RATING: 7.9 OUT OF 10.
Functional beverages have long been a substantial part of Addicted 2 Energy's reviews, with the first review dating all the way back to June of 2009. While it is clear that I do enjoy these unique beverages, how we define them is not. Fortunately, Wikipedia has an article that attempts to define exactly what a functional beverage is. Simply put, functional beverages are non-alcoholic drinks comprised of non-traditional ingredients, generally to promote some sort of mental clarity or enhance cognitive function. As it turns out, the I Am Company manufactures its own functional beverage. They call it I Am Focused, so let's find out if I Am Satisfied.
Of course, this company uses pretty much the same packaging style for every product they offer, and that's perfectly acceptable. Once again, a flavor is not presented on the front label, but a closer examination reveals the flavor to be raspberry. After I guzzled the shot down, I can successfully agree with that flavor. It does, in fact, have a raspberry flavor to it, but it isn't as tart as you might think. It's actually quite smooth and rather delicious. Judging by the two previous offerings of I Am, I can almost conclude that they really know how to make a tasty shot.
The active ingredients list is always a pleasure to look at when you're dealing with functional beverages. Hiding inside each bottle of I Am Focused, there is 100 percent daily value of niacin, 2,000 percent daily value of vitamin b6, 8,000 percent daily value of vitamin b12, and 100 percent daily value of pantothenic acid. It also contains 125 milligrams of ashwagandha root and leaf extract, 200 milligrams of alpha-glycerol phosphoryl choline, and 300 milligrams of acetyl l-carnitine. Not stopping there, it also has a focused blend worth 500 milligrams. In that, it contains gingko biloba, golu kola stem, organic yerba mate leaf, organic green tea leaf, and natural caffeine. There is no question that this drink definitely epitomizes the definition of a functional beverage. They really try to use non-traditional and obscure ingredients.
One of the biggest issues that I have with these drinks is that it is very difficult to discuss what effect they had on me. It is very easy to simply ignore the supposed effects and consider it to be a placebo. That being said, this product is designed to help the consumer reach a sense of mental clarity and balance. Whether or not I truly felt more calm and collected is an unsolvable enigma. What I can report is that I was engaged a bit more in the topics presented in my courses. Does this prove that this drink provided cognitive clarity? No. But, I still thought the effects were decent enough and it basically did its job.
Yes, it is true that functional beverages are extremely unique and perhaps even frustrating and confusing for us reviewers. However, there is nothing confusing about this drinks performance. For being a small shot, the flavor is palatable and certainly did not require any sort of chaser. Also, the ingredient list is one of the most unique that I can remember witnessing. I Am really went head over heels to locate some very interesting ingredients to try and increase mental clarity. Of course, I cannot prove that it does in fact do what it is advertised to do, but I can tell you that I enjoyed this tiny shot.
