I really should enter competitions more, after all, as the old saying goes: you gotta be in it to win it! Last year I won an Open University student union pencil case during freshers week. This year, I won some bespoke vegan ‘food supplements’ after a last-minute entry to a give away that I happened to see on the Vegan Society‘s web page.
I haven’t started using the supplements yet, as I still have a pot of multivitamins to finish, but once they’re done I’ll start on the new stuff. However, my initial thoughts on these vitamins aren’t exactly positive.
The box is rather funky, with the London skyline doodle running around the edge. The contents are ARTEFACT‘s ‘Concept I Immunity & Vitality’, with each capsule containing Vitamin D2 and B12, and extracts of Maca and Goji Berry. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not adverse to vitamin pills. As I said earlier, I take a daily multivitamin, and actually, the reason I take a multivitamin (as opposed to just an iron or calcium supplement), is to also boost my B12 and D intake. For vegans, getting enough B12 can be an issue, and as I’m an indoorsy, computer person, my D levels are also probably lacking, so I take a multivitamin to cover all my bases.
It’s when you get to talking about other supplements that I get a bit reticent, in this case, the added Goji and Maca. Goji berries are supposed to be a ‘superfood’, and are touted as having the ability to improve immunity, cardiovascular disease and life expectancy; aid well-being, brain activity and digestion; and help prevent cancer. However, all these claims are lacking some serious scientific evidence. Maca is claimed to improve libido and fertility, increase your mood and energy levels, help learning and memory, and reduce menopausal symptoms. But again, the scientific evidence to support these claims is extremely minimal and wholly questionable.
Moreover, as a scientist, I’m rather averse to pseudo-scientific claims and meaningless jargon and ho-boy! does the blurb to these pills have that in spades.
The main ingredients are maca and goji; both emerged as resistant, powerful, and sublime in an adaptation process from their respective regional growth conditions. [ARTEFACT]
Sublime? Really?
…Leaning upon goji’s protective and stabilizing nature as the baseline (e.g., through antioxidants, immunomodulation, antidiabetic, and cardiovascular protective activities as well as anti-aging in folkloric texts) lies the potent and versatile maca as an agent to further improve lifestyle dynamics (mental and physical health) such as sexuality (e.g., libido, reduced menstrual discomforts, fertility in folkloric hearsay), cognitive capacity (e.g., concentration, alertness, memory), and resilience (e.g., immune-booster and strength). [ARTEFACT]
They’re literally saying that some of what they’re claiming this stuff can do is based off unsupported tales, including the setting of the baseline (whatever the hell that baseline is supposed to be). Meanwhile, the other stuff they’re claiming has pretty much no scientific back up. Honestly, I could feel myself getting stupider as I read this, which kinda went against what these pills are allegedly supposed to achieve.
I checked on Amazon as to how much a pot of these “”””lifestyle improving”””” pills cost. £32.32!!!! That’s some extremely expensive waffle right there.
Anyway, I’ll post an update down the road once I’ve taken them for any length of time.