With so many nutrition supplements on the market, we’ve broken down the key strengths and differences of KaraMD Pure Nature, Balance of Nature, and Live it Up Super Greens so you don’t have to. See for yourself why Live it Up is our top choice.
The Lowdown
- Live it Up Super Greens (formerly Ensō Supergreens) - Best for Comprehensive Nutrition
- KaraMD Pure Nature - Good for Gluten-Free Consumers
- Balance of Nature - Good for Fruit and Veggie Blends
Since they were first made available to the American public in the early 1940s, the popularity of daily multivitamins has grown steadily. During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, that popularity grew even further—so much so that one-third of all adults over 20 said they take at least one such supplement.
To meet this unprecedented demand, countless multivitamin brands have sprung up over the past decade, each claiming a better formula or method of manufacturing than the last. And, while clever branding, social media campaigns, and convoluted ingredient lists may drive sales, they also add to the decision fatigue that’s all too common when trying to find the right supplements for your health needs.
Luckily, the industry has begun course-correcting to match consumer demand. Honest brands (among which we like to include ourselves!) have started prioritizing clarity and simplicity in their products and marketing. To support this cause, we've exhaustively researched two of the most popular daily multivitamins on the market: KaraMD Pure Nature and Balance of Nature.
While we value your business and fully believe in our products, our primary goal is always better health for everyone in our communities—even if that comes at the expense of our bottom line. That's why we want to give you the tools you need to decide for yourself which product is best for your health goals.
In this article, we'll break down each product's strengths, weaknesses, and points of interest, comparing one to the other in areas such as cost, vitamin diversity, and purported health benefits. Then, we'll also give an honest assessment of how Live it Up Super Greens might be a better choice to supply your daily dose of vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients.
Quick Comparison
 |
 |
 |
|
| 100% all natural |  |
|
|
| Made with organic vegetables | |
|
|
| Wide variety of superfoods | |
||
| Probiotics | |
||
| Digestive enzymes | |
||
| Local sourcing | |
||
| Manufactured in the US | |
|
|
| NSF Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) registered facilities | |
||
| Third party tested | |
||
| Sugar free | |
|
|
| No stevia | |
|
|
| Caffeine free | |
|
|
| Non GMO | |
|
|
| Nut free | |
|
|
| Free shipping without any limitations or spend limit | |
|
|
| Money-back guarantee | |
|
|
| Live chat with a real person and responsive customer service | |
|
|
| Cost per serving (for the subscription) | $1.33 | $2.99 | $1.33 |
KaraMD Pure Nature Overview
KaraMD is a doctor-developed supplement made by Dr. Mahmud Kara, an internal medicine specialist with over 30 years of experience. KaraMD Pure Nature includes 20 organic, whole-food products in a two-part formula: Pure Greens and Fruits & Vegetables.
A serving is four capsules, which consumers take once a day with 8 ounces of water. Four pills may seem like a lot, but compared to Balance of Nature, KaraMD Pure Nature is the better choice if you want to minimize the number of multivitamins you consume.
The product description on the company website provides consumers with limited information. There are general statements about fruits and vegetables providing your body with "key nutrients" that it needs to perform well, and it seems that the capsules were designed to help those who can't access their essential nutrients through whole foods.
Pure Nature uses a secret formula and doesn't say what vitamins and minerals it contains. The nutritional label only states the ingredients in each blend and how much sugar and carbohydrates are in a serving.
There are some added ingredients as well, including vegetable cellulose, maltodextrin, and silicon dioxide.
It advertises the inclusion of superfoods, namely beets, carrots, and garlic, as being good for a wholesome diet, cognitive function, and immunity. While this can be true, it's impossible to determine how many of these ingredients are in the formula and whether or not there is a sufficient amount to have any positive effects.
What is KaraMD Pure Nature?
Dr. Kara is an internal medicine physician who founded KaraMD in 2017. The company offers a collection of supplements and products that may support health across many domains, including gut health, mental health, hydration, energy, and muscle and joint health.
The main selling point of KaraMD Pure Nature is that it's a doctor-formulated fruit and vegetable blend with a few superfoods. This can help people meet their daily dietary needs without spending more money on fresh produce.
