Garden of Life Review

About Garden of Life

Garden of Life is a natural supplement company that manufactures several products such as probiotics, vitamins, superfoods, and prenatal supplements using whole food ingredients. 

Have you ever felt that you cannot get enough servings of fruits and vegetables in your diet? Garden of Life products cater to adults and kids looking to supplement their diet with whole food ingredients for added health benefits. 

With a large social media following of 194K followers on Instagram, Garden of Life products contain a wholesome blend of vitamins, minerals, and proteins using natural vegetables and fruits and fermented whole grains/seeds and probiotics. Another fantastic fact is that it is made without added preservatives or sugar. 

This Garden of Life review will dig deep into its ingredients, uses, benefits and possible downsides, customer ratings, promotions, and all other details you are looking for before making a purchasing decision.

Overview of Garden of Life

Founded by Jordan Rubin in 2000, Garden of Life was created after his recovery from a chronic illness inspired him. At the age of 19, Rubin had severe Crohn’s disease and went through multiple rounds of treatments with no results. His condition had deteriorated to the extent that he lost 80lb and had become wheelchair-bound. 

Jordan started eating whole, natural foods and saw drastic improvements, almost completely restoring his health. His mission became to “Empower Extraordinary Health” through real, good-quality whole-food supplements without synthetic additives.

Garden of Life is headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and its ingredients are sourced worldwide, such as in the United States, United Kingdom, India, Iceland, Singapore, and more. The company truly believes in traceability, allowing you to trace the source of each ingredient, which ensures its superior quality. 

The Garden of Life logo is an old-school-looking picture of fruits and vegetables and a farmer wearing a hat, highlighting their dedication to natural sources. Unique, if I may say so.

All products are manufactured under current good manufacturing practices and audited by third parties. Garden of Life is a Certified B Corp which is extremely hard to achieve, and it is the first supplement company to be certified carbon-free by Carbonfund.org Foundation.

In 2017, Garden of Life was acquired by Nestle, and although they claim to pursue their mission and not compromise on their quality of products, only time will tell the outcome of this acquisition. 

Let’s take a look at some of Garden of Life’s product highlights: 

Highlights

• Made using cGMP and third-party tested 
• Manufactured by Garden of Life, which is a Certified B corp
• Uses whole food ingredients 
• No added sugars
• All products are backed by science
• Some ingredients are organic 

Garden of Life Protein Raw Organic Fit Vanilla Powder Review

Garden of Life Protein Raw Organic Fit Vanilla Powder’s uniqueness is plant-based, organic, raw, non-GMO, and certified vegan and gluten-free. 

People often wonder what protein vegans eat, and this blend is a testament to that question as its protein blend is made from 17 different plant-based ingredients. 

Apart from being a protein powder, this product is infused with three other proprietary blends: a weight loss and stress management blend, a probiotic and enzyme blend, and a superfood blend. 

Who knew a protein powder could also help with digestion, stress management, and immunity?  

This low-sugar and blood-sugar balancing protein powder comes in several other flavors, but we will focus on the vanilla flavor in this Garden of Life review. Each canister of 10 servings is currently on sale for $39. from $49. 

Ingredients Label

According to the ingredient chart, the protein blend made from certified organic and raw ingredients contains pea protein and brown rice protein amongst other seeds such as organic flax, chia seeds, and amaranth sprout. Its protein content includes 8 out of the nine essential amino acids. 

Apart from the protein blend, it also contains a weight loss and stress management blend with raw organic svetol, a decaffeinated green coffee bean extract to speed up metabolism, and Ashwagandha to help with stress. 

Its superfood blend contains antioxidant-rich ingredients like baobab fruit and alfalfa sprouts. Lastly, its enzyme and probiotic blend have two different Lactobacillus strains and 13 different enzyme blends. 

In terms of inactive ingredients, it is sweetened with stevia and erythritol extracts and contains vanilla flavor. 

Nutritional Value

Each scoop contains 170 Calories with 2 g of fat, 28 g of protein, and 10 g of carbohydrates. There is less than 1 g of total sugars present in each scoop. 

