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Oh Bar Keep...I'd Like Another!

Joshua Powell

Adaptogens Coming To Screen Near You. I'm sorry, that's the Avengers. It takes work to keep up with all these new products and movies jamming up my Instagram feed.


A friend asked me about these drinks - adaptogens and mocktails. She wanted my thoughts, so here they are...


Like my post about food service delivery, these online elixirs promise a lot that I am not sure they can deliver. But before I get into it, note that there are two kinds of "mocktails" that I am going to review. One is just an alternative drink. It has no alcohol and claims to be a fun way to unwind. They are expensive. Honestly, they are fine but they are little more than very expensive juice drinks with soda water.


I am neither a physician nor an expert on adaptogenic drugs, but I know about clinical trials, working with large government-based regulatory agencies, and measuring effectiveness and outcomes.


So, let's start there. Who measures what? Well, that is no one. These drinks and their additives are not regulated. It is the carbonated Wild West.


First, there are plant-based compounds that do have a profound effect on the human brain—magic mushrooms, marijuana, coffee beans, and cocoa leaves, to name a few. So, I am not saying that plants cannot alter how our minds work. But do these drinks with adaptigens change our moods?


I suggest not to the degree that they claim. First, let's look at a few elements used to measure efficacy.


Cause and Effect

This does not mean I drank it and became relaxed. It means there would be a specific agent that causes a particular response. A good example is drinking a cup of coffee in the morning. Coffee has caffeine, a stimulant that makes a person feel more alert. I ingest coffee, and its caffine and I feel stimulated.


Dose Dependency

What is the "tested" amount of a particular agent that causes an effect? So what is it?


Temporal Sequence

I took agent "A" at 4:15. At 5:15, a relaxing effect washed over me.

Then, repeated testing focuses on these three elements, which is how you determine whether something works.


But there is more. It is essential to look at some of the already explored science around some of these ingredients. For example, I wrote about the "Sleepy Girl Mocktail." It had a few ingredients that were pitched to aid sleep. Some of it is true, some is not true, and some we just do not know.


So, again, this is looking at the Sleepy Girl Mocktail as an example. Does more GABA help sleep? Yes. Can Gaba pills bought at GNC that are ingested through the GI tract pass through the blood-brain barrier to the degree it will change your sleep? Most likely, no, according to experts.

Does magnesium help with sleep? Some studies suggest it does. Brain chemicals thought to be affected by magnesium include NMDA, GABA, melatonin, renin, and cortisol, which may impact how relaxed or tired a person feels.


What about melatonin? It differs from our other Sleepy Girl Mocktail compounds. It is a hormone

that does not put one to sleep; instead, it helps keep a person sleeping. Notably, the melatonin one gets over the counter has poor bioavailability.

If any of these have an effect, it's minimal. But it brings up important issues.


First is truth in claims. All of these products are little more than a money grab that prey on people who want to stop drinking or want to drink less, and that is another blog post. Alcohol is a profoundly powerful drug. It does have sedating effects initially, but it is horrible for sleep and causes more harm than good. ETOH is a poison, but it does "relax" a person. The appeal of that cold "adult" beverage is profound. Your brain says "YES," and endorphins cascade into your grey matter like a January storm on the banks of Lake Erie. For many of us, booze is a "clutch" (note: I did not use the term crutch). It disengages the revving engine - our mind. There is a reason why that glass of wine or martini tastes so good after work.


Many people are beginning to realize that drinking is a zero-sum game; it is more harmful than good - in all cases. This does not mean it is wrong, but let's call a spade a spade. The science behind alcohol use is becoming more and more compelling. I am not saying don't drink; I am simply acknowledging the growing body of research that suggests alcohol is not a good thing in any amount. The other truth is that a lot of people are examining their drinking and are deciding to cut back or to cut it out. There is a reason for "Dry January." And I think the confines of the COVID pandemic shined a bright light on some of our drinking habits. Americans saw a booze purchase uptick of 25%. There were a few "Zoom" meetings I attended where I know there was day drinking going on. So what. It was a pandemic and scary - and alcohol did help some deal with this radical change in lifestyle. I remember a few people (I was working on a study around Opioid Use Disorder at the time) were out raged that alcohol sales were considered essential. I was not. The last thing healthcare professionals needed was an influx of people going through clinical withdrawal, a life-threatening healthcare situation. Give granny her wine was my best thought.