While the ambition is admirable, the lack of clarity and nutritional value makes it hard for anyone to determine whether Pure Nature would be a good product for them.
| Pros | Cons |
|
|
Bottom Line: While the organic ingredients are a plus, KaraMD Pure Nature doesn't have enough nutrient-rich ingredients to deliver a sufficient daily dose of the essential vitamins and minerals your body needs to fill any dietary gaps or see noticeable benefits.
Balance of Nature Overview
Helping to better the lives of its customers since 1997, Balance of Nature offers three core products:
- Fruits capsules
- Veggies capsules
- Fiber and Spice blend
The multivitamin company uses a unique dehydration method to capture as many nutrients as possible from fresh produce for use in powdered form.
The Fruits and Veggies capsules are sold in a joint package with a recommendation to take 3 of each fruit and vegetable supplement daily, which would mean one of each at breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Balance of Nature's fruit and veggie supplements include blends of 16 and 15 natural ingredients, respectively, to provide some of the vitamins and minerals you need in your diet. Although neither type of capsule is designed to replace meals, its formulas are broken down into three distinct blends, each with a unique focus: maintain, protect, and repair.
Some of the ingredients in these blends overlap, but none of them are the nutrient-dense superfoods you need to get a major dose of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients (except for broccoli and kale).
Balance of Nature has a long history of positive reviews, and their products are third-party tested and vegan-friendly. Unfortunately, the company does not have a good manufacturing reputation. The Food and Drug Administration has reprimanded it for poor quality control, faulty production practices, and misleading ingredients.
For example, FDA inspectors who reviewed their facility found that Balance of Nature marketed its Fruits & Veggies capsules as including "yam," but the inspected batch actually had "wild yam," which is a different ingredient.
The company was also reprimanded for not labeling its products correctly since it does not provide information about the daily recommended intake of the vitamins in its supplements.
Although the company claims to provide numerous benefits, such as greater immunity, its nutritional label and website don't disclose exactly how many vitamins or minerals they provide.
What is Balance of Nature?
Balance of Nature is a long-time supplement brand that offers fruits and vegetables in capsules created with their cold-vacuum process. Dr. Douglas Howard founded the business and created the distinctive dehydration technique that it still uses today.
In addition to its fruit and vegetable supplements, the company also sells a Fiber and Spice blend that contains apples, seeds, nuts, and grains. They claim that the greatest health benefits come from taking all three of their products together, which is a convenient way for them to sell more dietary supplements per customer.
While they use natural products, Balance of Nature's lack of transparency makes it hard to determine just how effective their supplements are and whether these supplements could significantly contribute to a healthy diet.
| Pros | Cons |
|
|
Bottom Line: Although they've been in business for many years, Balance of Nature does not offer enough nutritional information to recommend them as a multivitamin or dietary supplement. Given the price, you could easily use the same money to purchase a much better alternative or even fresh produce to boost your dietary intake.
Live it Up Super Greens Overview
Inspired by the natural beauty and abundance of his native Brazil, Haim Nigri founded Live it Up (formerly Ensō Superfoods) in 2021 to address what he saw as a growing problem in the supplement industry. Rather than focusing on the naturally-occurring nutrients of high-quality produce, many supplement companies have begun filling their products with synthetic vitamins or unnecessary levels of minerals.
To Haim, depending on artificial ingredients and fillers means a brand isn’t confident in the quality of its own natural ingredients. So, along with other like-minded entrepreneurs, Haim created Live it Up and began formulating the products we offer today. In developing these supplements, simplicity was at the forefront of every decision. Our philosophy is that as long as Live it Up thoughtfully chose each ingredient, focused on the delicate balance between those ingredients, and sourced everything from quality farms, we'd end up with products we could be proud of.
That philosophy worked.
Today, we offer three unique blends of superfoods, each specifically designed to enhance a different area of your life. Our most popular product, Live it Up Super Greens, is made with organic vegetables and blends 20+ high-potency superfoods like spirulina, kale, and dandelion leaf with powerful probiotics and digestive enzymes to provide a full nutrient profile.
