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There are few things quite as draining as long-haul travel. Even in the most comfortable of circumstances (we’re looking at you, Air France La Premiere), something about the combination of time zone changes, recycled cabin air, and all that Champagne at 37,000 feet can take a serious toll on both the body and the mind.
With a trip from New York to Switzerland on the horizon, I was intrigued to try Patricks’ recently released AL1, a five-day set of capsules intended to help ward off the effects of such an international jaunt. The brand is better known for its highly effective grooming products (I’ve written about the powdered diamonds in its pre-shave face scrub before), but this is its first supplement.
The pills are divided into two sets of 10 capsules: one for the morning and one for the evening, both filled with ingredients anyone who’s been into a Vitamin Shoppe would recognize. The morning set includes ginseng and vitamin B5 to support energy levels; zinc, iodine, and biotin to prop up your immune system; and ginkgo biloba for mental alertness. It also uses bacopa monnieri, an herb long used in Ayurvedic medicine to enhance cognitive performance.
The night set has Ashwagandha, another stalwart of Ayurvedic treatments, which, alongside passionflower, can help to promote restful sleep. There’s also turmeric and ginger for digestive health, echinacea for more immune support, and L-theanine, which some believe can help you achieve a calm state of relaxation without making you drowsy.
I typically rely on a generic Sominex tablet to help me get to sleep when I’m abroad, and on a legion of Nespresso pods to wake me up. I found that the AL1 morning pills were a welcome addition to my caffeine intake during my recent trip. By the second morning, they’d helped me ward off the mental fog I commonly feel when I travel so far from home. I was even alert enough to perform respectably well during an impromptu golf clinic.
But where AL1 shines is with its evening capsules. Something about its blend of active ingredients helped me fall asleep fast and stay asleep longer than I typically do on the short, international journeys that have become a common part of my job here at Robb Report. And even if it was just a placebo effect taking hold, the calm, refreshed feeling I had waking up overseas is a result that makes these capsules worth it.