Bariatric Foodie Play with your food
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Y’all. I think ProCare Health is really out here trying to inspire us to give up sugary treats forever. Why do I say that?
Because they keep making these really unique calcium chews that totally fill the gap of cravings we tend to have as bariatric post-ops!
Think about it. First, they came with the Calcium Dark Chocolate Squares (that’s the link to my review of them, by the way), then they gave us Sea Salted Caramel Calcium Soft Chews (also a link to my review), and now Dinner Mint flavored Calcium Soft Chews.
Dinner Mints. Freaking dinner mints??? Like…who would have thought we could enjoy the taste of dinner mints again?
I personally have very specific memories of dinner mints. When I think of them, I think of Chinese food restaurants because that’s where I would always encounter them. I’d always grab a handful so I’d have some for later. The sweet, minty flavor, with the chewy-but-slightly-powder texture was just a hit for me.
So…ProCare..you betta had brought it! Let’s put this product through the paces and see if they did.
But first…
ProCare Health: Who the hell are they?
If you’ve never heard of them before, ProCare Health is a website and online store that offers a plethora of bariatric supplements. But I would say their specialty is unique calcium. Because I don’t know about you, but getting all my calcium doses in a day can be challenging. And ProCare’s delicious and unique product offerings have definitely helped with that!
There’s a lot more to learn about ProCare Health and you can do so by visiting their website!
ProCareHealth Dinner Mint Soft Calcium Chews: What the hell are they?
This is another in what I hope will be a long line of calcium soft chews that replaces the flavor of things it’s difficult to make WLS-friendly! Like the Salted Caramel, these are individually-wrapped soft chews that contain calcium, vitamin D and probiotics (more on the nutrition in a minute).
I received a bag of 30 but as this product is brand-new I’m not sure if they will be sold in other increments. Here’s the listing for this brand spanking new product on the ProCare website!
The Nutrition
Disclaimer: I’m going to discuss the nutrition information ProCare Health gave to me about this product. For this, and ALL other, bariatric supplements, you should consult your own healthcare provider before using. Mkay?
ProCare Health Dinner Mint Soft Calcium Chews have:
- 500mg calcium (more on that in a sec)
- 500 IU of Vitamin D3
- 500 million CFU’s of probiotics
In addition, each chew has 15 calories, 3 total grams of carbohydrates, 2 grams of sugars, 25mg of sodium, and 20mg potassium.
They are sweetened with tapioca syrup, raw cane sugar and beets, which make up the 2g sugars in each chew. For folks who are sensitive to sugars, you can decide if that’s an issue for you. I will say for me, it’s not a huge deal unless I was planning to make this my sole calcium supplement every day, which I would not. (More on that in my verdict below.)
These also have probiotics in them, which are the good bacteria that live in your gut. The form used, Bacillus coagulans, is a robust strain that has been shown to be particularly effective at alleviating common stomach/digestive issues like decreased bloating, vomiting, diarrhea, and less abdominal pain.
When talking ProCare Health calcium, we need to talk about the type of calcium they use. Their calcium chews are made of a proprietary type of calcium called TruCal, which is not itself calcium citrate. Here’s what ProCare has to say about TruCal:
“TruCal is a mineral complex containing calcium derived from milk, allowing for a creamier texture compared to other calcium forms. Calcium alone is not sufficient in maintaining bone health. TruCal offers a balanced profile of essential minerals required form maintaining your optimal bone strength and density.”
They also give a website where you can learn more about TrueCal. Again, this is why it’s important to talk to your healthcare professional about the supplements you use. Run that by your doctor. I showed mine and he’s fine with me taking this supplement.
The Aesthetics
For those of you new to my product reviews, this just means “how did this product look?” From the packaging down to the actual product, let’s take a look.
These chews came in a soft purple colored bag with zip-loc style top. I especially appreciate all the information on the bag. You learn on it that it has no sugar alcohols, no artificial sweeteners, it’s gluten-free, kosher, non-GMO, and manufactured in the U.S. Whew! That’s a lot. The front also gives you great, at-a-glance nutrition information.
The actual chews are individually wrapped and have a purple/fuschia-ish-y color to them. (Don’t try color naming at home, Foodies. I am clearly a professional!) And inside each is a lovely, light purpley-lavender-ish colored chew.
We’ll talk about texture and flavor in a minute but I wanted to say that while I did not smell mint immediately when I opened the entire bag, I did smell it when I opened the actual chew. And mint lovers like me know that each kind of mint has a distinctive scent. Guys…this smelled exactly like a dinner mint. Don’t ask me to describe the smell in words. I’ve already butchered the English language enough with my color descriptions. 😉
The Texture & Taste
For any soft chew product, the very first thing I do when I take it out of the package is do a “squeeze test.” Now the test itself is simply a matter of squeezing the chew, but there can be one of three outcomes:
- It totally flattens between my fingers from a gentle squeeze. This is not good. That means it’s the type of chewy that will get stuck in my teeth and get on my nerves for hours after I take it.
- It doesn’t yield at all to a squeeze. Aside from doing the squeeze test after the chews have been in super cold temperatures, this could mean that you either got a bad batch OR they just aren’t that soft.
- It yields just a bit, but not too much. That, to me, is perfection.
From the photo above you see that it did squeeze a little but did not completely flatten. I am encouraged! Let’s move on to the mouthfeel and taste.
I tend to pop the whole chew in my mouth and go to town. But for product reviews, I try to remember to bite! This is, in fact, very chewy. It’s got that ever-so-slight chalkiness that all calcium has (it’s unavoidable) but it’s very slight and I didn’t actually mind it since, like I said before, actual dinner mints are kind of the same.
The taste? Is LEGIT. Like I said, don’t ask me to soil your memories of the flavor of dinner mints with bad adjective use! If you’ve ever tasted one before, you know what it tastes like. This chew tastes the same! It was lightly sweet, minty and refreshing.
I will say the ONLY sort of weirdness I have with this is a schism in my brain between the texture my memory says dinner mints can be and the texture of a soft chew. It took me a minute to get over that. But I did. Because it was pretty yummy.
The Price & Value
When we come around the the price and value information for a product, I always find myself saying the same thing. Value is subjective and it very much depends on your specific preferences, challenges, etc. But I’m going to do my best to help you think this through.
So far as the price, a 30-count bag starts at $11.99, and they have a deal where if you buy three bags you can save $6. That’s not a bad price at all, especially for something that gives you the flavor of a dinner mint!
Are there cheaper calcium supplements? Yes. But here’s another thing I want you to think about.
What kind of supplement person are you? Do you like taking swallow pills for all your doses? If you don’t, then you may find it hard to stick to your routine taking the very cheapest calcium supplements on the market.
Do you struggle with sweets craving? If you do, little treats like this dinner mint chew might help manage that while giving you something beneficial in return.
So those are both things you should consider when looking for supplements. There are so many more choices now than there were when I was a new post-op. Personally, I’m all about variety. I love to keep a stock of various flavors and textures so that whatever mood I am in, there’s a supplement that fits it! This, for me, makes it much more likely I will get all my doses in.
That’s how I think through value and for me, this product definitely has good potential value in my vitamin regimen. I will keep a stash of these on-hand for after dinner, or any other time when I need my calcium and am in the mood for a dinner mint flavor.
But what about you, Foodies? What say you? Sound off in the comments about what YOU think.
And remember, from January 26 – March 1, ProCare is offering 15% off your next purchase using code Foodie15 on the ProCare website!