For those needing better athletic performance, a cognitive boost, or both, our Power Beets formula features antioxidant powerhouses and adaptogens like cordyceps and lion's mane, which may reduce stress and boost brain function.
Finally, Live it Up's Recharge powder uses time-tested spices such as turmeric, cardamom, and maca root to help support energy levels and sleep quality and fight back against inflammation from sources like stress or poor diets.
Although all three of these products offer different potential health benefits and uses, every product we make undergoes extensive third-party testing and quality control to ensure they contain zero contamination from pesticides, heavy metals, or other unwanted additives. Taking this one step further, Live it Up sources all of its ingredients from quality farmers from around the world, and we manufacture all of our products in U.S. facilities. Because we value your trust, and we'll work hard to deserve it.
What Is Live it Up Super Greens?
Like most super greens powders, Live it Up Super Greens combines concentrated doses of whole fruits, vegetables, and greens to help you meet your daily recommended allowance of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. Unlike other super greens powders, Live it Up Super Greens designs its formula to occupy the space where simplicity meets efficacy. That means no unnecessary mega-doses, no ingredient stuffing, and no artificial vitamins to pad our labels.
Instead, each package of Live it Up Super Greens contains a carefully-balanced blend of 20+ of the most researched, time-tested superfoods and other ingredients. To start, we based our formula on a solid foundation of blue-green algae like spirulina and bioavailable chlorella, both of which provide complex proteins and potentially a host of other benefits.
From that foundation, we added complementary ingredients with specific health goals in mind to support you in combination with a healthy diet and lifestyle. For digestion aid, we used a healthy dose of digestive enzymes like papain and bromelain, then added 5 billion CFU of complex probiotics.
To help support liver function and your immune balance, we included nettle leaf and dandelion leaf. Then, kelp powder and dulse powder both made the list to support hair, nails, skin, and bones on top of several other potential benefits. All told, the ingredients we chose and why we chose them could fill an article all by itself.
Long story short, our super greens powder aims to provide maximum value with minimal excess. By using only the most vital ingredients in the amounts your body actually needs, we can limit waste and provide our super greens powder for only $1.33 per serving. Additionally, using only 20 ingredients instead of the hundreds you might find in other products means that you have a decreased risk of food sensitivities from our formula. For anyone who has ever experienced the frustration of reacting to a product without knowing why, this peace of mind is invaluable.
| Pros | Cons |
|
|
Bottom Line: Due to the nature of greens powders, Live it Up Super Greens can pack far more nutrients and superfoods into every serving than either KaraMD Pure Nature or Balance of Nature. Additionally, our streamlined formula means no fillers, no unnecessarily high doses of vitamins or minerals, and no problematic additives to trigger food sensitivities or interfere with medications.
While some customers may prefer capsules to powder, the ability to add our fresh, minty powder to shakes, water, or food means that your daily supplement feels less like "medicine" and more like an opportunity to mix up your daily meals.
KaraMD Pure Nature vs. Balance of Nature vs. Live it Up Super Greens Benefits
Since KaraMD Pure Nature and Balance of Nature are similar products, it's a good idea to explore how their formulas differ by looking at their potential health benefits. While Live it Up Super Greens is a powder, not a capsule, it still shares many of the same advantages as both products.
Boosts Nutrition
Balance of Nature gives you vitamins and minerals from 15 vegetables and 16 fruits in separate capsules, while Pure Nature uses 20 ingredients in a single capsule. They contain similar ingredients, including kale, celery, and cauliflower. In particular, kale may offer numerous health benefits, including overall health wellness. While they mention which part of the vegetable each ingredient comes from, there is no information about the specific vitamins in either product.
With Live it Up Super Greens, you get full transparency about the vitamins and minerals in each scoop. And, because our greens powder uses kale, broccoli, and other superfoods like kelp and spirulina, we double down on the nutritional quality offered by both Balance of Nature and Pure Nature.
