What are GABA drinks?
The science behind a booze-free buzz
The alcohol-free drinks industry has exploded over the past few years but it’s the rise of so-called ‘functional drinks’ that’s really turning heads. Rather than sipping a poor imitation of your favourite tipple, which has been packed with sugar and additives to make up for the missing booze, these functional drinks offer something quite different. Naturally low calorie, low sugar, vegan and gluten-free, they’re usually also packed with health-giving and mood-boosting substances – and GABA is fast becoming a major player in this space.
What is GABA?
What on earth is GABA? Short for Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid, GABA is a naturally occurring neurotransmitter that helps regulate our nervous system, keeping us calm, relaxed and focussed. If our brains don’t have enough of it, we feel anxious and depressed, with any mental health issues such as intrusive thoughts left to run wild! And here’s the kicker – drinking alcohol actually inhibits GABA’s functionality, which is why we so often feel horribly anxious after having one too many. We enjoy that initial buzz so much that we chase it with more alcohol but that’s where things go wrong and this essential, peace-giving neurotransmitter becomes depleted.
Today, ‘GABA technology’ is being used with drinks to boost our GABA levels and promote that two-drink, chilled out feeling without the booze – and the man who pioneered this in drinks is Professor David Nutt, a psychopharmacologist from Imperial College London. He first proved that alcohol works by stimulating the brain’s GABA system back in 1980 while working on his PhD. Fast forward to the early 2000s and he and his team at GABALabs introduced the idea of creating a safer, synthetic alternative that works with the body’s GABA system, leading to the creation of Sentia, the first GABA-forward drinks brand.
“The reason alcohol is so popular is because it helps people socialise and manage stress, so why not give them a drink which gives them relaxation and sociability but with massively reduced harms?” he tells me. “That’s what Sentia does. It targets the GABA system in the brain, which is also one of the key targets of alcohol.”
Now, Sentia isn’t the only brand tapping into the GABA trend. A wave of new drinks are harnessing herbs, extracts and naturally occurring compounds designed to boost GABA and make us feel good – all without the hangover. Many also contain ‘nootropics’ and ‘adaptogens’; a mix of herbs and roots like Lemon Balm, Ashwagandha, Valerian Root and Kava, plus plant-based amino acids like L-Theanine and Glutamic Acid, all chosen for their own calming, focus-enhancing effects or ability to enhance GABA production.
So, is GABA technology the future of happy hour? Here are some drinks to try:
Sentia (Gold, Red & Black), 500ML, £32 sentiaspirits.com
The brainchild of Professor Nutt, Sentia now offers three products: Gold gives you a wonderful lift and is citrusy and spicy. Red gives you that low key, chilled vibe with herbaceous and bittersweet red berry notes and Black’s great for focus and party energy with its brooding smokiness and black pepper bite. Dilute them with a large chunk of ice or with a splash of Indian tonic.
Three Spirit Social Elixir, 500ML, £25.99 threespiritdrinks.com
‘Mood Maker’ Three Spirit was one of the very first functional drinks brands around. With its strong focus on adaptogens and nootropics, like Sentia, it’s not trying to mimic any specific kind of booze. Instead, their Social Elixir gives a heady, floaty feeling and tastes seriously herbaceous with a bitter, bark-like kick. Drink it chilled over ice or lengthen with ginger ale or a mediterranean tonic.
Smiling Wolf 'Dry London', 700ML, £32 smilingwolf.com
Functional drinks brand Smiling Wolf describe their Dry London as ‘a wolf in gin's clothing' and that's a great description. This is for abstaining Gin lovers who love a classic, juniper heavy spirit. It has a wonderful concentration of botanical flavour and all the mouthfeel you could want from a ‘real’, booze-forward spirit. It definitely feels like there’s something chill-buzzy happening too. My recently sober friend described it as a ‘lifesaver’ last Christmas when she was hosting lots of family.
Impossibrew, 440ML, from £2.49 impossibrew.co.uk
Impossibrew’s ‘life hack beers’ as they call them, have quickly become bestsellers thanks to their fresh tasting, GABA-enhancing, alcohol-free tipples that taste like the real thing. They’ve also released a couple of excellent, limited edition flavours such as rhubarb. They fact they’re also low calorie, vegan and gluten free is the cherry on the cake for this booze-free beer brand with benefits.
ON Beer, 330ML, £3 on-beer.com
ON Beer worked with James Jacoby who was previously part of the Sentia team to create this smart tasting beer, packed with plant power. You’ll like this if you’re a fan of tangy, richly flavoured lager and yeasty kombucha and there’s definitely a smooth buzz happening after a bottle or two.
GABA Oolong Organic Tea, 100g, £12.50 teamtea.co.uk
For something a bit different, have a cup of tea! Oolong tea does have some GABA naturally occurring but at low levels. When it’s processed differently however, such as this earthy, spicy tasting tea in its nitrogen rich environment, the levels are much higher than normal tea – by twenty five times in this case! There is some caffeine though, so watch out for that. I like it without milk but it works well with it.