Vitality Direct is a monthly delivery of supplements and superfoods.
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
The Subscription Box: Vitality Direct
The Cost: $39.95 a month or $75.90 for two months
ACTIVE DEAL: Save 25% off your first box!
CODE: SUBADD25
The Products: 3-4 natural health supplements designed to address specific (and important) health needs. Everything is clinically tested, ethically sourced, and made in the USA, as well as being GMP certified.
Ships to: US (free)
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Included was a brochure with more information on the supplements and why you would want to take them.
New Vitality Green Tea Plus with Lo Han Guo (2 fl oz)
This is a concentrated green tea extract. You can add it to water and get all the benefits of drinking multiple glasses of green tea, all at once. Lo Han Guo is also known as monkfruit and is a natural low-calorie sweetener. I don’t actually like drinking sweetened tea, but I often put matcha in my morning smoothies and this product has similar benefits, so that is how I am using it. The sweetener is less noticeable that way.
Green tea has tons of health benefits, not just for the brain but for the whole body. It is full of antioxidants, including EGCG (thought to enhance metabolism), and has caffeine and L-theanine, which may work together to give you energy without making you jittery in the way coffee can. Green tea can also have protective effects on neurons, at least in animal studies. So this is a perfect inclusion for a “head” pack.
New Vitality Ageless Memory (60 tablets)
This includes folic acid, vitamin B12, Rhodiola rosea (an herb that appears to help reduce fatigue and that may be neuroprotective), Bacopa monnieri (an herb that may reduce anxiety and improve memory formation), ginseng (which can help with energy and reduce stress), and caffeine and L-theanine, which I’ve already discussed above. These are pretty big tablets and they contain pharmaceutical glaze which is definitely not vegan and may not be considered vegetarian.
Here and for the next two products, I’ve shown you some of the pills in my hand as a size reference. I have pretty small hands, for what it’s worth.
New Vitality Vitamin C (60 tablets)
Vitamin C, as many of you will know, is a powerful antioxidant – and that includes action in the brain. (In fact, it is often found concentrated in the brain.) Some neurodegenerative diseases, like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, involve high levels of oxidative stress, so I suppose this vitamin C is meant to counteract oxidative stress. It would also be good for warding off or shortening the duration of winter colds. Please note these tablets also contain pharmaceutical glaze.
New Vitality Vitamin D (30 capsules)
These are vegetarian capsules and it is clearly labeled on the container. It is known that low vitamin D may lead to reduced cognitive function, so the theory here is that increasing vitamin D intake should prevent this sort of decline (most of the studies appear to have been done with older people). This is a fat-soluble vitamin and can accumulate if you take too much (unlike vitamin C, which is water soluble, where excess will be excreted), so just be aware of all the sources of vitamin D you are taking so you don’t overdo it.
Verdict: I couldn’t calculate a value for the November 2016 Vitality Direct box because the products are not yet available in their shop. However, having reviewed a lot of fitness and vitamin/supplement boxes in the past year or two, and having occasionally shopped for supplements myself, my gut feeling here is that the overall value here exceeds the price you pay.
I would say this box was best for people interested in learning about nutrition but who aren’t settled into a precise supplement regimen yet. Since products vary from month to month, I can’t yet say whether I’d recommend this for people with dietary restrictions, but if you are generally an omnivore, everything from this box should work pretty well for you.
I do think the theme for the month was interesting and the products were well-chosen and consistent with the theme.
What do you think of Vitality Direct? Do you like to try new supplements?
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