Supports Immunity
The idea behind Balance of Nature and Pure Nature is that by increasing your daily intake of fruits and vegetables, you may enjoy better health, fortify immune function, and get sick less frequently or for shorter periods of time. People who eat nutrient-rich diets generally have stronger immune systems (given that they don't have any underlying health conditions).
While there are healthful ingredients in each blend, the lack of information on them makes it impossible to determine whether they provide sufficient doses of any essential nutrients. Live it Up Super Greens, however, includes potent ingredients specifically meant to help support your immune system. Among these, moringa leaf and peppermint leaf powders carry some of the most impressive immune-related properties, and both have been shown to help eradicate harmful bacteria and viruses in the body.
Aids Digestion
KaraMD suggests it may help regulate digestive health but doesn't list any prebiotics, probiotics, or digestive enzymes as ingredients. Then the only way it would potentially do this is by increasing your daily fiber intake, but this is not listed on the nutritional label.
Balance of Nature doesn't make any specific claims regarding digestion for its Fruits and Veggies capsules, but it states that its Fiber & Spice blend can regulate your bowel movements. Each serving of that formula contains 8 grams of dietary fiber.
Conversely, each serving of Live it Up Super Greens includes 5 billion CFU of complex probiotics, as well as the digestive enzymes papain, bromelain, and vegetarian pepsin to facilitate better digestion. As if this weren't enough, nettle leaf and dandelion leaf both may support liver function help your body process lingering compounds left over after digestion.
KaraMD Pure Nature vs. Balance of Nature vs. Live it Up Super Greens Ingredients
In this section, we compared key ingredient usage across the three products to help you in the search for a product that best suits your needs.
Superfoods
There are limited superfoods in KaraMD Pure Nature and Balance of Nature, such as kale and broccoli. Still, these cruciferous vegetables do offer health benefits and contain fiber, vitamins, and phytochemicals, such as indoles, thiocyanates, and nitriles..
Live it Up Super Greens is made with organic vegetables and includes 20+ superfoods designed to keep you running at your best.
Probiotics
Neither Pure Nature nor Balance of Nature contains probiotics, but Live it Up Super Greens contains 5 billion CFU of probiotics in every scoop.
Digestive Enzymes
When it comes to promoting gut and digestive health, neither Pure Nature nor Balance of Nature contain any digestive enzymes or proteins that help your body break down and process food faster and more effectively.
Live it Up Super Greens contains papain from papaya, bromelain from pineapple, and vegetarian pepsin that may supercharge your digestive system.
Wide Variety of Superfoods
The ingredient list for KaraMD Pure Nature is higher in superfoods than Balance of Nature, which is relatively limited to the type of greens you would find in the produce section of any supermarket. Superfoods like spirulina and chlorella are not included in either formula.
Live it Up Super Greens bases its formula on a potent dose of both spirulina and bioavailable chlorella and also includes other superfoods like ginger, barley grass, and spinach powder to provide a well-rounded nutrient profile.
Local Sourcing
Without a report stating they source their ingredients locally, it's likely that both Pure Nature and Balance of Nature could be sourced overseas and even be purchased in a powdered or extracted state to be mixed into a blend at their facilities. Live it Up Super Greens sources its ingredients from expert farmers worldwide.
Manufactured in the U.S.
All three products are made in America.
NSF Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) Registered Facilities
KaraMD makes its products in FDA-registered facilities, but Balance of Nature is not open about the regulations and certifications of any factories they use. Neither product is NSF-Certified for good manufacturing practices.
Live it Up Super Greens uses only GMP-compliant facilities and maintains an excellent relationship with FDA inspectors.
Third-party Tested
KaraMD claims to be third-party tested, but they do not provide further details about the lab evaluating their products. Balance of Nature does not offer any information about third-party testing on its website.
Third-party testing is crucial to Live it Up's manufacturing process, and we use reputable outside labs to verify each batch of our product is free of any contaminants.
Sugar-free
Pure Nature, Live it Up Super Greens, and Balance of Nature are all sugar-free.
No Stevia
None of these products contains stevia.
Caffeine-free
Pure Nature and Balance of Nature Fruits and Veggies capsules are caffeine-free.
