Before starting in, please note the following:
As a general disclaimer, it should be noted that Kokoro, LLC does not, nor has it ever, make any medical claims. Our Terms of Service state:
- This site is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. The products, information, services and other content provided on and through this Site, including information that may be provided on the Site either directly or via linking to third-party sites, are provided for informational purposes only. Please consult with your physician or other healthcare professional (collectively, "Healthcare Professional") regarding any medical or health-related diagnosis or treatment options.
- The information provided on this Site and Linked Sites (as defined), including information relating to medical and health conditions, products and treatments, is often provided in summary or aggregate form. Again, it is not intended as a substitute for advice from your Healthcare Professional, or any information contained on or in any product label or packaging.
- You should not use the information or services on this Site for diagnosis or treatment of any health issue or for prescription of any medication or other treatment. You should always consult with your Healthcare Professional, and carefully read all information provided by the manufacturer of a product and on or in any product label or packaging, before using any medication or nutritional, herbal or homeopathic product or before adopting any treatment for a health problem. Each person is different, and the way you react to a particular product may be significantly different from the way other people react to such product. You should also consult your Healthcare Professional regarding any interactions between any medication you are currently taking and nutritional supplements. Any comments made on the Site or in reviewing products are strictly personal views made in their personal capacity. These comments are not claims made by Kokoro nor do they represent the view or position of Kokoro.
My observations of their web site:
- Their use of our images, trademarked name and written copy without our specific written permission is a violation of our “Terms of Use,” and is, in our opinion, a violation of applicable trademark, copyright, and fair business practices law.
- No specific information of this organization can be determined from their web site. A quick search on Whois reveals that the domain name is privately listed.
- There is no disclosure on the web site that any payments of commissions or referral fees are made for any links checked. A number of the links are to companies that are generally marketing their products through Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) types of organizations.
- No disclosure of how “User Rating” numbers or “Product Stars” was determined.
- Most of the links suggesting a better alternative lead to a product named “Femmetrinol.” No specific information on this product could be determined.
- A check of their “About Us” page shows logos of many institutions of higher learning. No associated names are listed on this page. When the professional designations on this page are clicked, only two actually connect to any individual. (Mary H…, a “Registered Dietitian” and Brooke R…, a “Licensed Mental Health Counselor.”)
- No other name or “expert” is readily available and yet this site claims to be the “largest and most trusted diet resource on the web.” I have yet to determine what this diet topic has to do with natural progesterone.
Review and response format:
Review quotations are in italics and my responses are in bold.
Review and responses follow:
It was brought to our attention that a web site purporting of offer “unbiased, objective” [emphasis mine] reviews of many health products had rated Kokoro® Balance Creme unfavorably. Naturally, this peaked my curiosity.
“...this targets a range of hormonal conditions—from treating menopause related hot flashes and night sweats, to helping users with PCOS, PMS or painful menstrual periods.”
Response: Kokoro does not nor has it “targeted” any condition for any “treatment.”
The following three statements can be grouped with a common comment from me:
“Our experts [none listed] have evaluated…and have found that…time again, Femmetrinol….
“Our experts have put together a guide to the menopause creams that actually work. More details at this link here.
…. Combine this supplement with a proven menopause pill such as Femmetrinol for better results.”
Response: each is a direct (non-working) link to sell Femmetrinol.
“The formula contains two forms of wild yam, though it’s not especially clear why the makers of this product listed wild yam extract and wild yam sourced progesterone separately.”
Response: unfortunately the “experts” don’t know enough to realize these are two separate ingredients. One is actually a wild yam extract and the other is Progesterone USP that is sourced from wild yam.
A link stating, “Find the menopause solution perfect for your unique body chemistry — click here to learn how.”
Response: this link leads only to a product list with no other information.
“Kokoro Balance Cream is not sold direct to consumers, rather, Kokoro works with affiliates who sell the product in [sic] their behalf.”
Response: This assertion is indicative of their lack of research. We do, in fact, sell direct both on our web site and Amazon. Very little is sold through affiliates and the bulk of our business is wholesale to retail Health Food stores across the nation.
A link stating: “Our guide to progesterone replacement and how it affects the body. Click here for more info.”
<>Response: There is no information! This link leads only to a product list.
“Kokoro is a California company that sells supplements for both men and women…. The site itself is pretty sparse and relies on information sourced from Amazon to flesh out its product descriptions.”
Response: Interesting observation since we own the brand and its associated marks and descriptions which we inputted on Amazon.
“Kokoro does link to another website for further information about the use of progesterone creams in general, but there’s something to be desired from the official site from a consumer point of view.
Overall, Kokoro could do a better job explaining how their products work. The site feels a bit confusing and doesn’t fully flesh out the ideas it brings up. The outside progesterone-themed webpage, for example, gives users a few articles, but again, there’s nothing really substantial listed to educate potential buyers.”
Response: Unfortunately, these “experts” should realize that Federal Law prohibits the offering of information, suggested treatments, etc. with respect to a company’s products. To do otherwise causes a product to be considered a misbranded drug.
Final Observation:
- Sadly, anyone with a computer and an internet connection can go online and write or produce a video and label themselves as an “expert.” This review, and I’m sure others, on this site (and a few other sites I found) are “cookie-cutter” boilerplate from one product to another.
- Not only have they misrepresented Kokoro®, but they have similar “expert” reviews of some of the other oldest and respected companies offering natural progesterone cream to the public. Their published opinions show they are not familiar with the multitude of published material available on this topic.
- The entire “review” appears to emphasizing a link to sell Femmetrinol which is a “pill-based” supplement to address menopause symptoms and has nothing to do with natural hormone supplementation.
Again, any qualified opinions on what I’ve written are welcome.