Thread: TriVita: Develop a Relationship with God?

TriVita wants people to "experience wellness". They list 10 "essentials":

1. Breathe Deeply
2. Drink Water
3. Sleep Peacefully
4. Eat Nutritiously
5. Enjoy Activity
6. Give and Receive Love
7. Be Forgiving
8. Practice Gratitude
9. Develop Acceptance
10. Develop a Relationship with God

10. Develop a Relationship with God – You build a relationship with God in the same way you build a relationship with those around you – through sharing and listening. By offering a simple prayer daily, you will enjoy a sense of well-being you will not experience any other way.

Develop a Relationship with God – Take at least 15 minutes each day to spend in prayer, meditation, and inspirational reading. Make this a time to concentrate on the areas in your life where you most need Divine help. Seek out Divine comfort and direction every day.

Now I know the CEO owns a media company that "grew into a national presence in the Christian media industry".

But there are other monotheists as well as atheists who recognize TriVita's message as decidedly Christian, and do not wish to be exposed to the "preaching" of others in any way, shape or form.

Originally Posted by Emet

Now I know the CEO owns a media company that "grew into a national presence in the Christian media industry".

But there are other monotheists as well as atheists who recognize TriVita's message as decidedly Christian, and do not wish to be exposed to the "preaching" of others in any way, shape or form.

Yes, Michael is Christian. And so are the majority of the folks that join. But we have Muslims, Jews, Atheists, Bhuddists amongst our members that I have met during conferences.

They all work essential number 10 their own way. Some replace the word G!d with their name for G!d, be it Allah, Krishna, Source, the Universe...whatever.

But as it has been shown that having a spiritual foundation is beneficial to a longer, healtheir life...and that is what the 10 essentials are about...it is included.

As with any company or organization, those that have some aversion or allergic reaction to being exposed to tenents of the company can choose not to. We believe in freedom of religion.

Originally Posted by iamwil

But as it has been shown that having a spiritual foundation is beneficial to a longer, healtheir life...and that is what the 10 essentials are about...it is included.

Source please.

Hm, but will it make me a "Money Magnet"??

Originally Posted by Wizzard7

Hm, but will it make me a "Money Magnet"??

As long as you have magnetic money!

Pargament, K. I., H. G. Koenig, N. Tarakeshwar, J. Hahn. 2001. Religious Struggle as a Predictor of Mortality Among Medically Ill Elderly Patients A 2-Year Longitudinal Study. Arch. Intern Med. 161: 1881-1883.

A study examined the effect of "religious struggle" (defined by such things as being angry at God or feeling punished by God) was predictive of poorer physical recovery and higher mortality. According to the authors, "Our findings suggest that patients who indicate religious struggle during a spiritual history may be at particularly high risk for poor medical outcomes. Referral of these patients to clergy to help them work through these issues may ultimately improve clinical outcomes; further research is needed to determine whether interventions that reduce religious struggles might also improve medical prognosis."

Hughes M. Helma, Judith C. Haysb, Elizabeth P. Flintb, Harold G. Koeniga and Dan G. Blazera. 2000. Does Private Religious Activity Prolong Survival? A Six-Year Follow-up Study of 3,851 Older Adults. The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences 55: M400-M405.

A six year study of 3,851 elderly persons revealed that those who reported having rarely to never participating in private religious activity had an increased relative hazard of dying over those who participated more frequently in religious activity. Whereas most previous studies showed a positive effect for organized religious activities, this study showed that personal religious activity was also effective at reducing mortality.

Koenig HG, Hays JC, Larson DB, et al. 1999. Does religious attendance prolong survival? A six-year follow-up study of 3,968 older adults. J Gerontol Med Sci. 54A: M370-M377.

Hummer R, Rogers R, Nam C, Ellison CG, 1999. Religious involvement and U.S. adult mortality. Demography 36: 273-285.

This study examined the effect of religious attendance on mortality. People who never attended religious activities exhibited 1.87 times the risk of death compared with people who attend more than once a week, which results in a seven-year difference in life expectancy at age 20 between those who never attend and those who attend more than once a week. People who did not attend church or religious services were more likely to be unhealthy and, consequently, to die. However, religious attendance also increased social ties and behavioral factors to decrease the risks of death.

Koenig, H.G. 1998. Religious attitudes and practices of hospitalized medically ill older adults. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 13: 213-224.

When a random sample of 338 hospitalized patients were asked an open-ended question about what the most important factor was that enabled them to cope, 42.3% mentioned their religious faith.
Koenig H.G, et al. 1998. The relationship between religious activities and blood pressure in older adults. International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine 28: 189-213.

The relationship between religious activities and blood pressure was examined in 6-year prospective study of 4,000 older adults. Among subjects who attended religious services once a week or more and prayed or studied the Bible once a day or more, the likelihood of diastolic hypertension was 40 percent lower than among those who attended services and prayed less often (p<.0001, after controlling for age, sex, race, smoking, chronic illness and body mass index).
Koenig, H.G., Pargament, K.I., and Nielsen, J. 1998. Religious coping and health status in medically ill hospitalized older adults. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 186: 513-521.