While some greens powders include caffeinated ingredients, Live it Up Super Greens opts to avoid caffeine in its formula.
Non-GMO
Balance of Nature, Live it Up Super Greens, and KaraMD do not use GMOs.
Nut-free
None of these products contain nuts of any kind.
KaraMD Pure Nature vs. Balance of Nature vs. Live it Up Super Greens Taste
How easy is it to consume the nutrients in these products? Below, we compared the taste and overall experience of all three products.
Overall Taste Satisfaction
The capsules from Pure Nature and Balance of Nature are tasteless, so you won't have to worry about an earthy taste or artificial flavors in your supplements. However, many greens powders actually taste great and leave you feeling more satisfied than taking a few capsules each day.
With Live it Up Super Greens, we use natural peppermint and monk fruit extract to build our subtly sweet, minty flavor, making it an excellent addition to shakes and other drinks.
Texture
The larger capsules of KaraMD Pure Nature might be difficult for some to swallow and have a powdery texture. Balance of Nature reports that its Fruit capsules are so good that some people chew on them as a treat.
Unlike other greens powders, which may have a gritty or sandy texture, we use a superfine powder to provide the best drinking experience that mixes perfectly with most liquids.
Chalky Taste
Balance of Nature reports that their Fruit capsules can be chewable, but since they're made with powdered ingredients, there would likely be a chalky texture. KaraMD is not chewable, and Live it Up Super Greens does not have the chalky taste common among other greens powders.
KaraMD Pure Nature vs. Balance of Nature vs. Live it Up Super Greens Cost
- Balance of Nature is extremely expensive for its limited nutritional value; a one-time order of their Fruits and Veggies capsules costs $69.95 for 180 capsules in total. This equates to a 30-day supply that costs $2.33 per day.
- KaraMD is a more affordable option, with a one-time jar of 120 capsules. That means a 30-day supply would come to $1.33 per day.
- Live it Up Super Greens matches the $1.33 cost of KaraMD, at $39.99 for each 30-serving package.
Loyalty Perks
If you subscribe to Balance of Nature, you become a Preferred Customer and receive free priority shipping, 22% off your order, a complimentary personal health coach, a 30-day money-back guarantee, and the option to pause, reschedule, or hold your orders anytime. There is a one-time membership fee of $24.95.
If you order two jars of Pure Nature, you get free shipping. Ordering three gives you a 10% discount, and ordering four provides a 20% discount and free shipping.
With Live it Up Super Greens, simply signing up for monthly deliveries gives you a 33% discount. Additionally, shipping is free for all orders of our products.
Return Policies
You can receive a refund on your order from Balance of Nature if it's been within 30 days since your order. For customers to get a full refund, the product must still be in its original packaging and unopened.
Pure Nature offers a 90-day, risk-free money-back guarantee if you are unsatisfied with the product or it doesn't work as intended.
Live it Up offers a 30-day money-back guarantee if you are unsatisfied with our products for any reason.
Final Thoughts
If you're dead set on choosing a capsule-based multivitamin to supplement your daily nutrition, we strongly suggest KaraMD Pure Nature. With more transparent practices and ingredients, a stronger nutrient profile, and better value with each order, the company exceeds Balance of Nature in almost every category.
If, however, you're ready to evolve your daily nutrition and try a super greens powder, Live it Up Super Greens provides everything you need to help bridge your nutritional gap. By carefully curating our list of ingredients to include only the most valuable superfoods, we provide all of the potential nutritional benefits with none of the fluff.
References
- https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db399.htm
- https://karamd.com/
- https://www.balanceofnature.com/
- https://www.fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations/warning-letters/evig-llc-dba-balance-nature-580888-08202019
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6491771/#:~:text=Heightened%20inflammation%20and%20negative%20attentional,Slavich%20and%20Irwin%2C%202014).
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3576896/
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/dandelion-benefits#:~:text=May%20boost%20immune%20health,29%20%2C%2030%20%2C%2031%20).
- https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/the-many-types-and-health-benefits-of-kale
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6723551/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/13678235/
- https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/10-superfoods-to-boost-a-healthy-diet-2018082914463
- https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/papain
