning
that allows people to miraculously obtain a state of health and harmony
previusly lacking in their lives, or are the products actuallly as potent as
Sunriders say they are? Either way, the concept is mind-boggling.
Medical claims made by independent distributors have gotten Sunrider into
trouble in the past, and have made the company the target of some unkind
scrutiny. It has been investigated by local, state and federal consumer
protection agencies, has had lawsuits filed against it claiming that its products
contain addictive stimulants and leads not printed in the ingredients, and
has been attacked by TV tabloid shows like Inside Edition and
20/20.
These investigations always end ambiguously. Sunrider has never admitted
fault or guilt, yet a few cash settlements have been made. Ultimately, the
attacks against Sunrider and its products, although negative, fall into the
same category as the testimonials. There is simply no concerete proof.
Someone could easily sue Sunrider claiming that its products caused dizzy
spells and paranoia, but is this more credible than another's claim that the
products cured skin cancer?
[CONTINUED BELOW]
Even Chen's father has been called to the witness stand in one of Sunrider's
lawsuits. In a Phoenix case Chen testified under oath that he is not an M.D. or
a licensed pharmacologist, but has degrees in pharmacology and decades of
experience with herbal formulas, enough to be considered an eminent
expert.
In the face of such attacks Sunrider maintains the position that it sells foods,
not medicines, and that it has millions of happy customers and only a handful
of complaints. This is a telling point. No company with sales approaching
Sunrider's can claim to be free from lawsuits.
Refusing to comment directly on either the testimonials or the complaints,
Chen says, "We're a success because people eat our products and feel food.
They like it. Obviously different people are going to have different results.
Some people have great results and get very excited and they tell people.
When you have a problem, a big problem, and you solve it, you become so
excited that you just want to tell everybody.
"We don't recommend that people talk about testimonials. If other
companies had these testimonials, they would probably make a big deal
about them, but that is not what we are here for. We focus on keeping
people healthy, not curing disease or illness. The philosophy of regeneration
can be proven in only a few ways. One way is to go through the medical
field, study it, check it out and see if it works. But this type of study is really
more for drugs.
"On the other hand, the Chinese have been eating herbs for thousands of
years and there has been a lot of knowledge accumulated and passed down.
Even though many studies have not been scientific--like [the belief that]
eating carrots nourishes you--they're just common knowledge. People's
personal experience is that they eat this product and they feel good. It's not
just one person's experience or two people's experience. We're talking about
an accumulation of thousands of years of experience. This is Sunrider's tenth
year and many people have used the products and proven that they work for
them. That is our proof."
"If other companies had these testimonials, they would probably
make a big deal about them, but that is not what we are here for. We focus
on keeping people healthy, not curing disease or illness."
