Garden of Life is one of the most popular supplement companies in the U.S. The brand sells a range of products, but their probiotics are highly popular, and the brand claims that their probiotics have "billions of diverse, clinically studied strains that promote digestive balance.”
But does Garden of Life's supplement contain probiotics with proven health benefits? Does the brand use any unhealthy ingredients? Does this supplement cause side effects? And is Garden of Life better or worse than popular probiotic brands like Align?
In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in Garden of Life probiotics to give our take on whether or not the supplement is effectively formulated.
We'll also discuss the risk of side effects, and compare Garden of Life Probiotics to other popular probiotic brands like Align to pick our winners (and losers).
Key takeaways:
- Contains research-backed probiotic strains
- Free from unhealthy additives
- We currently recommend Garden of Life Probiotics
Ingredient Analysis
The ingredients in Garden of Life Raw Probiotics Ultimate Care are shown below:
This supplement contains 34 different types of probiotics (the brand incorrectly describes them all as strains, while only four specific strains are listed). Some of these probiotics are shown in research studies to have positive health effects.
Bifidobacterium lactis was shown in a clinical trial published in the Nutrition journal to reduce obesity and cholesterol levels in overweight adults.
However, the specific strain used differed from the ones in Garden of Life Raw Probiotics.
Lactobacillus bulgaricus was shown in a 2020 clinical trial to reduce cancer risk and intestinal inflammation, however this was an in vitro (test tube) study which makes the results weaker than a human trial.
Lactobacillus acidophilus is clinically shown to improve intestinal health and gut function, as we documented in our 1MD reviews article on another popular probiotic supplement brand that contains this ingredient.
Bifidobacterium longum is beneficial for patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), according to a clinical trial published in the Gut Microbes journal.
Lactobacillus casei may be effective for reducing allergy symptoms and obesity according to a 2018 meta-study.
The study authors concluded the following: “The health-promoting capabilities of the [Lactobacillus casei group] have been documented in several studies suggesting real potential for their use in the treatment, or prevention, of a variety of diseases.”
Clearly there are a number of effective probiotic species with wide ranging health effects in this supplement. But taking probiotics generally at an effective dose (which Garden of Life probiotics provides) also has research-backed benefits.
Regular probiotic supplementation was shown in a 2021 medical review to not only support optimal gut health but also to potentially reverse existing gut damage.
The inactive ingredients should be safe and non-toxic.
The entire herb blend in Garden of Life has a total dose of 45 milligrams (mg), or 6 mg per ingredient.
According to the USDA, one cherry is equivalent to a cherry dose of 8,200 mg. This means that one single cherry has a dose over 1,000 times greater than the cherry dose in Garden of Life probiotics.
Overall, we consider Garden of Life Probiotics to be effective for supporting optimal gut health and digestion, because it provides an effective probiotic dose.
Does it Cause Side Effects?
Given that probiotics alter gut function, consumers are often curious about whether they can cause side effects.
Garden of Life Probiotics don’t appear to be tested in any clinical trials, so it’s impossible to say for certain whether or not the supplement causes side effects. However, we can make an educated guess based on its ingredients.
Higher-dose probiotics may have an increased risk of side effects, as we discussed in our Align probiotic reviews article. This makes logical sense, given that the more live and active cultures in a probiotic, the more biological effects will take place in the gut.
Garden of Life probiotic dosing is very high, at 100 billion colony-forming units (CFU) per serving. As documented in this probiotic fact sheet published by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), many probiotic supplements only contain 1 to 10 billion CFU.
We consider Garden of Life Probiotics somewhat more likely to cause side effects than the average probiotic supplement due to the high dose, but these side effects are often minor such as gas and bloating.
We do not consider this supplement likely to cause serious side effects in otherwise healthy individuals.
Garden of Life vs. Popular Probiotics
Here's how Garden of Life Probiotics compares to other popular probiotic brands in terms of formulation quality, in our opinion:
Olly Probiotic
Like many gummy supplements, this brand includes added, refined sugar, which is clinically shown to be harmful to human health when consumed in excess.
Since many Americans already consume too much added sugar in their diet, we generally recommend being cautious about added, refined sugar in supplements.
Garden of Life Probiotics comes in capsule form, and is the healthier choice.
Winner: Garden of Life Probiotics
Align Probiotic
Align Probiotic contains a research-backed probiotic strain as its sole active ingredient.
However, it also contains inactive ingredients we consider unhealthy, including a colorant which is banned in the EU over toxicity concerns.
Winner: Garden of Life Probiotics
Spring Valley Probiotic
Walmart's probiotic has a lower-quality formulation than Garden of Life's probiotic.
We could only find research to support one of 11 active ingredients.
Winner: Garden of Life Probiotics
Our Clean Probiotic Picks
Ritual Synbiotic+ is our top probiotic pick.
It contains prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics, and costs under $1.50 per serving at the time of updating this article.
Probiotics "can improve in the immune, gastrointestinal...health systems in healthy adults" according to a 2019 medical review.
MBG Organic Fiber Potency+ is our top prebiotic fiber pick.
MBG Organic Fiber Potency+ contains 100% soluble fiber, which was described as "one of the most important nutrients for the gut microbiota" in a clinical review published in the Molecules journal.
Both of the products recommended in this section are free of ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.
Garden of Life Probiotics Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Should support optimal gut health
- Zero unhealthy additives
- Contains effective probiotic dose
- Contains research-backed probiotic species
- Healthier than competitors
- Affordable given potency
Cons:
- Doesn’t appear clinically tested
- Contains incredibly small herbal ingredient doses
- High potency may increase side effect risk
