Sakara, alternatively called Sakara Life, is a healthfood brand that sells everything from complete meals delivered to your door to protein powders and supplements. The company has beautifully designed products, and describes their offerings as "clean eating designed for results."
But are their products really that much better than the competition to justify their high prices, or is it mostly just a branding play? Does the brand's popular Metabolism Powder contain research-backed ingredients? Do Sakara meals contain any unhealthy ingredients? And how do real users rate and describe the taste and healthiness of Sakara?
In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more as we review Sakara Metabolism Powder based on medical research to give our take on whether it's likely to improve metabolism and gut health, and review the ingredients in Sakara's meals to give our take on whether they're healthy and worth the price.
We'll also break down the cost of Sakara per week based on the brand's most popular plan, and share a real, unsponsored user review of Sakara.
Sakara Metabolism Powder Review
Metabolism Super Powder is Sakara's most popular product. The brand claims this product can provide "metabolism support" and can "support gut health."
Raw cacao powder and coconut milk are the first two ingredients, and both are nutritious, whole food options that can benefit metabolism and health.
Dark chocolate is rich in cacao powder, and its consumption has been found to have favorable effects on human metabolism. A medical review published in the Journal of Proteome Research found that dark chocolate consumption reduced cortisol levels (the stress hormone) and caused favorable changes to the gut microbiome (the balance of live cultures existing in our digestive tract).
Coconut milk has been found to have a favorable effect on cholesterol levels. A meta-study from 2013 found that its consumption decreased low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels, which is considered “bad” cholesterol, and increased high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels, which is considered “good” cholesterol.
L-glutamine is an amino acid and is included in this formulation at a dose of 1,000 milligrams (mg). This ingredient does have significant research backing in regard to its ability to improve gut function and reduce gut inflammation, but the dose in Metabolism Powder may be below the therapeutic range.
A medical review on the health effects of l-glutamine documented that the “observed safe dose recommended for chronic [glutamine] consumption is presently 14 g/day,” or 14x the amount in this supplement.
Kelp extract has some impressive research backing for its effects on metabolism. A medical review published in the Nutrients journal analyzed the effects of kelp on metabolic syndrome, which is a cluster of health conditions including obesity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels.
The study authors found that kelp supplementation had anti-obesity, blood sugar lowering and cholesterol lowering effects.
Gymnema sylvestre leaf extract may favorably impact metabolic function as well. A clinical trial published in the Journal of Medical Food found that this compound improved blood sugar control at a dosage of 600 mg daily, which is similar to the 400 mg dose in Sakara. It also improved insulin sensitivity.
Another study on this botanical ingredient found that it decreased body weight and cholesterol levels in an overweight patient population.
We consider Sakara Metabolism Powder likely to improve metabolism, and we recommend the product. We do not recommend using this product to treat any specific health issue, but for occasional use it seems like it can improve metabolism and gut function. It's also entirely free of questionable additive ingredients like artificial flavors or added sugar.
Sakara Meals Review
Sakara sells a meal plan on a subscription basis with a rotating menu. Customers sign up and receive shipments to their door every week.
All of their meals are made with entirely whole food ingredients, and we consider them to be healthy and nutritious. The ingredient list above is from Sakara’s burrito bowl that was on their menu at the time of writing this article.
It’s notable that every ingredient is an organic plant material or a spice. There are no preservatives or questionable additive ingredients like flavoring agents, which is uncommon for a food delivery brand. Even the salsa mix contains ingredients like plum tomatoes and cilantro and has no unhealthy additives.
Their sweet baked items are healthy too. The chia protein waffles shown above use natural sweeteners like maple syrup and coconut nectar rather than processed cane sugar.
As we explained in our Daily Harvest reviews article, maple syrup is a much healthier sweetener than cane sugar because it’s rich in minerals like phosphorus, potassium and calcium, and doesn’t cause as much of a blood sugar spike as processed white sugar.
We’ve reviewed every single ingredient in every item on Sakara’s upcoming menu and can’t identify one single ingredient we consider unhealthy or unsafe.
We recommend Sakara meals overall and consider this one of the healthiest meal delivery brands on the market.
How Much Does Sakara Cost?
The only downside to Sakara in our opinion is the cost. This isn’t surprising, given that organic botanical ingredients are relatively expensive, but Sakara is more expensive than most of the other meal delivery services that we've reviewed on Illuminate Health.
At the time of writing this article, the cost of a one-time purchase of 20 full days of Sakara meals is $1,760. This plan provides three meals a day, which equates to a cost of $29.33 per meal.
The price definitely varies by location (we tested multiple ZIP codes) and based on program selected, so we recommend that consumers interested in Sakara play around with the pricing tool to find a plan that might work for them.
As an example, a weekly subscription for 15 deliveries (3 meals a day for 5 days) is currently showing as a $329 cost, which equates to $21.93 per meal.
For those with high discretionary income, investing in your health is one of the best investments you can make, but Sakara may be out of reach for the majority of Americans based on price.
Real, Unsponsored Sakara User Review
One popular YouTube review of Sakara comes from a channel called “Avocado on Everything.” The creator signed up for Sakara for a week and shares her experience of the meals:
Our Clean Meal Delivery Pick
Trifecta Nutrition is our top meal delivery service pick because of its nutritious options.
Their meals are created by chefs, and most importantly, the meals are rich in vitamins and minerals because they're primarily made with vegetables and grass-fed meats.
Unlike most commercial meal plans, Trifecta doesn't use filler carbs for most of the calories.
Interested consumers can check out Trifecta Nutrition at this link to the product page on the brand's official website.
We're not suggesting that Trifecta is healthier than Sakara, just that it may be a better option for consumers who are budget-conscious since their meals start at around $14 per meal.
Sakara Pros and Cons
Here are the pros and cons of Sakara Life based on our review of the brand’s formulations:
Pros:
- Healthy ingredients
- Positive user reviews
- Fantastic branding
- Effective supplement ingredients
Cons:
- Expensive
- Can't get meals on weekends
