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In Partnership with GEM. Editor’s Note: We only select and work with partners that meet our quality standards, so you can rest assured we only endorse products we believe in.
I think it’s fair to say that the vitamin and supplement “space” has gotten way out of hand.
With so many brands touting claims that their new niche thing can fix this or that, most people are finding themselves with a Frankenstein’d health routine that includes handfuls of pills and powders that are meant to keep them from falling apart. Myself included!
However, in an attempt to overcorrect, many are potentially putting their health at risk, overloading their precious livers with synthetically sourced supplements that could be putting even more strain on their systems.
So what’s the answer? How do we consolidate our lives? How do we actually get what we need without overdoing it? Could it be a diamond in the rough? Or is it just a GEM? (I’m screaming).
Sara Cullen, founder and CEO of GEM, would ask us to consider what is essential when it comes to nourishing our bodies. No, GEM is not a new supplement. It’s a nutritional companion—a snack even—that is helping people get all of the vitamins and nutrients they need in one fell swoop (and swallow) from whole-food ingredients. A bite-sized approach to health, if you will! No binders, no artificial ingredients, no fillers, no synthetic ingredients whatsoever. GEM is the real deal.
Come with me on this journey to find out more!
We like
- Synergistic, bioavailable ingredients
- Dessert-level delicious
- 20+ whole-food vitamins, minerals, superfoods, prebiotics + probiotics
- Science-backed formulations
- Reasonably priced, considering it can fully replace your current multi (and even some of your other supplements)
- Just the right amount of everything you need and nothing more!
We don't like
- Not ideal if you’re not a #ginger or turmeric fan
EATING THE RAINBOW DIFFERENTLY
For many, many years, people have turned to the simple motto, “Just eat the rainbow!” when instructing others on how to eat healthfully. By eating a diverse range of whole food that was locally sourced, one wouldn’t even need supplements because their bodies would be getting absolutely everything necessary to function optimally from food sources alone.
Gosh, weren’t those the good ol’ days!
Thanks to climate change and a defunct food supply system, our soil has been completely depleted, leaving over 90% of Americans nutrient deficient. That means eating the rainbow is no longer enough and that many need to turn to external sources—enter: vitamins and supplements—in order to restore the body’s natural stasis.
However, even the synthetic supplement market may not be filling the nutrient gap like we would have hoped. Cullen explained that when your vitamins or minerals are extracted and isolated in a pill, tablet, or gummy form, they are stripped of their accompanying phytonutrients, which play a synergistic role in giving you the highest bioavailable nutrition.
“In a study detailed by the book Whole, they found that eating an apple that had 5.7mg of Vitamin C was 263x more potent and positively impactful on the metabolic pathways of the body than a 1500mg of an isolated vitamin C capsule. Another example of how all those antioxidants play a vital role along with the vitamin C and why deriving vitamins and minerals from whole foods is important for boundless results.”
Cullen also exposed that 90% of the Vitamin D you’ll find on the shelves in tablet or capsule form comes from lanolin, an oil derived from sheep’s wool. “Real, whole foods deliver not only essential vitamins and minerals, but also thousands of phytochemicals (i.e. antioxidants) that work synergistically to help your body absorb key vitamins and minerals more effectively than isolated pills, powders and gummies.”
These powerful phytochemicals influence and impact the vast and complicated network of our body and mind more than we can imagine.
ONE BITE A DAY KEEPS THE DOCTOR AWAY
And then GEM entered the scene to remind us that food is medicine.
In just one bite, GEM Daily Essentials offer over 20 essential vitamins, plus minerals and phytonutrients derived from whole-food plant sources without any artificial fillers, sweeteners, or binders. Unlike many conventional supplements that are siloed in their purpose, GEM focuses on synergistic ingredients that are rooted in science and easy for the body to process.
“We use black pepper to help activate the medicinal effects of turmeric (curcumin), and we use chickpea-sourced Vitamin K2 to help our body absorb the calcium we already get a lot of in our daily diet. And importantly, we don’t believe in megadosing and overwhelming your body with nutrients you already get from a balanced diet. We believe in filling your gaps with the key nutrients you need most in the best possible form.” Because GEM is food-based and non-megadosed, that means you won’t experience any kind of nausea if you take it on an empty stomach.
While GEM’s mission might seem lofty, Cullen spent years researching and partnering with a hand-picked Scientific Advisory Board of the brightest minds in holistic medicine—neurologists, functional MDs, registered dieticians, and herbalists—to formulate the most effective food-based solution possible. And Cullen and the GEM team have the results to prove it.
In a consumer perception study conducted with Citruslabs, participants noticed boundless benefits, including…
- More energy
- Better digestion
- Less bloating
- More radiant skin
- Shinier, faster-growing hair and nails
- Fewer sick days
We’d argue she’s succeeded in her mission!
We like
We don't like
MY GEM OF A SUPPLEMENT ROUTINE
GEM sent through four packets of their supreme Bites—each packet containing seven Bites (meaning I was good for the whole month and could organize myself week by week). My Starter Kit also came with a very cute GEM “pill box” so I could easily take my Bites on the go.
For my 28-day trial, I promised myself I would nix my routine of my multivitamin, vitamin C powders, and any superfluous supplements that were extraneously added to my regimen without my naturopathic doctor’s consent (I’m sorry, Dr. Koorjee!) so I could really see the effects of my GEM Daily Essentials. Sara mentioned that the Bites are so tasty and convenient, that she eats one every morning as a “breakfast appetizer” or with her morning coffee. Of course I had to do the same!
I decided that my GEM time would be before my breakfast bone broth and my workout. As someone who is not much of a breakfast person and doesn’t want to feel too full before working out (vom.com), I was curious to see how my GEM (can I say “pop a GEMMIE?) would make me feel.
Let me just say: It was d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s. (I found out this was not surprising considering they use an in-house pastry chef).
Normally, working through my supplement routine in the morning can take a while, which is deeply inconvenient when I’m running late or tired. Being able to just take one bite no matter where I was and know I got everything I needed for the day was a HUGE step for Virgo (Wo)mankind. Yes, it took some getting used to because I’m a #Multi-StepGirlie, but after I adjusted to not feeling like I had missed something from my routine, I realized I actually had a lot more time on my hands to get things done in the AM, and I didn’t feel run down or physically deficient.
Most importantly, I felt a lot of relief knowing that I wasn’t 1) taxing my liver 2) ingesting synthetic ingredients or 3) overdoing it in any capacity. It felt good to know that I was putting good things into my body, and in my opinion, that kind of relief can be enough (did you know stress kills?).
Moving forward, I will happily be integrating GEM into my morning routine—if not only because it helps me consolidate my routine step-wise and money-wise. There’s also never the added anxiety of “Omg. I forgot to take my vitamins at the same time as yesterday,” which means that popping a GEMMIE (trying it) can happen wherever, whenever.
CHEW ON THIS
Cullen’s mission is to spread delicious nutrition and make it more accessible for everyone. In the hopes of getting everyone on the real-food train, GEM has launched a give-back program that allows people to donate 1% of their monthly purchase to one of their non-profit partners focused on food system equity.
In addition to corporate responsibility, GEM is looking to create more bite-sized, personalized routines with Booster Bites that can easily support theGEM Daily Essentials. At the moment, they offer a non-habit forming Sleep Booster Bite with sumptuous chocolate, cherry, and valerian root, alongside a magnesium-rich Calm Bite that leverages banana, cinnamon, lemon balm, and many other soothing ingredients. Follow them on Instagram to be the first to know about their next Bite drop: @daily_gem
I’m salivating, are you?
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