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Garden Of Life Sleep Gummies
Organic, vegan, herbal sleep gummy? Be still our hearts. Turns out melatonin isn’t the only ticket to dreamland.
We’re melatonin junkies, so we weren’t sure if these would do much for us. But actually, that Valerian knocks us right out.
Good-enough raspberry flavor: nothing special but nothing terrible either.
At $25.59 for a month’s supply, these are definitely affordable. Sleeping well is priceless, anyway.
Full Review
We have an embarrassing confession to make: when we bought these, we thought that they had melatonin in them.
We were breezing through Target in need of some new sleep gummies, and saw these. We love any and all Garden of Life gummies that have crossed our path thus far, so we just snagged a bottle in between filling our carts with LaCroix and cat food and kept movin’.
We basically just saw “Relax and Fall Asleep Quickly,” the subtitle/promise of the bottle, and that was enough for us to be on board.
It wasn’t until right before bedtime that we saw in tiny little yellow print (yes, it’s on the front of the bottle) the two little words that sent shivers down our spines: “Melatonin Free”.
One big thing gave us comfort though Garden of Life has never let us down. (Weeeeeeell, except for when we found out they sold out to Nestlé in 2017. Seriously yikes!!! WTF.)
Despite their unfortunate parent corporation; Garden of Life boasts simple formulations that always taste great and they are absolute favorite when it comes to ingredients. (We’re having trouble right now keeping ourselves from eating their ACV gummies by the handful.)
But that doesn’t mean we were entirely sold on the idea of melatonin-free sleep gummies. Again, we repeat: These do not have melatonin.
In fact, we’ve noticed that none of Garden of Life’s supplements contain melatonin: instead they seem to prefer Valerian Root as their heavy-hitter.
Valerian Root
We’ve been aware of valerian root tea for decades, but we’ve been so enraptured with melatonin (that has been tucking the entire nation to bed every night) that we hadn’t really made space in our beds for anyone else.
But turns out (at least in the case of these gummies) valerian is pretty effective!
So we did some internet snooping to find out the facts.
It turns out that valerian works as a sleep aid in part because it helps regulate the amount of Gamma Aminobutyric Acid or “GABA”, floating around in your brain.
GABA is an amino acid that works as a neurotransmitter, and when it binds to certain receptors in your brain, it increases calmness, basically acting as a (very) mild sedative.
We also just discovered the Nature’s Bounty Stress Comfort Mood Booster Gummies, which deliver a direct shot of GABA, so we’ve kind of been on a GABA kick lately.
Valerian also interfaces with the nervous system directly as a mild pain reliever and muscle relaxant, and might also help regulate the amygdala, that part of your brain that regulates your fear & stress response.*
Valerian is not just a sleep aid! In medieval Sweden, valerian was stuffed into the pockets of blushing grooms as a way to ward off the envy of elves. Elves hate valerian apparently. Want nothing to do with it. Fact!
Valerian or Melatonin?
While both valerian and melatonin are sought-after sleep aids, they’re quite different. Valerian is an herb, while Melatonin is a hormone that our body produces naturally.
Ultimately it’s up to you and which you respond better to, but melatonin might be helpful if you’re trying to get your circadian rhythm back on track, after experiencing something that throws it off, like jet lag. Since it’s a hormone, it works with your body to help reset your natural sleep/wake cycles.
If this is all new to you, and youre thinking about trying Melatonin; then check out our Melatonin 101, or Valerian Root 101 pages which will answer all of your burning questions.
Honorable mention: L-theanine
We’d be remiss not to give a little shoutout to one of our favorite amino acids is: L-theanine. L-theanine is the Queen Amino of Calmness, and while it’s included often in sleep gummies, it’s not necessarily sleep-inducing per se. The overall effect is more of a general, mild calmness, which is why you sometimes also see it paired with caffeine or vitamin B12 to help take the edge off.
Proprietary Sleep Blend
The most fun & fascinating part of gummy hunting is discovering the unique recipes of ingredients in all the different gummies.
What we don’t love as much is when those ingredients are listed together as a “proprietary blend,” because in that case we never get an actual breakdown of what the dosage of each ingredient is.
For example, with the Garden of Life Sleep Gummies, we get 252 milligrams of “Sleep Blend” and in this blend they list l-theanine, Banana, Chamomile Extract, Lemon Balm Extract and Valerian Root Extract.
But there’s no way to tell specifically how much of any of these ingredients we’re getting in each gummy. Is this mostly Valerian with dashes of Chamomile and Lemon Balm? Or are we basically getting a banana gummy?
Now we know that bananas, with their potassium + magnesium, can work to potentially alleviate muscle cramps, and might also boost serotonin and melatonin, which regulates your sleep wake cycle.
This is just how the industry is right now and we have to trust our supplement overlords to have perfected the right concoction.
We will note that these are “Dr. Formulated,” and on the side of the bottle they have a picture of the neurologist and nutrition expert behind the formulation, one David Perlmutter, M.D. You don’t often see someone put their actual name (and face!) on a bottle of gummies. Brave man, maybe Dr. Perlmutter can tell us what the exact dosages are in the “Sleep Blend”.
Worth mentioning we took these anyway 😉
Moving along..
In the list of other ingredients, we spy a “Natural Flavor (Raspberry).”
