Probiotics are a hot topic right now and it’s not hard to see why. If you’ve landed on this article then you probably already know about the healing powers of probiotics and you’re wanting to get your hands on a probiotic supplement that’s going to benefit you the best. We’ve analysed the Garden of Life RAW Probiotics range to show you some excellent options on the market right now. Stay tuned till the end because we’re also going to take a look at what real customers are saying about these products.
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Things to consider before buying Garden of Life RAW Probiotics
Do you need a probiotic supplement? You may already be getting enough probiotics in your diet from fermented food and drink like tempeh, kimchi and kombucha. However, if you think you might be lacking, take a look at the benefits below to figure out if you could do with a bit more healthy bacteria in your life.
A few benefits of probiotics:
- Bolsters the immune system and is responsible for about 70% of your immune response
- Keeps digestion running optimally
- Hormone regulation
- Reduces bad cholesterol levels and increases heart health
- Maintains urinary, colon and feminine health
- Produces essential vitamins like A, K and B1
- Managing and reducing symptoms of various conditions and infections
Are there any side effects of probiotics?
During the first couple weeks of use, as your body gets used to the probiotics, you may notice some small digestive side effects like a gurgly tummy, gas or bloating. These symptoms should go away on their own, speak to your doctor if not.
Don’t take probiotics if you:
- Have a histamine intolerance
- Have a suppressed immune system
- Are taking immunosuppressive medication
- Have recently undergone surgery or been in the hospital for an extended period of time
Generally, probiotics are considered safe as they’re in your gut to begin with and your body can flush out any extra as it needs. If you’re unsure, speak to your doctor before you start taking probiotics.
Garden of Life RAW Probiotics – An in-depth review
So now we know what probiotics can do and you might have a good idea of if they’re right for you as an individual, we’re going to take a look at the Garden of Life RAW Probiotics range and see how they stack up against a market of probiotic products.
Who are Garden of Life?
This is a company that are self-proclaimed fanatics about whole foods and uncompromising health standards. They take their time to craft each product from the farm all the way to your supermarket shelf. Instead of focusing on efficiency to churn out masses of products, they ensure that every product has the highest quality, organic ingredients that are non-GMO, free of synthetic materials and all the other nasties you would never want inside your body.
What makes Garden of Life Raw Probiotics so special?
RAW Probiotics is a range of 9 Garden of Life probiotic products made with whole foods to give you extra vitamins and nutrients with your daily probiotic hit and mimic the experience of eating fermented foods. RAW means that their probiotics are “uncooked, untreated, unadulterated; with no binders or fillers and no carriers.”
Each product in this range carries the “Arrive Alive! Potency Guarantee” which means the colony forming units (CFU) listed on the product will all be alive when they get to you. This is important because a lot of probiotic products lose their potency gradually when approaching their use by date.
From kids to a 5-day intensive course of probiotics and everything in between, no matter what your needs are there’s a RAW probiotic product for just about everyone.
Here are those products in detail:
1. Raw Probiotics Kids Digestive Powder
Probiotic intake is never more important than in growing bodies and this product makes it easy to get your kids to consume as many as they need for a healthy immune system and digestive tract. Powder form probiotics can be mixed into infant formula, milk, water, juice or sprinkled over yummy foods like yoghurt and applesauce.
It has a slight banana taste so your kids are likely to either enjoy it or not even realise it’s there. Just like the rest of the RAW range, there are no fillers or extra bits and pieces that you wouldn’t want in your kid’s system – and it’s mild enough for their delicate insides.
PRO’S
- 5 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving
- 5 different strains of probiotic
- 23 different RAW fruits and veggies blend
- Powder form
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
- Contains prebiotics to feed the probiotics
CON’S
- Only one flavour (banana)
2. Raw Probiotics 5-Day Max Care Powder
This product is designed to give you the ultimate good bacteria dose to repopulate the probiotics in your gastrointestinal tract after a cleansing program. If you’re not feeling great after a round of antibiotics or have been getting sick frequently then your probiotic gut flora may be out of whack and this product could be your ticket back to feeling great.
This 5 day course of probiotics will give you a whopping 400 billion CFU each day with 30 different strains of probiotics so you get the variety you need to fight off whatever has been ailing you. There’s also 14 digestion-supporting enzymes with a focus on Bifido strain probiotics to give you the maximum digestion support possible.
PRO’S
- 400 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving
- 30 different strains of probiotic
- 23 different RAW fruits and veggies blend
- Powder form
- Contains prebiotics
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
CON’S
- Only one flavour (banana)
3. Raw Probiotics Colon Care
This is another product from Garden of life that contains an extensive 30 strains of probiotics, however, these ones are all targeted towards maintaining a healthy balance of beneficial bacteria in your colon to promote regular bowel movements. This is a once daily capsule that provides 50 billion probiotics and is covered by the “Arrive Alive” potency promise just like all Garden of Life RAW probiotics. Similar to the product above, you also get 17 digestive enzymes to boost your digestion and aid bowel function.
PRO’S
- 50 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving of 1 capsule
- 30 different strains of probiotic
- 7 different RAW fruits, veggies and seeds
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
CON’S
- No prebiotics
4. Raw Probiotics Men
There’s something for everyone in Garden of Life’s Raw range and this one is targeted towards men specifically. Supporting prostate, heart, immune, digestive and colon health with a powerhouse blend of 85 billion CFU, 30+ probiotic strains, targeted vitamins and minerals, dairy digesting enzymes and RAW fruits and veggies blend, there isn’t much this product hasn’t covered.
