Jelly Drops: award-winning sweets that boost hydration

Alzheimer’s Society has supported the development of Jelly Drops, delicious bite-sized sweets, designed to boost health and hydration. Jelly Drops have helped over 80,000 people living with dementia.

What are Jelly Drops?

Jelly Drops sweets are 95% water. They're sugar-free and enriched with electrolytes and vitamins, offering an easy and tasty way to support hydration. 

They were invented by Lewis Hornby, who was inspired by his late grandmother and her love for sweets. Lewis developed bright, raindrop-shaped sweets as an easy way to increase her daily water intake.

Lewis and his team have worked alongside people with dementia, doctors and dementia psychologists to develop their fantastic product.

Lewis and his late grandma Pat tasting Jelly Drops

Lewis Hornby and his late grandmother, Pat

Alzheimer’s Society is delighted to have partnered with Lewis and the Jelly Drops team through our Accelerator Programme during the product's development.

Since launching in July 2020, we have been excited to see Jelly Drops reaching people living with dementia who need them. They're also now available across the US and Canada, as well as here in the UK.

Dehydration and dementia 

Dehydration is a common challenge for older people, and especially people with dementia. Memory problems mean that people living with dementia can often forget to drink enough water.

What’s more, the part of the brain that tells you when you’re thirsty doesn’t always work properly. Unfortunately, this can lead to confusion and even hospitalisation.

A woman in a wheelchair is smiling as she's offered some sweets, next to that is a close up shot of the colourful sweets.

Jelly Drops are solid but with a smooth texture - they don’t have a liquid centre or pop when eaten.

How the sweets have evolved

Following insightful customer feedback, Jelly Drops have evolved from their original tray format to the snack pot format which is easier to hold and uses 50 per cent less packaging.

Each pot contains the equivalent of 50ml of water, meaning 3 servings a day delivers a 150ml hydration boost.

Jelly Drops also now contain essential B-complex vitamins to support psychological function and immunity, delivering hydration and a boost of vitamins via the same innovative format.

The water sweets come in six fruity flavours: orange, peach, blackcurrant, strawberry, lemon and raspberry. They're solid but with a smooth texture - they don’t have a liquid centre or pop when eaten.

Currently, Jelly Drops are only recommended to people without swallowing difficulties. If you have swallowing difficulties, please consult a Speech and Language Therapist prior to use.

Colin Capper, Associate Director of Evidence and Participation at Alzheimer's Society said,

"It’s wonderful to see how the Jelly Drops team have continued to improve their offering, helping people living with dementia stay hydrated."

"Snackpots make Jelly Drops more affordable, eco-friendly and accessible, which will hopefully help to reach even more people in the future."

A team of people sit together for a group photo in their office

The Jelly Drops team.

Order Jelly Drops today

You can buy Jelly Drops on the Alzheimer's Society shop through the link below. Or, get a free trial when you start a discounted subscription through the Jelly Drops website.

Buy Jelly Drops

216 comments

Hola soy de Venezuela como puedo adquirir Jelly Drops

I tried to get these for my gram after she was diagnosed with dementia but sadly at the time it was strictly uk shipping only. I really hope you guys get the opportunity to branch out further and help more people in the world. I think you guys do a lot of good for those who suffer from Alzheimers and Dementia with this product. Keep up the good work

is it possible just to buy one or two jelly drops ,just to see if my sister will cope with the texture and flavour, she is in the latter stages of dementia .

Hi Dianne,

Unfortunately, there is no mention of being able to buy a single Jelly Drop currently.

According to the Jelly Drops website, you can purchase Jelly Drops in two ways. Either you can request a free tray and subscribe (with the option to cancel at any time), or you can buy a single tray as a one-off purchase. More information can be found on their website: https://www.jellydrops.com/products/shop-jelly-drops

We hope this helps.

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Are these jelly drops available in the united states?

Hi Jessica,

Thanks for your interest in Jelly Drops.

Unfortunately, Jelly Drops are currently only available for shipping within the UK. But the team is working towards shipping internationally, starting with Europe and the USA.

To get updates on this, the team recommends signing up to its mailing list to be notified when they start shipping to your country: https://jellydrops.com/pages/sign-up

Hope this helps.

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Hi Jessica,

Just following up to let you know that Jelly Drops have now launched in the US. They are available to buy via the US website https://www.jellydrops.us/cart

Many thanks,

Alzheimer's Society website team

Hi
Are these products available on prescription yet as my father in law definitely does not drink enough and it's a constant battle with fluids.How many jelly drops a day would you recommend?
Regards Tracy

Hi Tracy, thanks for getting in touch.

You may find this page on the Jelly Drops website helpful: https://support.jellydrops.com/hc/en-gb/articles/360014719820-What-is-t…-

The Jelly Drops team advise that Jelly Drops are classified as confectionery so they are not able to recommend a certain usage or dosage.

If you'd like to submit your question regarding availability via prescription, you can submit a request directly to the Jelly Drops team: https://support.jellydrops.com/hc/en-gb/requests/new

We hope this helps for now,

Alzheimer's Society blog team

How many Jelly Drops can be eaten in one day? How many Jelly Drops can be eaten at one time?

Hi Judith

You may find this page on the Jelly Drops website about recommended daily intake helpful: https://support.jellydrops.com/hc/en-gb/articles/360014719820-What-is-the-recommended-daily-intake-

The Jelly Drops team advises as follows:

'Jelly Drops are classified as confectionery so we're not able to recommend a certain usage or dosage, but we'll do our best to guide you.

'Our original drops available in trays contain 12.5ml of water and Snackpot drops are a wee bit smaller in size and contain 10ml of water per drop. 

