New Product Friday: Heywell
New Product Friday: Heywell
Calm + Hydrate Sparkling Water
Today’s new product comes from a company that specializes in adaptogenic sparkling waters. Heywell was founded on the principal that wellness should be simple and for everyone. Their products are all natural, non-GMO, vegan, gluten-free, vegan, and made with organic and GRAS certified ingredients. They currently sell an Energy + Focus, an Energy + Immunity, and a Calm + Restore product. Since we are focusing on new products, I wanted to focus on their newest product: Calm + Hydrate. Before we break down the product, I just want to say how refreshing (pun intended) it is for Heywell to list out the amounts of the functional ingredients. As we know, not very many companies do this. Let’s break down this product:
Filtered Water: Self Explanatory
Organic Lime Juice: This is a lime flavored beverage. So, lime juice is must so that the product can taste like an authentic lime.
Organic Erythritol: As we’ve mentioned before, erythritol is a sugar alcohol is 70% as sweet as sugar. The benefits of using it is that it doesn’t have to be labeled as “added sugar”, and is not a part of your net carbs (net carbs are important if you are on a Keto diet). Side effects of consuming large amounts of erythritol are digestive issues (which include cramps, diarrhea, bloat, and abdominal pain). Erythritol also leaves a cooling sensation in your mouth when consumed. Its a cheap and easy alternative to sugar.
Citric Acid: Citric acid is found naturally in citrus fruits like lemon, lime, oranges, and grapefruits. It is responsible for the “puckering” you get when you eat these fruits. For this product, citric acid is used to highlight and intensify the lime flavor.
Organic Lime Extract: Another way of saying lime flavor. Most citrus flavors are extracts from the said citrus fruit. Extracts are a way to concentrate and intensify the flavor of the fruit.
Amla Extract (326mg): Amla fruit is high in Vitamin C and antioxidants. Amla Extracts are typically standardized to have between 20-25% Vitamin C. That would mean that this product has between 65-81mg of Vitamin C (72%-90% Daily Value of Vitamin C).
Organic Lemon Balm (284mg): Lemon balm is an adaptogen and is known to help calm anxiety, help with sleep, and boost immunity (it has a high Vitamin C content). It also has a high amount of antioxidants which help with skin health and appearance. Most studies show that taking 300-600 mg of lemon balm, three times a day helps with reducing anxiety and with a general state of calm. This amount is obviously much less than that.
Schisandra (249mg): We talked about the benefits of Schisandra here. Schisandra is high in antioxidants, which is important for skin health and immunity. However, there is not a lot of robust research that proves that the amount of Schisandra in this product would be beneficial. Since Schisandra is included with other high antioxidant ingredients (with proven benefits), then it is beneficial to consume.
Magnesium Chloride (22mg): A source of electrolytes for hydration. The “22mg” is the amount of magnesium that magnesium chloride supplies. It is not the actual amount of magnesium chloride.
L-Theanine (100mg): We talked about the benefits of L-Theanine here. L-Theanine is a nootropic and is responsible for calming and relaxing the mind. Keep in mind that the majority of the studies for L-theanine had studied dosages of 200-250mg. This product only contains half of the studied dosage amount, so it might not give you the calming benefits you are looking for.
Potassium Citrate (50mg): A source of electrolytes for hydration. The “50mg” is the amount of potassium that is in potassium chloride. It is not the actual amount of potassium citrate.
Himalayan Pink Salt (35mg): Another source of electrolytes for hydration. Himalayan Pink Salt typically has less sodium than regular salt and contains other trace minerals for hydration. The “35mg” is only the amount of sodium. It is not the total amount of Pink Salt in the product.
Stevia: A natural, plant-based sweetener. It can leave a metallic, bitter after-taste when used too high.
Final Evaluation
Ingredient Quality: A. This product contains only natural, non-GMO, Organic (when possible), vegan, gluten-free, and GRAS certified ingredients.
Ingredient Clarity: A. All ingredients in this product are clear and easy to read and understand.
Functional Benefit: B. This product has a good source of a variety of different electrolytes (magnesium, potassium, sodium, chloride). However, the adaptogens and nootropics are either below their studied dosage amount or do not have enough research behind them to prove effectiveness. The combination of Lemon Balm, Amla Extract, and Schisandra is worth noting since together these ingredients are high in antioxidants and Vitamin C, which has proven benefits for skin health and immunity.
Nutritional Value: B-. Not sure how this product is at 10 calories when it has 11g of carbs. If calculated properly, it should be at 40 calories.
Overall Score: B+ The label and ingredients are clean and the product calls out the amounts of the functional ingredients. The lime flavor seems like a refreshing (and functional!) alternative to your typical lime sparkling water.
Would you buy this product?
This product was evaluated purely based upon the perspective of a food scientist. The writer’s opinions are purely her own without influence or affiliation with the brand.