Bulletproof Zen Mode Review
A revolutionary supplement for mind and peace or daylight robbery for Dave’s most loyal customers?
Dave added a bunch of new supplements this fall. The newly coveted Zen Mode being one of them which is surprising seeing as he already does a lot to keep calm and cool during the day after investing thousands in neurofeedback (40 years of Zen which comes in at around ten thousand dollars) and already endorsing several meditating enhancing products. So Zen Mode came as a shock to me that he even needs something else to add even more Zen to his “Zeness “. This is his most expensive supplement per serving so is it worth it?
45 Tablets 15 servings in total you’re getting some: Holy Basil Leaf Extract , Ashwaganda, Saffron Stigma Extract , Zembrin. Then in conjunction to this Dave Asprey has patented a “Bulletproof zen blend”. Thrown in there you already ge:t L- theanine , vitamin B 6 , Gab , 5 HTP. Its not quantified what quantity of which is in this supplement unfortunately .Which was quite surprising to see Vitamin B6 on here as Dave has in the past on his podcast criticised supplements which have had individual B. vitamins in them saying that over supplementing certain B vitamins can damage the brain he has described nootropic companies who do this as careless but has seemingly now done this in his own supplement. Make sure you test your B-vitamin deficiencies before you supplement vitamin b6 or any B Vitamin for that matter.
What’s in the box?
Each ingredient looked at individually:
Saffron Stigma extract: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4599113/
Articles have linked this herb to promoting memory and learning retention, increasing Vitality, having Anti-Depressant properties and has been known to decrease blood pressure in some studies
Zembrin: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3828542/
Studies in South Africa have linked this to promoting well being and decreasing stress. A study on 16 healthy individuals had a change in their amygdala reactivity to fearful faces under low perceptual load conditions was attenuated after a single 25 mg dose of Zembrin. Of course this is only 16 individuals so its hard to make a generalisation but yeah…
Holy Basil Leaf: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26571987
Proof that it enhances certain cognitive parameters in healthy adult volunteers
5 Http: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9727088
a known serotonin producer can increase happiness in people
L-Theanine – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5537891/
Has been known to reduce stress in numerous studies like the one above
Vitamin b6: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4290459/
A lot of studies link this to reducing stress by supplementation including the one above
Pros
- Convenience is King and with Zen mode its certainly the case you’re getting a lot in this thick pill.10 Supplements in one saving you time having to take 10 individual supplements some of which can be harmful in large doses for example 5-HTP and Gaba.
- Each individual supplement has been backed by research to reduce stress. Some a lot more than others.
- Additional Ashwaganda and Holy basil leaf can help with parasitic infections although I don’t know if the quantity is enough to have a significant impact (probably not) as the pill doesn’t weigh enough for there to be a large amount of these present.
Cons:
- Priced at £45 of a supplement you’re meant to take 3 capsules of the 45 a day meaning you get only 15 servings coming at whopping £3 a serving this is Dave Asprey’s most expensive supplement yet actually more expensive per gram than Smart Mode and with arguably cheaper ingredients. An outrageous price and is it justified? It’s difficult to quantify . It seems to some extent it could be Dave taking advantage of his loyal fanbase that simply buys everything that he puts his name on and whilst i admit I found a small increase in creativity with smart mode its difficult to quantify the impact Zen Mode had on me given that I already have “zen” due to meditation and infrared sauna both which massively reduce cortisol and stress.
- The pills are pretty big and was the same with Smart mode these are thicker than previous supplements on Dave Asprey’s Bulletproof range. I believe some older clientele 60/70 years plus will have genuine problems swallowing these.
- I actually had supply issues with both supplements before testing them out my Zen Mode had leaked originally and so did my supply of Smart Mode.My second batch of Zen mode in addition had leakage problems too.
- A few of the supplements in the blend haven’t had the best reviews. Zembrin has had bad reviews on Amazon with a users citing no change . The scientific literature backing its consumption analysed just 16 people in South Africa i don’t believe the data set is large enough to draw conclusions about it’s effectiveness.
Conclusion:
Zen Mode and Smart Mode are difficult to analyse on a scientific basic even though the individual components all have articles that praise them as a whole this supplement I think Zen Mode strikes me as the weakest Dave Asprey has released yet. I think if you have the disposable income to buy Zen Mode then you most likely have the disposable income to buy a clearlight infrared sauna which will give you a tonne more zen in the long run than any quantity of zen mode. There are far more effective supplements at £3 a serving I’d actually pick unfair advantage +brain octane ahead of this to give you more energy and spend time meditating instead to achieve that zen state. This was the first supplement of Dave’s that had no impact on me unfortunately but if you’re a busy go getter without the time to mediate or use a sauna then this maybe for you. It certainly kills a lot of birds with one stone though and with those with a large disposable income who are willing to splash out in your face money on a supplement that costs £3 a serving then go for it but i’d buy the Ashwaganda, Holy Basil Leave individually which will be much cheaper and will get you far more servings for your money and just consume them along with L-Theanine . I’m personally against supplementing b6 on its own without having an appropriate B-Vitamins test as is Dave Asprey. I feel all together like this can be done far cheaper buying them individually which makes it just not worth the price
Score: 4/10
The Rational Biohacker 