The authors concluded that religious coping behaviors related to better mental health were at least as strong, if not stronger, than were non-religious coping behaviors. A survey of 577 hospitalized medically ill patients age 55 or over examined the relationship between 21 different types of religious coping and mental and physical health. Religious coping behaviors that were associated with better mental health were re-appraisal of God as benevolent, collaboration with God, and giving religious help to others. Re-appraisals of God as punishing, re-appraisals involving demonic forces, pleading for direct intersection, and spiritual discontent were associated with worse mental and physical health. Of the 21 religious coping behaviors, 16 were significantly related to greater psychological growth, 15 were related to greater cooperativeness, and 16 were related to greater spiritual growth.
Koenig, H.G., George, L.K., Peterson, B.L. 1998. Use of health services by hospitalized medically ill depressed elderly patients. American Journal of Psychiatry 155: 536-542.

Found that depressed patients who had a strong intrinsic religious faith recovered over 70% faster from depression than those with less strong faith; among a subgroup of patients whose physical illness was not improving, intrinsically religious patients recovered 100% faster.
Koenig, H.G., and Larson, D.B. 1998. Use of hospital services, religious attendance, and religious affiliation. Southern Medical Journal 91: 925-932.

Found an inverse relationship between frequency of religious service attendance and likelihood of hospital admission in a sample of 455 older patients. Those who attended church weekly or more often were significantly less likely in the previous year to have been admitted to the hospital, had fewer hospital admissions, and spent fewer days in the hospital than those attending less often; these associations retained their significance after controlling for covariates. Patients unaffiliated with a religious community had significantly longer index hospital stays than those affiliated. Unaffiliated patients spent an average of 25 days in the hospital, compared with 11 days for affiliated patients (p<.0001); this association strengthened when physical health and other covariates were controlled.

Oman, D., and Reed, D. 1998. Religion and mortality among the community-dwelling elderly. American Journal of Public Health 88: 1469-1475.

In a 5-yer prospective cohort study of 1,931 older residents of Marin County, California, persons who attended religious services were 36% less likely to die during the follow up period. When the variables (including age, sex, marital status, number of chronic diseases, lower body disability, balance problems, exercise, smoking status, alcohol use, weight, two measures of social functioning and social support, and depression) were controlled, persons who attended religious services were still 24% less likely to die during the 5-yer follow up. During the 5-year follow up, there were 454 deaths. Subjects were divided into 2 categories: "attenders" (weekly or occasional attenders) and "non-attenders" (never attend).

Idler, E.L., & Kasl, S.V. 1997. Religion among disabled and nondisabled persons II: attendance at religious services as a predictor of the course of disability. Journal of Gerontology 52: S306-S316.

A longitudinal study of 2,812 older adults in New Haven, CT, found that frequent religious attenders in 1982 were significantly less likely than infrequent attenders to be physically disabled 12 years later, a finding that persisted after controlling for health practices, social ties, and indicators of well-being.
Koenig HG, et al. 1997. Attendance at religious services, interleukin-6, and other biological parameters of immune function in older adults. International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine 27: 233-250.

Findings suggest that persons who attend church frequently have stronger immune systems than less frequent attenders, and may help explain why both better mental and better physical health are characteristic of frequent church attenders. Reported that frequent religious attendance in 1986, 1989, and 1992 predicted lower plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels in a sample of 1,718 older adults followed over six years. IL-6 levels are elevated in patients with AIDS, osteoporosis, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and other serious medical conditions, and is an indicator of immune system function.

Strawbridge, W.J., et al. 1997. Frequent attendance at religious services and mortality over 28 years. American Journal of Public Health 87: 957-961.

Frequent church attendees were more likely to stop smoking, increase exercising, increase social contacts, and stay married; even after these factors were controlled for, however, the mortality difference persisted.

Study reports the results of a 28-year follow-up study of 5,000 adults involved in the Berkeley Human Population Laboratory. Mortality for persons attending religious services once/week or more often was almost 25% lower than for persons attending religious services less frequently; for women, the mortality rate was reduced by 35%.

Kark, JD., G Shemi, Y Friedlander, O Martin, O Manor and SH Blondheim. 1996. Does religious observance promote health? mortality in secular vs religious kibbutzim in Israel. American Journal of Public Health 86: 341-346.

Even after eliminating social support and conventional health behaviors as possible confounders, members of religious kibbutzim still lived longer than those in secular kibbutzim. A 16-year mortality study, where 11 religious kibbutzim were matched with 11 secular kibbutzim (n=3,900); careful matching was performed to ensure that secular and religious kibbutzim were as similar as possible in characteristics that might affect mortality (social support, selection and retaining of members, etc.), and controlled for conventional risk factors (drinking, smoking, plasma cholesterol levels. Of the 268 deaths that occurred, 69 were in religious and 199 in secular kibbutzim; hazard ratio was 1.93 (95% CI 1.44-2.59, p<.0001).
Oxman, T.E., Freeman, D.H., and Manheimer, E.D. 1995. Lack of social participation or religious strength and comfort as risk factors for death after cardiac surgery in the elderly. Psychosomatic Medicine 57: 5-15.

The mortality rate in persons with low social support who did not depend on their religious faith for strength, was 12 times that of persons with a strong support network who relied heavily on religion; even when social factors were accounted for, persons who depended on religion were only about one-third as likely to die as those who did not. Followed 232 adults for six months after open-heart surgery, examining predictors of mortality.


Pressman, P., Lyons, J.S., Larson, D.B., and Strain, J.J. 1990. Religious belief, depression, and ambulation status in elderly women with broken hips. American Journal of Psychiatry 147: 758-759.

Reported that among 33 elderly women hospitalized with hip fracture, greater religiousness was associated with less depression and longer walking distances at the time of hospital discharge.


Zuckerman DM, Kasl SV, Ostfeld AM, 1984. Psychosocial predictors of mortality among the elderly poor. Am J Epidemiol. 119:410-423.

