Today's manufacturing industry that supplies to military and law enforcement has realized the easy and frequent cross-over of their products to the outdoor hunting, camping and fishing community. The outdoor community has many of the same needs as the military and LE guys - just thankfully without such severe consequences of failure (thank goodness). Still, many products good for one community are equally good for the other. Tactical Orange hydration boosting tablets are one of those products. Designed for use by the people in uniform, this effervescent hydration "system" should prove of value across the public safety spectrum.
Before I get into the tablets themselves and what they do / offer, I want to share the interesting story behind their development. The primary creator is a guy named Jeremy Littman. Jeremy is a seasoned Search & Rescue who just happens to also work in the television industry. On one S&R mission Jeremy had an experience that made him a victim... not a rescuer. The mission had lasted longer than expected and the drink powder he had on hand was blown away in the California canyon winds. That event spurred the thought process that led to a tablet that would be dissolved instead of powder than needed to be mixed. To keep the tablet from needing to be mixed when it was used it would need to be effervescent (so it effectively mixes itsefl). The concept was born and a year long research and development project was undertaken. The end result - Tactical Orange Effervescent Hydration Boost.
Now, let's be realistic: all we really need to stay hydrated is safe drinking water, right? Sure. But plain water doesn't replace lost electrolytes, minerals and vitamins.
That's why are there SO many companies making BIG money on drinks such as Gatorade, Powerade, Tang, and such? Why are there so many powders selling like hotcakes? Why are there so many "nutritional" drink mixes? After all, if you have the water to mix them in then you have the water you need to stay alive. The answer is simple: water is water and yes you can survive with it, but if you can increase your nutritional intake by putting an additive into the water, then it only makes sense to do so. And if you can flavor that plain water it often makes the water more desirable to drink as you prevent dehydration. (We humans tend to be a picky lot when we're not suffering)
So, enter the Tactical Orange Effervescent Hydration Boost tablets. Delivered in a hard plastic container with a snap-off / snap-on cap, there are ten tablets per package. Each tablet will treat 12 to 16 ounces of clean water. Do the math and that equates to about a gallon (or more) of flavored and nutritionally boosted water. Understand this: These tablets are not meant to sanitize or clean your water. They provide additional nutrients and flavor to already clean water.
I noted, with interest, that the paperwork I received indicated that the tablets would dissolve faster if broken up before adding to the water. Well, duh... but how long would it take if they weren't broken up? Into my kitchen I went where I filled a nalgene bottle with 24 ounces of water. 24 divided by 12 equals 2, so 2 Tactical Orange tablets went into the bottle. I screwed on the lid and set it down - and started my stopwatch. Three minutes later it looked like the tablets were mostly dissolved. Picking the bottle up I shook it for another two minutes before the tablets were completely dissolved. The resulting "water" smelled and tasted like strong orange juice. I can just imagine, kept cold, that it would be a far better taste than plain tepid water on a hot day.
According to the published material I received with my samples, each Tactical Orange Tablet, when combined with 12 to 16 ounces of water offers the below nutritional values:
- 13 calories
- 50mg of Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) / 83.3% recommended daily allowance (DV)
- 15iu of Vitamin E / 50% DV
- 2mg Vitamin B1 / 133.3% DV
- 1.7mg Vitamin B2 / 118% DV
- 3mg Vitamin B3 / 12% DV
- 15mg Vitamin B6 / 750% DV
- 400mcg Folic Acid / 100% DV
- 500mcg Vitamin B12 / 8340% DV
- 200mg Magnesium / 50% DV
- 250mg Sodium Bicarbonate / DV not established
- 700mg Potassium
- 50mg Inositol / DV not established
- 1000mg Tactical Orange Energy Blend consisting of: Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract, Milk Thistle Extract, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, L-Carnitine, Tyrosine, Phenylalanine, Taurine, Glucoronolactone
I can see a couple of uses for this product (off duty time):
- I'll keep a container in my Bug Out Bag. I can just imagine, several days into an emergency situation with nothing but warm water to drink, I'll be in heaven drinking orange flavored water;
- I'll use it to prep my water before going on day or afternoon hikes.
I can see a variety of uses for the product in the professional fields:
- Bicycle cops would benefit from treating the water in their hydration systems.
- Any police officer / deputy on an extended outdoor assignment would benefit from having a supply available.
- Search & Rescue teams would benefit from treating their water AND having more available for unexpected emergencies.
- Firemen would benefit from the added nutrients if these were available beside bottled water on fire scenes.
- Soldiers would benefit from pretreating their water and having more available for unexpectedly long missions or emergencies.
The product can be purchased on Tactical Orange's website. The pricing (to me) is pretty reasonable in that a single tube costs $7.95. That's enough to make five to ten bottles of supplemented water. What would five to ten bottles of another "power" drink cost? And, as with everything else we buy in the world, the more you purchase the greater your savings as they offer discounts for bulk purchases. 1/2 dozen tubes are discounted 5% and get a shipping upgrade at no charge. A dozen tubes gets free shipping plus a 10% discount.
Check it out and see what you think.
Happy trails!
