Saw It On Social: Gruns Vitamins

Raise your hand if your social media feeds have been victimized by Gruns? After the New Year, my Instagram was awash in advertisements for Gruns, and apparently, so were everyone else’s. I received requests for a SioS on Gruns every day, often multiple times per day. And, at first, I said, “No.”

As I explained in a prior Ask the Editor, I am deeply skeptical of subscription services in a post-Proactiv world. The last thing I need is another subscription that takes 10 emails and five phone calls to cancel. But when I realized that I could buy them at Target, I decided to satisfy all of our curiosities and give them a go.

Gruns claims that its green gummy bear vitamins are the best way to “transform” your health by filling “nutritional gaps.” The website is filled with claims that the vitamins boost immunity, heal the gut, boost energy and assist brain health. While proper nutrition can do all of those things, Gruns claims that their vitamins are special because their blend is vegan, prebiotic, nutrient dense, third-party tested, and free from common allergens.

I’m not a nutritionist or a food scientist or an MD, so I feel deeply unqualified to evaluate the medical claims. All I can do is talk about the experience as a lay person. But if you have credentials in this area, feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts.

Since pregnancy, I’ve taken a multivitamin every day and an iron supplement every other. So I went to Target and swapped my usual choices for Gruns.

Taste // The flavor of Gruns is listed as “fresh and green.” As someone who grew up in the country, I immediately tasted the alfalfa because one bite, and I was hit with the aroma of freshly cut fields. The gummies are sweet, but not too sweet. And the flavor is fine, nothing to write home about, but not gag-worthy like AG-1 or any of the other green supplements you see on the market.

Portion // A single day serving of Gruns is eight, count them EIGHT, gummies. By the fourth one, I found myself ready to be done with eating green juice concentrate. So I broke them up into two servings, four in the morning and four at night, which I found much easier to stomach. I didn’t buy the pre-packaged option, and just counted them out myself. I don’t see the need to create more trash for such a middling convenience.

Price // Holy mother, these vitamins are spendy. A two week supply is $45. That means you’re paying $90 per month for vitamins, a sharp, nearly 3x increase from my usual spend. I truly didn’t know vitamins could qualify as a luxury good.

Effectiveness // I do not have more energy. I do not feel mentally clearer. Period. Full stop. But I have noticed some other changes.

I’ve always had inconsistent gut health. Constipation is a problem I deal with often. But not since I started taking these gummies. I’m unsure if that is reason enough to keep taking them, but it’s certainly a noticeable benefit.

Also, a month after I started Gruns, I noticed a lot of new hair growth. Like many women I lost a LOT of hair postpartum, and I didn’t get it all back. Some of this is the baby, some of this is just perimenopausal hair thinning. But last week, I pulled my hair back in a bun and there was no mistaking the baby hairs sprouting from every direction. No other products have been used to increase hair growth, and Gruns are the only remarkable change to my diet. So that was an unexpected benefit.

Bottom line, I keep asking myself if these mild benefits make the vitamins worth the eye-popping price. My intention is to buy one more bag and to go a full 45-days on the supplements. Right now, I feel like they’ve showed enough promise to warrant another two weeks investment. After that, we’ll see.

Have you tried Gruns? What did you think? Or if you have another vitamin or supplement you love, leave it in the comments.

{As usual, I spent my own money on Gruns. No gifts were asked for and no compensation was received. This post contains affiliate links that may generate commission for the author}