Thist study examine mortality among 400 elderly poor residents of New Haven, Hartford, and West Haven, Connecticut, in 1972-1974. Results, controlled for demographic variables, showed that religiousness reduced mortality.

Florell, J.L. 1973. Bulletin of the American Protestant Hospital Association 37(2):29-36.

Crisis-intervention in orthopedic surgery: Empirical evidence of the effectiveness of a chaplain working with surgery patients. Randomized patients either to a chaplain intervention, which involved chaplain visits for 15 minutes/day per patient, or to a control group ("business as usual"). The chaplain intervention reduced length of stay by 29% (p<.001), patient-initiated call on RN time to one-third, and use of PRN pain medications to one-third.

I cannot think of anything more obnoxious than the combo dual "Chriitan MLM". It's also an oxymoron for a true Christian. It seems that greed, lying, harm, destruction, dishonestry, bogus claims, and bilking others are qualities not beyond "Christians", apparently. Wait for someone to come on here and say "they are just trying to help people." Yeah right.....help them to other people's money for selling them over-priced, over hyped, under performing products.

MLM growth feeds on discontentment. The message to be conveyed, implied or obvious, is: "Don't waste your life working for 'Corporate America'." "Why bother getting a college degree (or job, or whatever)... just to work for 'The Man'?" "Your spouse doesn't make enough money," and so forth. "You need more," is the gist. Dissatisfaction is thus stoked and prodded by MLM materials and culture. Discontent appears to be the preferred fuel for the MLM engine.

Yet Christian doctrine is clear that believers are to "be content" (Hebrews 13:5, Philippians 4:11-12, 1Timothy 6:6-11) and motivated NOT by grumbling or greed or discontent, but rather by the Holy Spirit. For a professing Christian, how can this stark difference of emphasis and motivation be resolved with "standard" MLM practice, presentations, and culture?

Isn't MLM a great way for Christian ministries to support themselves?

No. It is a great way for missionaries or laypeople or ministers to get derailed from their mission, waste a lot of money and time, alienate a lot of people, and lead a few unfortunate others down the same ruinous path. Athena Dean in her books, makes a good real-life case-study of this pitfall for Christians.

Often this temptation flies under the banner of "tentmaking", a reference to the Apostle Paul who made tents and thus supported his own ministry so as not to be a burden on anyone else. My wife Laura and I are very keen on "tentmaking" ourselves as a personal practice. But MLM is completely at odds with the spirit of this noble discipline.

Paul wanted NOT to be a burden on anyone, and this is quite different than openly conning and exploiting people. Even if the ML pyramid scheme aspect is downplayed (and it can only be subdued, not eliminated, right?), should ministers be hawking their wares within the church fellowship? WWJD? If there was a Jesus, I would picture something far worse than the money changers scenario. lmao

Christians are enjoined in Ephesians 4:28 "not to steal", but rather to do "something useful" so that they can "have something to share with those in need". The get-rich by magic pyramid-dream is nothing less than stealing, and you don't even have to be a Christian to know that this is wrong. If you are in, get out. If you are thinking about it, DON'T DO IT. Do something honest and useful instead. C\

Can we say hypocrits?

What about the blatant appeal to materialism and greed??

Not so with the MLM crowd. Pick up any brochure or videotape for an MLM and you are more than likely to see a cheesy, obvious, and blatant appeal to greed and materialism. This is offensive to everyone, even die-hard materialists. Typical is an appeal to "the American dream." Usually there will be a mood shot of a large new home, a luxury car, a boat, perhaps a beautiful couple boarding a Lear jet, and so on. While this need not necessarily be part of the MLM approach, it usually is.

Such a transparent appeal should make people suspicious. "Why the bait?" "Are they trying to 'get my juices going' so that my brain turns off?" "Couldn't they show people doing more wholesome things with the money they make?" "If this is really a legitimate opportunity, why not focus on the market, product, or service instead of people reveling in lavish materialism?"

But we have reason enough to know, having read this far, why the distraction is needed. Unbridled greed suspends good judgment. When the eyes gloss over in a materialistic glaze, common sense is a stranger.

Besides being cheesy and offensive to our sensibilities, this is not a big deal for participants, right? But consider that all companies must have control over the way they are presented to the public. Thus, an MLM has the right and obligation to dictate what material is used. Otherwise any agent could say whatever he or she liked about the nature of the company, causing obvious problems. Again, it would take too much time to audit and approve each individual's idea for a presentation where the goal is mass marketing. Using "boilerplate" presentations affords the added benefit of consistency. This is basic "information quality control."

The net effect is that the MLM rep is "stuck" with the company-approved video, brochure, and presentation outline.

On the flip-side of the issue of being stuck with the recruitment "pitch" is the fact that the MLM organization is otherwise loose, to say the least. This is part of the appeal to many, to "be your own boss."
But in practice this leads to loony product claims, many of which are deceptive and some of which can be positively dangerous.

Hyperbole is a given in an MLM. When inexperienced salespeople are turned loose to sell on full commission without supervision or accountability, what else could happen?

Since MLM organizations are notoriously flash-in-the-pan, one has to wonder why any new company would choose this flawed marketing technique. Perhaps one of the things to consider is that the MLM organization can effectively skirt the Federal Trade Commission by using word-of-mouth testimonials, supposed "studies" done by scientists, fabricated endorsements, rumors and other misrepresentations that would never be allowed to see the light of day in the real world of product promotion, shady as it is.

Thus, MLM has evolved into a "niche": it can be used to sell products that could not be sold any other way. An MLM is a way to get undue credibility by exploiting people's personal friendships and relationships via "networking."


