Pharmacies in Jeddah said they do not sell a medicine that the Saudi Ministry of Health had warned against. The ministry had announced Saturday that the medicine, called “Noni Tahitian,” and commercially presented as a “miracle in a bottle,” had been proven to be useless. Pharmacists told the Saudi Gazette on Tuesday that some companies try to market their products with complete disregard for public health, something that reputable pharmacies wouldn't do. They also denied that they display any drugs that are not licensed by the ministry. “I've never heard about this drug,” said Sami Radwan, a pharmacist at a local drug store told the Saudi Gazette. “We know these companies' commercial goals very well. They want money no matter what the cost, but we don't put any unlicensed products on our shelves.” The producing company of the alleged drug, Perfect Health, Inc., claims that it had been used in many traditional healing cultures to lessen a wide variety of symptoms, including those seen in arthritis, colds and flu, injuries and inflammation. “Many people use Noni for joint or muscle stiffness and inflammation,” the product's advertisement claimed. It also claimed that Noni can provide relief in severe and chronic pain and headaches. According to the ministry's statement, the Central Laboratory for Drugs and Foods examined the medicine, where experts found the drug of no health value, let alone a cure for many diseases. The statement described the product as alcohol-free, brown concentrated Tahitian fruit juice with an unpleasant, strong odor, known scientifically as “Morinda Citrifolia.” “We neither found any medical importance in the product nor did we see any convincing value for the fruit itself,” the ministry's statement added. Another manufacturer of the juice, Morinda, Inc., had recently claimed that Tahitian Noni Juice can cure diseases, including HIV. The company claimed that its product can stimulate the growth of T-cells and restore immune function. The company makes similar claims of cures for diabetes, cancer, depression and a lot of other diseases. Morinda, Inc. was forced to stop making these claims. The US Food and Drug Administration had previously told the producing company that their product had violated the FDA's criteria. __