These aren’t the most remarkable fruit flavor, and they’re certainly not going to turn your world upside down (the gummy-flavor game is on point these days, so just getting an average berry flavor doesn’t really race our motors). But they’re tasty enough; just not winning any creativity awards in the flavor department.
Are Non-Melatonin Sleep Gummies Effective?
This is the question we asked ourselves the night we realized our mistake. Would we be lulled off to dreamland or toss and turn, rueing our hasty purchase?
I am happy to report that these are noticeably effective!
Within thirty or forty minutes, there’s a tangible body calm as we gently melted into the sheets, fusing our minds with our pillows and letting the days’ worries drift away.
The muscle relaxant effect is subtle but real, at least for us.
We woke up with no grogginess or headaches. Just blissful and easy slumber. We responded positively to Dr. Perlmutter’s concoction. The man knows what he’s doing!
In the end, we are so glad that this happy accident happened to us. We love melatonin, but we also know that melatonin is not to be overused.
It’s good to take melatonin relatively sparingly, so knowing that we have a reliable, non-melatonin gummy always waiting in the wings helps us sleep well at night.
Dr. Formulated CBD+ Sleep Blueberry 60 Gummies
Garden of Life’s Dr. Formulated CBD line is now available in a new, easy-to-chew, delicious, and guilt-free gummy. Expertly formulated by David Perlmutter, M.D., Board Certified Neurologist and Fellow of the American College of Nutrition. Made from organic fruit (not typical candy ingredients), these CBD gummies use fully traceable, THC-Free CBD, from hemp organically grown in the USA and are tested Non-GMO and THC Free.
Not only are these gummies made with premium organic fruit and herbs, they taste great. Try them today and taste the difference!
Garden of Life CBD Sleep Gummies
Dr. Formulated CBD+ Sleep Gummies
Garden of Life’s Dr. Formulated CBD line is now available in a new, easy-to-chew, delicious, and guilt-free gummy. Expertly formulated by David Perlmutter, M.D., Board Certified Neurologist and Fellow of the American College of Nutrition, there’s no compromise here! Made from organic fruit (not typical candy ingredients), these CBD gummies use our fully traceable, THC-Free CBD, from hemp organically grown in the USA and are tested Non-GMO and THC Free. Not only are these gummies made with premium organic fruit and herbs, they taste great. Try them today and taste the difference!
Dr. Formulated CBD+ Sleep Gummies Benefits:
10mg of CBD per 2-gummy serving, PLUS
10mg of Organic Lemon Balm Extract and Organic Valerian Extract, both powerful herbs that promote relaxation and sleep†
Delicious Blueberry Flavor
Certified THC-Free Broad Spectrum Whole Hemp Extract from 100% organically grown USA Hemp
IGEN Tested Non-GMO
Vegan, No gelatin
What Are The Health Benefits of CBD?
CBD is used by consumers for a wide-range of health issues including stress, anxiety, sleep disorders, chronic pain, and inflammation. The only CBD medication that is currently FDA-approved is Epidiolex, which the agency approved last year for the treatment of certain types of epilepsy.
Many people also integrate CBD into their health routine to support their cellular and molecular health. Cannabidiol is just one of over 80+ cannabinoids that can be extracted from hemp. Among the many benefits that users experience, some of the main ones are: a sense of calm for focus; relief from everyday stresses; help in recovery from exercise-induced inflammation; and support for healthy sleep cycles.
What is the Difference Between Marijuana and Hemp?
Hemp and marijuana are from the same genus of plant. There are distinct differences, however, between the two.
Making the distinction between hemp and cannabis can be done in a few different ways. These include appearance, chemical composition, and cultivation.
Appearance
Hemp and marijuana look similar, but there are noticeable differences between the two, particularly between industrial hemp and marijuana. A marijuana plant, for example, has broad leaves and is typically bushy in appearance and produces thick, resinous, pungent flowers. Hemp, on the other hand, contains skinnier leaves that are more concentrated at the top of the plant and is much taller and skinnier than the marijuana plant.
Chemical Composition
Aside from the differences in appearance detectable by a trained eye, the chemical composition is also different.
Cannabis contains more than 500 chemical components. Of these, over 100 various cannabinoids have been identified. The most famous of these are tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD).
Research has shown that both THC and CBD contain a myriad of different health and wellness benefits; however, THC is known to produce the psychoactive effects that are associated with the “high” that’s made marijuana famous, while CBD does not contain these psychoactive attributes.
Here’s where there is a HUGE difference between hemp and marijuana. Hemp plants contain virtually no THC at all (0.3% or less), while marijuana is abundant in the psychoactive cannabinoid and can contain anywhere from 5-30% THC (or more). Because hemp plants contain such a minute amount of THC, hemp doesn’t get you high.
How Does CBD Affect Your Brain and Body?
CBD—and indeed, all cannabinoids—interact with your brain in a similar way to neurons and synapses.
When introduced into your bloodstream, cannabidiol molecules activate (or turn on) specific groups of receptors, including:
CB1 and CB2
Adenosine
Serotonin
Vanilloid
These receptors influence such body functions as appetite, pain sensation, mood, memory, and anxiety and have a great deal to do with the effects that CBD offers.
Does CBD Get You High?
No, CBD does not get you high. In fact, when taken with THC, CBD actually reduces just how high you can get through interactions with CB1 and CB2 Receptors