If you are a Christian, remember that God is watching, even if you never get "successful" enough for the Feds to notice you.

Originally Posted by iamwil

Yes, Michael is Christian. And so are the majority of the folks that join. But we have Muslims, Jews, Atheists, Bhuddists amongst our members that I have met during conferences.

Of that I have no doubt. Non Christians also work at Chick-fil-A, but many are unhappy with the heavy Christian theme behind the scenes.

They all work essential number 10 their own way. Some replace the word G!d with their name for G!d, be it Allah, Krishna, Source, the Universe...whatever.

As do members of Alcoholics Anonymous. While God is mentioned in the 12 Steps, "other twelve-step groups have adapted the AA steps as guiding principles, they have been altered to emphasize principles important to those particular fellowships, to remove gender-biased or specific religious language". And AA was started in 1935.

But as it has been shown that having a spiritual foundation is beneficial to a longer, healtheir life...and that is what the 10 essentials are about...it is included.

Source please.

Well, I waited patiently... Here is an article from WebMD-- I will cherry pick some highlights--but I will link my source.

Spirituality May Help People Live Longer
Discover why some believe that older people who regularly attend religious services appear to have better health.

Why do older people who regularly attend religious services appear to live longer and have better health? Is it something about the type of people they are? Or is it something related to their visits to churches or synagogues -- perhaps increased contact with other people?

Other large studies have had similar results. Some smaller studies have also shown that spirituality may be beneficial: People who attend religious services, or who feel they are spiritual, experience lower levels of depression and anxiety; display signs of better health, such as lower blood pressure and fewer strokes; and say they generally feel healthier.

Researchers, including Koenig, say there are limitations to the conclusions anyone should draw from these studies. It could be that people who attend religious services benefit from the social network they form. "It might be that people in churches and synagogues watch out for others, especially the elderly," encouraging them, for example, to get help if they look sick, Koenig says.

Also, it's known that among today's older men and women, religious belief often leads to less risky behavior, such as less alcohol consumption and smoking. And religious beliefs -- or a strong feeling of spirituality outside of traditional religions -- may improve an individual's ability to cope with the stresses of everyday life and the tribulations of aging, experts say.

Or it could be, McFadden says, that certain personality types cope better with life -- and those are the types of people who also attend services more regularly.

"The message isn't 'Go back to church and you'll live a long time,' but stay connected with people on your own wavelength," says Moody, until recently the director of the Brookdale Center on Aging at Hunter College in New York City.

This could mean, for example, joining small prayer groups not associated with any church, trying personal meditation, writing your life story, searching inside for personal meaning in life as you age and face death, remaining optimistic about life even if age and illness take their toll, and forging social connections with family, friends and others.

"You have to discover what is your subjective way of coping with life and tap into it," Moody says.

Spirituality May Help People Live Longer

IMO religion and the mention of God has no place in any commercial endeavor.

ETA: So iamwill found a web page that was not linked back to (wonder where he found it?). So I'll go back and bold the important conclusions.

Correlation does not necessarily equal causation. MLMers rarely understand this. People who go to church might not be healthier because they go to church, they might be healthier because they also tend to commit less crime (ie, put themselves in fewer harmful situations), they may be more wealthy on average, etc, etc.

One can mathematically show correlation the start of war with the position of stars in the sky, that doesn't prove causation.

I would think religious people should also be more honest on average, yet that doesn't seem to be the case. They seem to be as dishonest as the average person. The really outward religious leaders seem to be more dishonest than the average person in my experience. You, yourself, Will, seem to struggle with honesty on a constant basis.

Originally Posted by calvinandhobbes

I would think religious people should also be more honest on average, yet that doesn't seem to be the case. They seem to be as dishonest as the average person. The really outward religious leaders seem to be more dishonest than the average person in my experience. You, yourself, Will, seem to struggle with honesty on a constant basis.

Not to mention backpeddling, lying, deep deflections and avoidance of giving direct honest answers, contradictions and when all that fails....just plain old bullshit.

Researchers, including Koenig, say there are limitations to the conclusions anyone should draw from these studies. It could be that people who attend religious services benefit from the social network they form. "It might be that people in churches and synagogues watch out for others, especially the elderly," encouraging them, for example, to get help if they look sick, Koenig says.

Also, it's known that among today's older men and women, religious belief often leads to less risky behavior, such as less alcohol consumption and smoking. And religious beliefs -- or a strong feeling of spirituality outside of traditional religions -- may improve an individual's ability to cope with the stresses of everyday life and the tribulations of aging, experts say.

This could mean, for example, joining small prayer groups not associated with any church, trying personal meditation, writing your life story, searching inside for personal meaning in life as you age and face death, remaining optimistic about life even if age and illness take their toll, and forging social connections with family, friends and others.

Association with churches leads to less risky behaviour? Benefit from the social network?

Yup, I agree with all of it. What is your point? Of course I just quickly googled and picked something out of a hat.. there are plenty of studies to choose from.

MLM and G!d don't mix. Well to those that believe G!d is ominipresent and in the operationg room, in the government, in everything and anything we do...

I appreciate it, you don't, so what? Whatever floats your boat. I don't drag you to church nor to my business. I may ask you to try, you may say no. You may suggest I stay home, I prefer to go, how does anyone lose any skin off their nose about this.

Our CEO had a physical collapse...and used these 10 essentials to assist in his recovery...and shares them with us (the affiliates) and all our members. Most are quite appreciative of it, others could care less. We send out a magazine each month that contains articles describing the benefits of a few essentials each issue. Many look forward to reading the articles.