This is both your daily probiotic and vitamin supplement rolled in one to keep things simple and support all aspects of men’s specific health needs – even taking a focus on aiding quick recovery from physical activity.
PRO’S
- 85 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving of 3 capsules
- 30+ different strains of probiotic
- RAW fruits, veggies and seeds
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
- Vitamins and minerals
- Targeted towards men’s health specifically
- Dairy digesting enzymes
- Contains prebiotics
CON’S
- 3 capsules a day may be inconvenient (best taken separately throughout day)
5. Raw Probiotics Men 50 & Wiser
Whilst being targeted towards men and providing all the same health support as the product above, this RAW product also targets cholesterol levels that can tend to creep up as we get older.
PRO’S
- 85 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving of 3 capsules
- Serving size can be increased to 9 capsules a day for intensive care
- 32 different strains of probiotic
- RAW fruits, veggies and seeds
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
- Vitamins and minerals
- Targeted towards men’s health needs over 50
- Dairy digesting enzymes
- Contains prebiotics
CON’S
- 3 capsules a day may be inconvenient (best taken separately throughout day)
6. Raw Probiotics Ultimate Care
This product is designed to complement your everyday life by covering a broad spectrum of health needs so that most ages and genders can benefit from this product. Ultimate Care includes Garden of Life’s “Replenish Blend” – probiotics that work together optimally to create balance inside your body.
One daily serving gives you a solid 100 billion CFU with 34 probiotic strains plus prebiotics, digestive enzymes and a RAW fruit and veggie blend.
PRO’S
- 100 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving of 1 capsule
- 34 different strains of probiotic
- “Replenish Blend” to restore balance
- RAW blend
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
- Vitamins and minerals
- Digestive enzymes
- Contains prebiotics
CON’S
- CFU count may be too high for beginners
7. Raw Probiotics Vaginal Care
Feminine health is a delicate balance of different good bacteria and yeasts to create a healthy environment free of infections, this has never been more true than for vaginal health. This product promotes yeast balance, vaginal and urinary tract health with 8 targeted strains of probiotic and 30 more overall health targeted strains. There’s also 3 yeast-digesting enzymes to prevent overgrowth which can otherwise lead to nasty and uncomfortable infections down there.
PRO’S
- 50 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving of 1 capsule
- 38 different strains of probiotic (8 targeted strains)
- RAW blend
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
- Digestive enzymes that target yeast to prevent infections from overgrowth
CON’S
- No prebiotics
8. Raw Probiotics Women
This is the counterpart to the men’s probiotic discussed above. It targets specific feminine health needs so that vaginal health and overall digestive function are supported. Similar to the men’s product, it also contains digestive enzymes that specifically break down dairy, a RAW blend, prebiotics, vitamins, minerals and supports colon and bowel health.
PRO’S
- 85 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving of 3 capsules
- Serving size can be increased to 9 capsules a day for intensive care
- 32 different strains of probiotic
- RAW blend
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
- Vitamins and minerals
- Targeted towards women’s health specifically
- Dairy digesting enzymes
- Contains prebiotics
CON’S
- 3 capsules a day may be inconvenient (best taken separately throughout day)
9. Raw Probiotics Women 50 & Wiser
Last but not least is this probiotic formula specifically targeted for women who are 50 years young and over. There’s a signature blend of RAW fruits, veggies and seeds plus dairy digesting enzymes, vitamins, minerals, prebiotics and 33 different strains of probiotics to maintain healthy cholesterol levels, thyroid function, digestion, colon health, bowel regularity and immune response. An excellent product that covers all bases to help women age gracefully.
PRO’S
- 85 billion CFU (colony forming units) per serving of 3 capsules
- Serving size can be increased to 9 capsules a day for intensive care
- 33 different strains of probiotic
- RAW blend
- No fillers, binders, carriers, artificial flavours, colors or preservatives
- Vitamins and minerals
- Targeted towards women’s health needs over 50
- Dairy digesting enzymes
- Contains prebiotics
CON’S
- 3 capsules a day may be inconvenient (best taken separately throughout day)
What are the reviews saying?
We’ve headed over to Amazon to take a look at the reviews on the RAW range. From what we can see, the women’s and kid’s probiotics seem to be the most popular, perhaps indicating that women are more interested in probiotic supplementation than men are despite the targeted products towards men’s health. The Ultimate Care probiotic is also a big hit – which makes sense being that it covers all bases to suit everyone’s needs, a “one size fits all” if you will.
Regardless, it looks like most of the range’s products have around a 4/5 star average. These products seem to be helping with everything from eczema in kids to gut troubles in adults and promoting regular bowel movements for all ages. The main gripe is that you need to be careful when ordering the refrigerated products online as they sometimes get delivered warm which will affect the potency of the bacteria.
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a great probiotic that’s going to meet all of your specific health needs, then Garden of Life Raw Probiotics may have the right formula for you. With the added benefit of their signature RAW fruit and vegetable blend to mimic the experience of eating whole fermented foods, plus all your daily vitamins and minerals in a few of their products, these supplements are an excellent choice.
Adele Taylor
Writer, Product Tester.
Adele is a budding content writer with a passion for all things health and fitness related. In her time off Adele enjoys reading, travelling and exploring Sydney’s culinary delights.
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