Each scoop also contains several vitamins and minerals due to nutrient-rich superfoods and raw plant-based ingredients. 

What are the benefits of these raw, plant-based organic ingredients over other protein powders? I will highlight some of the benefits in this Garden of Life review below. 

Benefits 

One of the benefits of this powder is that it is made using organic ingredients, which minimizes the amounts of pesticides and chemicals present in the elements.

Also, the presence of raw, sprouted ingredients allows most of the nutrient value to stay intact, which can be otherwise destroyed by heat. In addition, sprouting makes the nutrients more bioavailable to the body. 

This blend is perfect for those on a vegan and gluten-free diet, especially since many protein products on the market are made from animal products. 

One of the other advantages of this protein blend is the presence of 17 different plant-based ingredients, which makes its amino acid profile quite impressive and comparable to animal-based protein powders. 

The presence of other superfoods, enzymes, and probiotics also improves the digestibility of this protein powder while fulfilling the purpose of this protein powder, which is to build muscle, increase satiety and prevent any cravings. 

Needless to mention that the presence of almost no sugar and the use of plant-based natural sweeteners makes this product more suitable for those on a sugar-free or low sugar lifestyle. 

How Does It Work

The brand markets this protein powder for weight loss and claims it will help you “lose fat, satisfy hunger and cravings.” The combination of proteins can result in muscle building, energy, and satiety, while the added vitamins and minerals fill up the gaps in your diet by adding extra nutrition.

Decaffeinated green coffee bean extract^[1] contains chlorogenic acid, which has antioxidant properties and can affect glucose and fat metabolism. 

However, are the weight loss claims true? I researched the decaffeinated green coffee bean extract for weight loss and found inconsistent results^[2] from several biased studies^[2]. High-quality and suitable testing methods are needed to prove its long-term effects and safety.

How to Take & Dosage 

Mix one leveled scoop of powder with 10 ounces of water or dairy-free milk. 

Garden of Life Women’s Probiotic Review

A well-known and complete women’s probiotic, the Garden of Life Women’s Probiotic is a supplement for optimizing women’s immune, digestive and vaginal health. 

The last few years have been instrumental in highlighting the importance of good bacteria present in areas such as our skin, gut, mouth, and vagina. We have more bacterial cells than human cells in our body! 

Garden of Life Women’s Probiotic is made of 16 probiotic strains and prebiotic fiber, which serves as food for the probiotic strains. 

This gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and non-GMO probiotic comes in bright pink packaging. What’s even better is that it doesn’t require refrigeration. 

This clean and raw probioticcomes in a white plastic bottle and is currently on sale for $34, down from $43. 

Ingredients Label

This women’s probiotic contains 11 Lactobacilli strains and five Bifidobacterium strains, totaling 50 Billion CFUs (Colony Forming Units) which denotes the number of bacteria present in each capsule.

Along with probiotics, each capsule also contains prebiotic fiber from organic potatoes and organic acacia fiber. There’s only one inactive ingredient which is non-GMO vegetable cellulose. 

Nutritional Value

There are negligible calories in each probiotic capsule. Each capsule contains 40 billion Lacto cultures and 10 billion Bifido cultures. There’s also 377 mg of prebiotic fiber blend in each capsule. 

Benefits 

Although taking this mixture of probiotics and prebiotics has many benefits, here are some of the most significant ones: 

1. Helping with digestive issues such as gas, bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and constipation.
2. Improving your mood^[3].
3. Helping lower inflammation, reducing the risk of chronic diseases^[4] like cardiovascular diseases.
4. Since 70% of the immune system^[5] lives in the gut, it makes sense that improving gut bacteria can also have beneficial effects on the immune system. 
5. Prebiotics increase the absorption of minerals^[6] like calcium and magnesium, providing us with more energy.
6. Prebiotics also promote satiety and weight loss, according to this study^[4].