You all seem to have a disagreement with our 10th essential...Interestingly enough I am also a Boy Scout leader, and for decades there are those that have had issues with the 10th point of the Scout Law as well; "A scout is reverent".

I actually have a problem with both too! I think they should be first, and not 10th.

Well to those that believe G!d is ominipresent and in the operationg room, in the government, in everything and anything we do...

I appreciate it, you don't, so what?

I respect anyone's personal beliefs. That is not the point. The point is preaching (subtly or not so subtly) to non members of the choir.

What is your point?

The message isn't 'Go back to church and you'll live a long time,' but stay connected with people on your own wavelength," says Moody, until recently the director of the Brookdale Center on Aging at Hunter College in New York City.

This could mean, for example, joining small prayer groups not associated with any church, trying personal meditation, writing your life story, searching inside for personal meaning in life as you age and face death, remaining optimistic about life even if age and illness take their toll, and forging social connections with family, friends and others.

Of course I just quickly googled and picked something out of a hat.. there are plenty of studies to choose from.

It's not the studies that are important, it's the conclusions that are drawn. As my linked article states, I will again repost:
The message isn't 'Go back to church and you'll live a long time,' but stay connected with people on your own wavelength," says Moody, until recently the director of the Brookdale Center on Aging at Hunter College in New York City.

It's not about religion or a belief in God. That is the point.

I actually have a problem with both too! I think they should be first, and not 10th.

And I respect that.

I'm not sure some Christians understand that non Christians do not appreciate being preached to, for a variety of reasons.
Actually, I don't believe most folks enjoy being preached to by those of differing religious persuasions, or differing belief systems.
In the case of TriVita, we know it is a Christian POV.

Originally Posted by Emet

I respect anyone's personal beliefs. That is not the point. The point is preaching (subtly or not so subtly) to non members of the choir.

I'm not sure some Christians understand that non Christians do not appreciate being preached to, for a variety of reasons.
Actually, I don't believe most folks enjoy being preached to by those of differing religious persuasions, or differing belief systems.
In the case of TriVita, we know it is a Christian POV.

Amen. lol It's the entire attitude that someone being a "Christian" makes them "special" and "better" in some way, which it certainly does not and that those who are not "Christians" are somehow beneath them and missing out on some grand element, which again is also b.s.

Originally Posted by iamwil

Yes, Michael is Christian. And so are the majority of the folks that join. But we have Muslims, Jews, Atheists, Bhuddists amongst our members that I have met during conferences.

They all work essential number 10 their own way. Some replace the word G!d with their name for G!d, be it Allah, Krishna, Source, the Universe...whatever.

But as it has been shown that having a spiritual foundation is beneficial to a longer, healtheir life...and that is what the 10 essentials are about...it is included.

As with any company or organization, those that have some aversion or allergic reaction to being exposed to tenents of the company can choose not to. We believe in freedom of religion.

So MLM is a foundation of spirituality. LOL. What you posted is a bunch of nonsense.

The only thing you managed to point out here is, there are a lot of fools out there.

Those people may have made a bad choice. Though that is one of the things things this site is for.

To help make people aware of the scams, and to not feel bad about letting other people know about it when scammed.

To those just joining, if you were scammed do not feel ashamed. Share your stories, and let the healing happen.

Originally Posted by Theophilus

To those just joining, if you were scammed do not feel ashamed. Share your stories, and let the healing happen.

Let the healing happen....hallelujah!

It choice, freewill, the ten essentials are printed in all our catalogs, all our magazines and on our websites.

Nobody is coming from any holier than thou attitude. And yes join a group that is like minded and you may enjoy a healthier life....well that just may be us...and if it doesn't float your boat it could be your non sectarian bowling league should you not be spiritual.

The ten essentials are our CEO's beliefs and that which he wishes to run his company on...like Chick fila or whatever other company. You can join or not join as you wish, you can purchase or not purchase as you wish.

I get figs from Lebanon, picked by Muslims...do I care? I get cashews from India harvested by Hindu's oh my.

Those of us who believe that having a relationship with our Creator, having a spiritual foundation is beneficial...that is our group, and that group thought benefits us....if you think it placebo or cultish...that is your thought...and you are more than welcome to it.

I don't have any need to convert you to my thinking, nor am I upset if you are atheist or agnostic, it doesn't stop me from conversing with you or discussing whatever....

At least you have spoken the truth in part. It doesn't matter what background or belief someone has, you will sell them worthless, over priced, over hyped products no matter what. Amazing that you claim to have some relationship with a higher power of any sort and can still say and do on a daily basis what you do. Mind boggling. You buy figs from Lebanon and that is supposed to justify and mean what exactly? lmao Do you even read what you are typing?

Originally Posted by A Life Aloft

It doesn't matter what background or belief someone has, you will sell them worthless, over priced, over hyped products no matter what.

Well I've now watched the Trivita infomercial that just started to be shown here in Aus....There are no actual medical claims made....
Trivita suggests that their product "may" help....
Australia has some rather strict requirements on such claims....

From what I'm told the TGA(Aus Gov Department of Health & Ageing Therapeutic Goods Administration) has given approval for the first products to be advertised and sold here in Aus....
Add says $30+postage....Hardly what we'd call over priced....

Trivita does look to have all their ducks in a row down here in Aus at least....They are properly registered business with office in NSW and an ABN(39 113 272 754)....