While some people want to give up the booze and all the deleterious effects that it has, they want that "disengaging" clutch feel. They want to relax. Relaxing not only has implications for stress but also for sleep. This dovetails with the time of day most drink - evening. The darkness stimulates our brain to slow down (yup, melatonin), and we start to crash. The problem is that our sensitive brains are bombarded with caffeine, sugar, and stimulation from our tablets and phones, not to mention the rebound from that after-work martini.


This makes sleep and relaxation a bit elusive, and so many of us jump on the iPad and Google how to relax, chill, sleep, and disengage without alcohol.


The response from the Google Gods ranges from apps like Calm to medications like Ambien; the tried and maybe true(but not well-researched) indica strains of weed, and coming up like a 2-year-old filly on the homestretch running to avoid a place in line at the glue factory, adaptogen mocktails.

Relaxation, sleep, and less stress are genuine healthcare needs, and there is science behind changing one's mindset. I doubt some Instagram millennials concocting some root-berry elixir will find the cure for this genuine concern.


Using certain terms specific to ingredients and promises can be problematic—for example, the term "non-GMO" sugar. Sugar can't be genetically modified, although sugarcane can. However, the product is a discrete molecule, and refined sugar is refined sugar. It would be impossible to distinguish which dab of sucrose comes from a non-GMO sugar plant versus a GMO plant. It is a marketing tool; it does not influence health, aside from the fact that we know refined sugar is not great for people.




Some of these companies make other fishy claims on their websites. One company claims no added sugar, but the ingredients list has "added sugar." Some claim to elevate one's mood, which is connected to having caffeine in the recipe. So beware.


The fact is that cocktails, beer, and wine are part of our social fabric as adults. It is connected to going to bars and clubs when we were younger. As we age, wine and cheese, cocktail parties, and romantic dinners further romance the romance we have with alcohol. We've managed to weave alcohol into so many aspects of celebration and ritual. It is part of religion. It is part of mourning. We toast birthdays, weddings, and holidays. And sometimes, the social lubrication makes a fun time even more fun. That's just another part of alcohols allure.


Many years ago, I was at a spine conference with an older and much wiser surgeon. We talked about all the different kinds of spine care, and eventually, we touched on chiropractic care. I said I thought it was nonsense. He disagreed. We went back and forth, and ultimately, he asked me this: "If a person is seeing a chiropractor for back pain and he makes the person's pain less or go away, isn't that the point?" And, of course, he was right. We are still determining why some things work or why others might not.


If drinking these "mocktails" makes a person drink less alcohol, that is good. Americans consume too much alcohol. This is a fact. If an adaptogen drink makes a person feel more relaxed, go for it. Drink it.


While I can read a label and better understand some of the science than others, know this: I am still a guy who drinks herbal tea at night. I know that my Sleepy Time Chamomile tea is not Ambien juice, but I continue to use it; it is my ritual.


Another option is making your own mocktails. One of my favorites is a shot of ginger over ice with Pelligrino sparkling water.


I think mocktails are self-care. Maybe the idea of taking some time, having a nice beverage in a fancy glass, and taking a breath will quench this emotional thirst. There is nothing wrong with this. I would say, make it like cooking. Explore all the different flavors, fizz and know the ingredients. If you are person who swears by adaptogens go to your local health food store and buy some ashwagandha, holy basil, ginseng or turmeric - they are all considered adaptogens and there are others.


Bottomline - if it makes you feel better about yourself and your health - if it helps relax you - I'm all in. But remember, the claims made have not been put through the wringer. The herbs that are used have not been tested as to their strength, purity or sourcing - you are buying a product that claims certain benefits that have not been measured or proven. It really doesn't matter if these products claim to be "hand crafted" or "responsibly sourced" - the fact is that they come in a can - they are not "hand crafted" there is little to no real meaning behind "responsibly sourced." Sugar is a molecule and it matters little if comes from a Domino's cube or a beet.


I love the idea of offering people an alternative to a substance that is endemic and dangerous like alcohol, but I also get that there is a desperation that many have to not use it. Do these products prey on this mindset a bit? I think so. At the end of the day, buying these products is expensive and every single purveyor is looking to make a buck. The industry is expected to grow to 30 billion dollars by 2025. So I think if you believe that adaptogen-laced beverages are beneficial to you, buy a good juicer, go to your local health food store or co-op and get the adaptogens to mix into your juice that works for you. That's right "hand-craft" your own mocktail. Save a buck and know what is actually in your glass.


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