How Does It Work

Probiotics are live bacteria taken to improve the balance^[7] between the good and bad bacteria in the body in favor of the good. Once they make their way to the large intestine colon, they can improve our immune response. This is because 70% of our immune system lives in our gut.

Studies have shown^[8] that probiotics can reduce the severity of GI-related symptoms by helping us better digest food. Probiotics also increase vitamin and mineral absorption^[6], giving us more energy. They produce fatty acids called Short Chain Fatty Acids^[9], beneficial compounds that protect the intestinal wall lining and lower inflammation.

Also, having a variety of bacterial strains is much more efficient than having a single strain, as this study^[10] has shown. Luckily, Dr.Formulated Women’s Probiotic has done this by combining 16 strains in their pill. 

One of the most prevalent vaginal bacteria is lactobacillus^[11], and 11 strains of lactobacilli are present in this probiotic. These strains attach themselves to the outermost wall of the vagina and secrete substances that prevent infectious bacterial strains from sticking to these walls. This is how they also improve women’s vaginal health. 

So, ladies, if you suffer from recurrent UTIs or other infections, this probiotic could benefit you! 

Suffice it to say that our job is to increase the number of good bacteria in our gut and provide them with food. Once we do that, we can pass on the torch to those bacteria to provide us with those tremendous benefits. 

How to Take & Dosage 

Women should take one capsule daily with a beverage of choice, with or without food. This supplement is not for children. 

Let’s switch gears as this Garden of Life review will discuss another popular product, their Doctor Formulated CBD. 

Garden of Life Doctor Formulated CBD Review

Cannabidiol (CBD) is gradually gaining popularity as a natural and effective way to relieve pain, anxiety and improve sleep. In collaboration with Dr.Perlmutter, Garden of Life manufactures a whole line of CBD products. This Garden of Life review will discuss the Doctor Formulated CBD oil. 

Made from Hemp extract using a CO2 extraction method without any harmful solvents, this Garden of Life CBD supplement is clean and made without THC. 

This third-party tested supplement obtains its hemp using sustainable farms from Oregon, USA. The extract is mixed with MCT oil from coconut and has added essential oils for the “entourage effect.” 

Although this product is also offered in softgels and sprays, we discuss the liquid supplement here. This certified THC-free supplement is gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free, and non-GMO.

Coming in peppermint or chocolate mint flavor, this 30 ml bottle has a dropper attached and retails for $74, down from $93. It can last you a month or less, depending on the frequency of intake. 

Ingredients Label

The ingredients consist of 945 mg of Hemp extract in organic MCT oil. Out of this, there is 50 mg of CBD. There is also 3 mg of Entourage effect blend consisting of organic peppermint, spearmint, orange peel, lavandin, and frankincense oils. 

Nutritional Value

There are negligible calories in each serving. 

Benefits 

Some benefits of CBD include relief of acute and chronic back pain^[12], although more studies are needed to prove this claim. 

Some simulated studies also show the anxiety-relieving effects^[13] of CBD. Still, they determined 300 mg of CBD to be the optimal dose to cause an effect much higher than what is present in this supplement. 

There is also some preliminary evidence that CBD can help with sleep disorders^[14] such as insomnia and sleep apnea. 

How Does It Work

Our body is truly magical because it contains an endocannabinoid system^[15] that produces endocannabinoids substances. These substances bind to endocannabinoid receptors of our nervous system and help in regulating sleep, pain^[16], and appetite. 

CBD works by several mechanisms, such as interacting with these substances or affecting receptor activity. 

If you are looking for a clean CBD oil without the THC high, then this product is for you. If you are looking for pure CBD without added essential oils, this product may not be for you. 

How to Take & Dosage 

Adults can take a dropperful of 1 ml of liquid daily or more if needed. 

Who Is Garden of Life For? 

Garden of Life supplements cater to everyone; men, women, and children. So, if you are looking to improve your overall health by taking a whole foods approach, then these supplements may be for you. 

Garden of Life Side Effects

Although the side effects of the natural ingredients in these products are rare, this Garden of Life review wanted to let you know about some potential side effects. 