Although I'm not involved in any way with Trivita I did look at them when they begun the Aussie launch...
I still don't see anything about them which is scam or not legit....

Did you read the review for their comp plans that I posted on the other thread?

http://www.realscam.com/f9/fortune-2...41/index2.html

Believ me, they won't have their ducks in a row for long. They have little control over their affiliates and soon enough you will see the phony medical claims as well as the b.s. testimonials.

Plus we have another thread on here regarding their b.s. claims regarding sublingual B-12.

http://www.realscam.com/f16/product-...60/index2.html

Ther have claimed for years now that they are involved or will be involved (the story keeps changing) in outside legit in dependent medical trials, yet to date this has not happened. Their product prices are horribly inflated as well.

Here's a fun read for you as well:

Nopalea

As in all MLMs, it's all about the recuiting and the deck is staxcked against you from the onset. More often than not, anyone that is gullible enough to be recruited will also be gullible enough to buy b.s., overly hyped and way over priced products as well. A real win win for the founders of Trivita. Sadly, they have now decided to take this scam on the international road.

There's also a thread on TG about Trivita with our new buddy manolo pimping it: Trivita - Trivita.com - Page 13 - Talkgold HYIP, Investment & Money Forum

Take a look at Vic33's comments. Sadly, no one even comments on what he states and he is dead on.

A little tidbit from another brainwashed Trivita afiliate on his blog:

Why did they choose Australia as their 1st country outside of North America?

Besides being an English speaking country, Australia has a growing Asian population and is the bridgehead for TriVita's planned expansion north to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and Japan very soon. On the webinar that I mentioned in the previous post, they announced that they intend to expand to 100 countries in 10 years!!!! YOURcountry should be on the list and YOU have the opportunity to build a successful business. TriVita is growing when most other companies are worried about survival. New Zealand next and then Hong Kong & Taiwan!

TriVita is excited to announce plans have been finalized for their four-city Australian tour. TriVita’s executive team will begin their tour 28th March in Sydney at the Westin Hotel and will continue on to Melbourne at the Grand Hyatt Hotel on 31st March; then on to Perth at the Pan Pacific Hotel on 4th April; and will complete the tour in Brisbane at the Hilton Hotel on 7th April.

Attendees will have the opportunity to meet with key members of the executive team and join in the excitement of the launch into Australia. Each city’s launch will be held at their respective hotels from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. local time.

Registration website details will be made available shortly. If you are interested in attending, contact me so that I can let you know registration details.

As TriVita wanted to have the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) Certification for Nopalea before their "Official Launch", the dates mentioned above have been postponed.

Good News!!!!

Dates have now been set in stone PLUS a 5th City has been added to the Tour.

Mark Your Calendars – Tour to Begin May 19-20 in Sydney

TriVita is excited to announce plans have been finalized for their five-city Australian tour. TriVita’s executive team will begin their tour May 19-20 in Sydney at the Four Seasons Hotel and will continue on to Adelaide at the Stamford Grand Hotel on May 23-24; then on to Perth at the Pan Pacific Hotel on May 26-27; then to Melbourne on May 30-31 at the Hilton on the Park; and will complete the tour in Brisbane at the Hilton Hotel on June 2-3.

Tour attendees will have the amazing opportunity to meet with key members of the executive team and join in the excitement of the celebration as TriVita launches into Australia.

Each city will have a two-day launch with day one consisting of the launch event and an informational meeting where attendees will hear from inspiring key leaders about TriVita and the unique TriVita Wellness Business opportunity. The evening after each national tour event, TriVita is offering a free orientation and business training workshop for those seeking to build their own TriVita Wellness Business. What better way to fast-track your new business!

Attendees will learn about TriVita’s unique business plan, the many tools and support available to them and the details about TriVita’s compensation plan.

To learn more or to register for the TriVita Australian National Tour, visit Home today. When registering, you can give our Affiliate Number 13083263 (Bernard) or 13364248 (Maree).

We'll be at the Brisbane Event. We look forward to meeting any of you who can make it, and would love to be able to work with everyone regardless of which event you attend.

Cheers,
Bernard & Maree O'Keefe :
Toowoomba, Qld

TriVita - www.trivita.net - Page 6 - Money Earning Forum - Sponsored By Lucky2bet.com | FXCambier.com | PMarkets.com

Originally Posted by A Life Aloft

Did you read the review for their comp plans that I posted on the other thread?

http://www.realscam.com/f9/fortune-2...41/index2.html

Believ me, they won't have their ducks in a row for long. They have little control over their affiliates and soon enough you will see the phony medical claims as well as the b.s. testimonials.

Nothing personal but I rather go with facts then the "believe me" routine....
So far I see a properly registered company here in Australia....
They gone through the hard yards of gaining the thums up from the TGA which it's worth noting is no easy feat....

Their infomercial which I have watched makes no mention of any affilliate program or medical claims....

Not sure what they did in USA that you got all up tight about but from what I see the Aussie part of Trivita looks fine and legal and other then the infomercial they done similar launch to that of Amway or Herballife did here years ago.......
Feel free to point out anthing you feel they doing illegal here in Aus I'll gladly pick up the phone to the relevant gov department

Why did they choose Australia as their 1st country outside of North America?

Besides being an English speaking country, Australia has a growing Asian population and is the bridgehead for TriVita's planned expansion north to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and Japan very soon. On the webinar that I mentioned in the previous post, they announced that they intend to expand to 100 countries in 10 years!!!! YOURcountry should be on the list and YOU have the opportunity to build a successful business. TriVita is growing when most other companies are worried about survival. New Zealand next and then Hong Kong & Taiwan!

