Gaia Herbs Golden Milk Review And Tips
Gaia Herb’s Golden Milk is a nutritional supplement created from a traditional Ayurvedic recipe. The recipe has been used to strengthen the mind and the body and is drank daily by practitioners of Ayurveda. Gaia Herb has created a mix based on this tradition that is both tasty and easy to consume.
One of my good friends drinks Golden Milk every day, which made me wonder what is so special about the drink. I wanted to know if Golden Milk is something I should be adding to my smoothies, so I did some research and this is what I found.
What Is Ayurveda?
First off, I wanted to know what Ayurveda is. Golden Milk is based on a traditional Ayurvedic recipe, but what is the goal of Ayurveda?
Ayurveda is a traditional form of medicine, mainly found in India. It has links to the Hindu religion and is holistic in the sense that Ayurvedic doctors regard the physical body, the mind, and personality as a unit, with each unit being able to influence the others. The belief is that a healthy body will help a healthy mind and a healthy personality, and vice versa.
In general, Ayurvedic medications are considered alternative medicines. Modern science has not found evidence of many Ayurvedic claims. This does not mean that individual ingredients used in Ayurvedic medication do not work.
What Is Golden Milk?
Golden Milk is a powder made up of traditional Ayurvedic ingredients. It is meant to be drank with milk, but can be easily added to smoothies. It is vegan, gluten and dairy free, and contains no GMOs.
Now I knew what influenced the creation of Golden Milk. Next I wanted to know what Golden Milks is supposed to help with. So I looked at all the ingredients, one by one.
Turmeric Root
One of the main ingredients in Golden Milk is Turmeric. This is the ingredient that creates the golden color in Golden Milk.
Turmeric is a plant in the ginger family that is commonly used in many different traditional medicines. In Asia is has been used to help with indigestion, throat infections, common colds, liver ailments, to cleanse wounds, or treat skin sores.
Turmeric is valued in a number of Asian cultures and traditions. It is also valued as a ingredient in many food dishes. Turmeric is what gives yellow curry its color.
Curcumin is the main active ingredient in turmeric. It has powerful anti-inflammatory effects and is a very strong antioxidant. There is some evidence that it has anti-cancer properties. Most scientific research on curcumin obtain curcumin from turmeric extracts.
One problem with curcumin is that our bodies have trouble absorbing this ingredient. Studies show that black pepper greatly enhances the absorption of curcumin. Black pepper happens to be one of the ingredients of Golden Milk.
Cardamom Seed
Cardamom is another ingredient in many Indian dishes. It is also high in iron and manganese and there is limited research that it helps reduce the risk of cancer.
Ashwagandha Root
Ashwagandha root is one of the most popular Ayurvedic herbs. It is found as a supplement in many health food and vitamin stores. In traditional medicine ashwagandha has been used to relieve stress and calm the body and mind. There is evidence that ashwagandha may help with stress, blood sugar levels and even depression.
There’s even been some research to suggest that ashwagandha helps improve muscle gains. This is something that is obviously especially important to me and was a surprise to find in my research, and most herbal medicines focus on health not on muscle gains.
Vanilla
Vanilla tastes great, but it also used to boost ones mood. As mentioned before, Ayurvedic medicines focus on the body, the mind and also the personality. Vanilla is added to Golden Milk to help create a positive, attentive personality.
Dates
Dates are added to make Golden Milk a sweet and pleasant mixture. These are one of my favorite smoothie ingredients.
Black Pepper
As mentioned before, the main medicinal ingredient in turmeric is curcumin. Black pepper is key in helping our bodies absorb and benefit from curcumin.
Black pepper also add to the unique flavor of Golden Milk.
Heavy Metals
One thing that concerned me in my research was that a number of Ayurvedic supplements had levels of toxic metals. I discovered that most of these were supplements created and provided by companies based outside of the United States. These countries do not have strict regulations like the USA does and are more likely to have impurities in their supplements. Gaia Herbs did not have any of these issues and they are based in North Carolina, USA.
Will I Be Adding Golden Milk To My Smoothies?
I will indeed.
The most convincing aspect of Golden Milk is the set of ingredients. There is definitely scientific evidence that curcumin has medicinal properties. I’m also really impressed that ashwagandha may help in gaining muscle mass.
When I buy a dietary supplement, I am looking for ingredients that I do not normally get in my normal diet. A supplement is there to help balance an already healthy diet.
The great this about Golden Milk is that I rarely consume most of these ingredients. Sure I go out for Indian food sometimes, but not often enough to be able to say that turmeric or ashwagandha are a regular part of my diet.
I believe a healthy diet is well balanced and includes numerous different ingredients and nutrients. Golden Milk will help me add new, healthy ingredients into my diet.
You can read other reviews of Golden Milk here.