- With Mayo Clinic cardiologist
Thomas Behrenbeck, M.D., Ph.D.
read biographyclose windowBiography of
Thomas Behrenbeck, M.D., Ph.D.
Thomas Behrenbeck, M.D.
Dr. Thomas Behrenbeck is a native of Germany, where he received his medical education at the Westfalian Wilhelm University in Munster and became board certified in internal medicine and cardiology.
He also received a Ph.D. in biophysics and physiology at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Behrenbeck joined the Mayo Clinic staff in 1990 and is currently an associate professor at Mayo Medical School and an academic faculty member at the Westfalian Wilhelm University. He is the past chair of the Cardiovascular Medicine & Surgery NetWork of the American College of Chest Physicians.
Dr. Behrenbeck is a noninvasive cardiologist, specializing in cardiovascular (CV) imaging modalities (echocardiography, nuclear cardiology and CT), coronary artery disease and prevention of coronary artery disease. His research interests are the application of imaging technology to early recognition and treatment of atherosclerosis. He is passionate about patients' involvement in their health issues.
"The Internet and patient education present ideal synergies in the ever-growing field of knowledge in cardiology," he says.
Definition (1)
- VLDL cholesterol: Is it harmful?
Symptoms (1)
- Arcus senilis: A sign of high cholesterol?
Tests and diagnosis (3)
- Cholesterol ratio: Is it important?
- Cholesterol test kits: Are they accurate?
- Cholesterol level: Can it be too low?
Treatments and drugs (6)
- High cholesterol in children: How is it treated?
- After a flood, are food and medicine safe to use?
- Niacin overdose: What are the symptoms?
- see all in Treatments and drugs
Lifestyle and home remedies (4)
- Eggs: Are they good or bad for my cholesterol?
- Pomegranate juice: Can it lower cholesterol?
- MUFAs: Why should my diet include these fats?
- see all in Lifestyle and home remedies
Alternative medicine (2)
- High cholesterol treatment: Does cinnamon lower cholesterol?
- Noni juice: Can it reduce cholesterol?
Prevention (2)
- Healthy heart for life: Avoiding heart disease
- Fasting diet: Can it improve my heart health?
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Question
Noni juice: Can it reduce cholesterol?
I've heard that drinking noni juice may lower my cholesterol. Is this true?
Answer
from Thomas Behrenbeck, M.D., Ph.D.
There's no evidence that noni (NO-nee) juice reduces cholesterol. Noni juice has gained popularity as a tonic for everything from arthritis and depression to heart disease and cancer. But there's no evidence that noni juice is effective in treating any of these conditions. Noni juice may also interact with some blood pressure medications.
As with many fruits, the noni fruit is a source of vitamins and minerals, as well as antioxidants. Antioxidants can protect the body from age-related changes and certain diseases, such as cancers.
The juice has an unpleasant taste and odor, and certain people should be cautious when drinking noni juice. Noni juice is high in potassium, and could raise your potassium to dangerously high levels (hyperkalemia) if you drink a large amount of the juice. For this reason, it should be used with caution — if at all — in people who:
- Have chronic kidney disease
- Take certain blood pressure medications, such as potassium-sparing diuretics, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs)
Healthy heart for life: Avoiding heart disease
- Herbs at a glance: Noni. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. http://nccam.nih.gov/health/noni/D398_Herbs.pdf. Accessed March 24, 2010.
- Wang MY, et al. Antioxidant activity of noni juice in heavy smokers. Chemistry Central Journal. 2009;3:13.
- West BJ, et al. A safety review of noni fruit juice. Journal of Food Science. 2006;71:R100.
Find Mayo Clinic on