Indeed Australia is the gateway into NZ and Asia....

TriVitas' somewhat tainted reputation in the US of A notwithstanding, anyone wishing to enter the Australian market which is saturated with both vitamin supplements AND Multi Level Marketing companies should do so with a degree of caution.




* Australia occupies an area of 7,686,850 km2 (2,967,909 sq mi) while the USA covers 9,850,476 km2 (3,803,290 sq mi)

BUT !!!!

While the US has a population of 310 MILLION+, Australia has only approximately 22+ MILLION people.

So, unless TriVita is, indeed looking to use Australia as a springboard into Asia, the numbers just don't add up as far as the supposed potential goes.

* Australia IS saturated with so called "health foods" and vitamin supplements.

Sublingual, bilingual, multi lingual, cheap, expensive, overhyped and underhyped, we've got 'em in spades.

Every major and minor company in the "wellness industry" is represented in Oz and it has an extremely competitive home grown industry of its' own.
Every single chemist store and food store has a vitamin selection a dog couldn't jump over and TV is saturated with ads nightly.

Nutrition Care Vitamin B12 (1 mg) Sublingual 120 Tablets - Compare Prices and Deals, Shop & Buy Online in Australia at MyShopping.com.au

or do a quick Google on "Online vitamins Australia"

Further, WRT the Asian market, TriVita is a day late and a dollar short here as well.

You name the "wellness" oriented MLM, and you'll find they've all "been there and done that" already. Amway, Herbalife, USANA, you name 'em, all have been here for years and all of them focused on the Asian market.

I don't see any need to even consider the B/S claims being made about "sublingual" B12 delivery systems or the less than stellar reputation of both TriVita and "it's not Amway is it" MLM "opportunities"

sand to Bedouins, ice to Eskimos and coals to Newcastle will do the job nicely, thank you.

To anyone who wants to attempt to flog vitamins/wellness or the TriVita "opportunity" here in Oz, all I can say is "good luck to your family"

Originally Posted by littleroundman

TriVitas' somewhat tainted reputation in the US of A notwithstanding, anyone wishing to enter the Australian market which is saturated with both vitamin supplements AND Multi Level Marketing companies should do so with a degree of caution.




* Australia occupies an area of 7,686,850 km2 (2,967,909 sq mi) while the USA covers 9,850,476 km2 (3,803,290 sq mi)

BUT !!!!

While the US has a population of 310 MILLION+, Australia has only approximately 22+ MILLION people.

So, unless TriVita is, indeed looking to use Australia as a springboard into Asia, the numbers just don't add up as far as the supposed potential goes.

* Australia IS saturated with so called "health foods" and vitamin supplements.

Sublingual, bilingual, multi lingual, cheap, expensive, overhyped and underhyped, we've got 'em in spades.

Every major and minor company in the "wellness industry" is represented in Oz and it has an extremely competitive home grown industry of its' own.
Every single chemist store and food store has a vitamin selection a dog couldn't jump over and TV is saturated with ads nightly.

Nutrition Care Vitamin B12 (1 mg) Sublingual 120 Tablets - Compare Prices and Deals, Shop & Buy Online in Australia at MyShopping.com.au

or do a quick Google on "Online vitamins Australia"

Further, WRT the Asian market, TriVita is a day late and a dollar short here as well.

You name the "wellness" oriented MLM, and you'll find they've all "been there and done that" already. Amway, Herbalife, USANA, you name 'em, all have been here for years and all of them focused on the Asian market.

I don't see any need to even consider the B/S claims being made about "sublingual" B12 delivery systems or the less than stellar reputation of both TriVita and "it's not Amway is it" MLM "opportunities"

sand to Bedouins, ice to Eskimos and coals to Newcastle will do the job nicely, thank you.

To anyone who wants to attempt to flog vitamins/wellness or the TriVita "opportunity" here in Oz, all I can say is "good luck to your family"

So if they come here and flop that just makes them like a heap of Americans to come here b4.....
They being a more expensive brand then others makes them just like all other more expensive brands who advertise and pass on the cost of those adds to consumers....
But in no way does that make them a scam....

Worth adding that the reason why every chemist has such a large vitamin section is cos there are so many twits out there who buy the stuff....
History shows that these infomercials do work really well here in Aus....So no doubt with all these adds running the product will sell here......Probably better then they expecting

Originally Posted by okosh

So if they come here and flop that just makes them like a heap of Americans to come here b4.....
They being a more expensive brand then others makes them just like all other more expensive brands who advertise and pass on the cost of those adds to consumers....
But in no way does that make them a scam....

The main difference being that people are required to pay their way in and are "encouraged" to continue paying for training tools, kits and everything else which goes with the MLM territory.

Originally Posted by okosh

Worth adding that the reason why every chemist has such a large vitamin section is cos there are so many twits out there who buy the stuff....

I agree with you entirely, BUT, having said that, the unwary can be mislead by the often used MLM hook: they will be "participating in a rapidly growing multi billion dollar industry"

Oil/petroleum is a multi, MULTI billion dollar industry, but "participating" in it means next to nothing in terms of earning potential.

Originally Posted by okosh

History shows that these infomercials do work really well here in Aus....So no doubt with all these adds running the product will sell here......Probably better then they expecting

Infomercials, yes. But Danoz Direct and Guthy-Renker don't have a few thousand "downlines" looking for their cut.

Is MLM/TriVita a "scam" ????

Depends on your definition of what constitutes a "scam"

My question would be more along the lines of: "Can/Do MLM and/or TriVita deliver in the real world what they promise on that whiteboard ????