'Usually, people start with just a few with each meal, to slowly build Jelly Drops into the routine. There's no right or wrong answer and as all Jelly Drops are 95% water, low-kcal and non-laxative, many people end up eating a tray or several pots per day.'

We hope this helps for now,

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Can we get the jelly drops in the usa im in Missouri and I work with alzheimers. Thanks

Hi Tonya,

Thanks for your interest in Jelly Drops.

Unfortunately, Jelly Drops are currently only available for shipping within the UK. But the team is working hard towards shipping internationally, starting with Europe and the USA.

For updates on this, the team recommends signing up to its mailing list to be notified when they start shipping to your country: https://jellydrops.com/pages/sign-up

Hope this helps,

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Hi Tonya,

Just following up to let you know that Jelly Drops have now launched in the US. They are available to buy via the US website https://www.jellydrops.us/cart

Many thanks,

Alzheimer's Society website team

Hi,
I am the Kiama Dementia Friendly Project Officer here in NSW Australia. This is an amazing breakthrough in addressing the issue of dehydration for people living with dementia. Are there any plans to export to Australia, I know so many people who would benefit from these drops.
Kind regards,
Michael Preston

Hi Michael,

Thanks for your comment, and interest in Jelly Drops!

Unfortunately, Jelly Drops are currently only available for shipping within the UK. But the team is currently working hard towards shipping internationally, starting with Europe and the USA.

For updates on when Jelly Drops may be coming to Australia and other parts of the world, the team recommends signing up to its mailing list: https://jellydrops.com/pages/sign-up

Hope this helps,

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Hello is there any feed back with patients experiencing vivid hallucinations. We have been told the hallucinations are getting worse because my nan is dehydrated and not drinking enough. I have purchased some drops to see if they help but I wanted to know if anyone has experience with this.
Thank you

As someone who works in a nursing home i think all nursing homes should have to have these i seen so many workers that forget certain patients have dementia and they for get to stay hydrated it would be awesome if these could be applied to all nursing homes nation wide all nursing homes need to be equipped with this it should be mandatory for nursing homes to have this and have every cna or nurse give thes to their patients when they are doing their rounds!!!!

Is there any shop, supermarket etc that sells these as personally I'd find it much easier buying them in person than ordering them online?

Hi Jacob,

Thank you for your enquiry. Unfortunately, there is currently no mention of Jelly Drops being sold in shops or supermarkets.

According to the Jelly Drops website, you can purchase Jelly Drops in two ways. Either you can request a free tray and subscribe (with the option to cancel at any time), or you can buy a single tray as a one-off purchase. More information can be found on their website: https://www.jellydrops.com/products/shop-jelly-drops

Alternatively, you can contact the Jelly Drops team directly about your question here: https://support.jellydrops.com/hc/en-gb/requests/new

Hope this helps.

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Hi, my Mum is late stage and is struggling to get water in but another issue is she has severe dysphagia. Would these be suitable for someone with sever difficulty swallowing?

Hi Ian, thanks for getting in touch.

You may find this page on the Jelly Drops website helpful: https://support.jellydrops.com/hc/en-gb/articles/360014763999-I-have-sw…-

The Jelly Drops team does not recommend these to people with swallowing difficulties.

Hope this helps for now,

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Hi I work with family members whom suffer with dementia I do all the purée textures and stages I was wounded if if u could start me in the right direction on how I can make these in house pls or do u have to have a special mix

Hi Rosemary,

Thank you for your enquiry. Unfortunately, the recipe for Jellydrops is not available, but you are able to purchase trays online via their website:
https://www.jellydrops.com/

For other enquiries about Jelly Drops, you can also contact the Jelly Drops team directly here: https://support.jellydrops.com/hc/en-gb/requests/new

Hope this helps.

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Hi There my dad has dementia and is really bad at drinking water. Getting urine infection. We take care of him at home so its hard for our mum. Don't you ship it elsewhere . I wouldnt mind buying it online. My dad lives in New Zealand.

Hi Kalesh,

Thanks for your interest.

Unfortunately, Jelly Drops are currently only available for shipping within the UK. The team is now working hard towards shipping internationally, starting with Europe and the USA.

Instead, the team recommends signing up to its mailing list to be notified when they start shipping to your country: https://jellydrops.com/pages/sign-up

Hope this helps,

Alzheimer's Society blog team

Can you get these in the United States?

Hi Lisa,

Not at the moment, but the Jelly Drops team is working hard towards shipping internationally, starting with Europe and the United States.

Instead, on their FAQs page (https://support.jellydrops.com/hc/en-gb/articles/360014763479-Where-do-…) they recommend signing up to their mailing list to be notified of updates regarding international shipping: https://www.jellydrops.com/pages/sign-up

They don't have a time frame to share yet.

We hope this helps.

-
Alzheimer's Society blog team

Hi Lisa,

Just following up to let you know that Jelly Drops have now launched in the US. They are available to buy via the US website https://www.jellydrops.us/cart

Many thanks,

Alzheimer's Society website team

Can I get a sample ? Dont want to commit until I can be assured that it will be of benefit

Hi Katrina,

Thanks for your question.

There is an option on the Jelly Drops website for a free tray when you subscribe. All you have to pay is the postage (£3.95) on your first tray, and then you select how often they are delivered afterwards, or you can cancel this or change the frequency at any time.

https://www.jellydrops.com/products/shop-jelly-drops

That might be a good option if you want to see if they're helpful first. Otherwise the price starts at £7.95 to order a single tray of Jelly Drops.

Hope this is helpful,

Alzheimer's Society blog team