Initially, taking probiotics could lead to temporary discomfort such as gas, bloating, etc. It should eventually settle down. 

The protein powder contains pea protein, and if you are allergic to legumes such as peanuts, you should not consume this product since pea is also a legume. 

The raw protein powder contains vitamin K, known for its blood clotting properties. If you are on blood thinners, then this can be counterproductive. So, speak to your physician beforehand. 

The raw protein powder also contains vitamin A. Too much vitamin A can lead to liver damage, so make sure to talk to your doctor about your diet and supplement choices/

Some side effects^[17] of CBD include diarrhea, changes in appetite, or fatigue. However, CBD is usually well-tolerated and considered safe. 

Garden of Life Reviews: What Do Customers Think?

The first place I looked for Garden of Life reviews is on the brand’s official website, where there are 122 reviews of the Protein Raw Organic Fit Vanilla Powder. It earned a 4.6-star rating. 

One reviewer commented, “I have been using this for a couple of years, which has helped in my weight loss journey. I always get the Vanilla flavor and mix it with vanilla almond milk. Tastes great!”

The Women’s probiotic has 403 reviews with a 4.7/5-star rating. Another customer wrote enthusiastically about the product: 

“I purchased this even though I was pretty skeptical about its effectiveness. This product has absolutely lived up to the hype! It has helped my woman get things moving! I will definitely purchase this again, and fully recommend it to anyone struggling with the issue themselves.” 

The CBD product has 74 reviews with a 4.5/5-star rating. One happy buyer said, “I’ve tried several over-the-counter brands. This one has the best vibes…is that because it’s clean of solvents? I use half the recommended amount and find twice the results of other brands. So glad to be able to order this online.” 

All in all, there are a lot of Garden of Life reviews available to help potential buyers make their buying decision. However, their women’s probiotic formula seems to be one of the most popular supplements. 

Is Garden of Life Legit?

If you are wondering about the legitimacy of these products, then sit back and relax, as we truly trust this brand due to its multiple certifications.

Garden of Life stands for pure, whole-foods based, traceable and sustainable ingredients. 

The Nestle acquisition may be a little problematic. Still, the brand has succeeded in maintaining the quality of their ingredients thus far. 

Is Garden of Life Worth It?

There is substantial scientific evidence backing Garden of Life’s ingredients. Combined with the overwhelmingly positive feedback from customers, we think the brand is worth it. 

Garden of Life’s all-natural supplements are a great addition to your everyday routine, but please talk to your doctor before starting any new supplement.

Garden of Life Promotions & Discounts 

As mentioned previously, their official website currently has a sale for the products mentioned above. Additionally, you can sign up for their newsletter and receive 10% off your first order.

Where to Buy Garden of Life

You can buy the supplement from their official website. You can also buy this product on Amazon, Vitacost, or iHerb.

You can also find this product in retail stores near you. Be sure to visit the Garden of Life website to learn more about these locations.

FAQ

Is Garden of Life vegan?  

Some products are certified vegan, such as the raw protein powder and CBD oil. The women’s probiotic is not. 

Is Garden of Life gluten-free? 

All products mentioned above are Certified NSF gluten-free.  

What is Garden of Life’s Shipping Policy?

Garden of Life only ships within the US but has free shipping over orders of $25. If you are in any other country, there might be a Garden of Life website for your country, like their Canadian website. Their online ordering shop will be coming shortly. 

What is Garden of Life’s Return Policy?

Garden of Life offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. You can contact their customer service to start the process if you aren’t satisfied with the product.

How to Contact Garden of Life

There are several ways you can contact Garden of Life; if you have more questions about the product or the company after reading our review, you can call:

• Phone (Online Orders): 1-800-365-7709 about online orders
• Phone (Product Questions): 1-866-465-0051 about product questions
• Online Contact Form: Here

Their phone lines are open Monday through Thursday, 8:30 am to 6:00 pm ET, and Friday from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm.

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For more plant-based supplements, check out these brands:

Rae Wellness

MaryRuth Organics

Ora Organic