True "due diligence" requires more than a slick sales presentation and a bunch of "coulds" and "mights"

I'm an advocate of Edward de Bonoand his Six Thinking Hats methodology when it comes to the type of analysis involved in assessing these "opportunities" and, for me at least, the black hat wins the day

Osh, take your blinders off for a second. You could not have possibly read through the material on all the links that I have provided for you, digested any of it and not seen the red flags. That's obvious by your continued comments which seem to focus solely on the commercial you saw, and the fact that Trivita has been let into your country to do business and nothing else. Nothing else. Not one single comment on all the material which I provided for you to read. Not one. You never read any of it did you? And if you did, you dismissed ALL of it. Why is that, Osh? You have no acomments to any of the other members here who commented on Trivita either. Why is that?

I don't plan to follow what Trivita does in your country in case you thought that I would. (I have no idea why you assumed that I would in the first place- like it's my job or something lol) I have better things to do with my time and I have already been involved in the discussions here and on Scam regarding Trivita. I have studied their products and if you had bothered to do fifteen minutes of a google search, you would have seen hundreds of affiliates on various forums, blogs and sites making phony medical claims about their products. Apparently you are too lazy to do this. I think you should sign up and join and let us know just how much money you make. You can be our own little reporter here. Perhaps you will make more money than this affiliate did:

"Trivita......? ok here goes...a TELL ALL

I"'ve been in Trivita for a year built it to 500 customers and 5 in my downline ...hang on don't yell at me yet, there is a method to my madness of why I tell you this ok?

First let me say I AM NOT telling you this to recruit, sell etc etc, I tell you this so I can RANT!!

So you would probably say wow this person must have been making a fortune having that many customers and DL, WRONG I make approximately $70 on average..yup I said $70 dollars a month.

But that's not the worse part, here's how it works, Trivita allows you to buy "customers" at $50 a pop
after you buy the "customers" and really look at each one you find that some never bought anything, some dont even have addresses so can you say "customers"=leads? That should be ILLEGAL but its not. The 500 I have are from the 5 and myself in my DL.
And I had to BUY 2 in my DL at $500 each. The products are fair the only one that works is a gel for pain. And the monthly fee is $40 minimum to get paid that whopping $70 buck commission.
so please if anyone says they are joining Trivita talk them out of it! Thanks for listening!"

Tri-Vita

Perhaps you like MLMs. Perhaps you don't mind them using religion to hook more people in. Perhaps you don't mind that there have been no, not one, independent study by a legit entity on any of their products, perhaps you think their compensation plan is wonderful, even though it's far from that, perhaps you don't see all the b.s. and hype for what it is, perhaps you think that Trivita not even telling their own members how many customers are repeat customers (reporting the actual true stats and facts) is marvelous. Perhaps you think that over hyped, over priced health supplements backed up by no trustworthy and real studies is just peachy. The fact that Trivita sells customers lists/leads to their members for a fee for that member only to discover that many "customers" on that list are bogus. It's always about the math. Always. And when you buy customers whether they continue to purchase the products or not is not guaranteed. You could buy a customer and they might never purchase any products again. Unless you can recruit thousands and you also spend thousands on the products, as an affiliate, you will not make dick.

Have you even bothered to copmpare their products to any other products sold in a hundred other venues to see the difference in price for the same ingredients, Osh?? No, it's obvious that you have not. You have done no research, not read anything and for some reason are just stiring the pot and throwing out your opinion, based on nothing. Oh yeah, based on a commercial (their commercials were/are the same in this country and I never went into their commercials you notice, you are the one who keeps bringing that up, btw, I focused on the bullshit put forward on forums and sites on the net) and the fact that your government is foolish enough to let them do business there. I can't understand why you are spending so much effort defending an MLM that you know nothing about. It's interesting.

If you like MLMs and you see them a real opportunity, why aren't you joining Trivita? You obviously have plenty of time on your hands and are impressed by their commercials. Their comp plan is terrible, but hey you don't see a scam in that, so sign up and let us know how you do! Put your money out there with your beliefs. You can be like Will who has been working Trivita for over five years and yet to make a real profit, but loves it because he's convinced that he is "helping people". Are you up to the challenge? Products are very pricey, and the have nothing to offer that cannot already be found cheaper in any drug store, grocery store of health food store, without having to join and pay any fees, or pay for customers, or pay into the co-op advertising, but don't let that discourage you. Buy their names of supposed previous customers which only costs you $50.00 per name and you must buy a minimum of 5 names. Hell, that's only $250.00. I mean, they have to pay for those commercials which have impressed the pants off of you somehow. lmao Don't let the lack of any (like even one) clinical trials on any of their products to back up their claims worry you either. Take the plunge, my man! Don't be concerned that Denise Wilson is one of the big heavy hitters (Director) there at the top either. We all know how upstanding she is! And while you're at it, buy a few of the Nopalea tee shirts that Trivita sells, you know, just to help you advertise the flopportunity.

In this country nutritional supplements do not have to be “approved” by the FDA before sale unless they’re attached to “drug” or “medical” claims. Unfortunately, in 2007 the U.S. Food & Drug Administration found a number of potential violations on the trivita.com web site. These claims included statements about lowered blood pressure, the prevention of cancer and the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Trivita had to remove these claims off their website, per order of the FDA. Don't let that worry you either, Osh, because the affiliates are still touting plenty of bogus claims and testimonials all over the net. I mean who needs actual research, studies and clinical trials when you have "testimonies"? lmao