Hi everyone,
2 months after adding Huel to my diet (1x a day) I went to the ER with the worst pain imaginable, and was diagnosed with a 4mm calcium kidney stone. I was actually really enjoying Huel up to this point, but it seems like too much of a coincidence that I got the first stone of my life 2 months after adding Huel to my diet. Wondering if others have had similar experiences
Absolute rubbish if you dont mind me saying so, i have had kidney stones 5 times in my life & i agree the pain is unreal, first time i had them a nurse on the ward told me she would rather give birth again than have kidney stones again, but the link to Huel i can assure you is complete & utter rubbish I’ve had them before & after starting Huel
I struggle to think that Huel caused this, do you drink plenty of water?
Not heard of anyone else having this and people have been having Huel for years.
What makes you think Huel is responsible for your kidney stone?
Info about kidney stones
I think @Dan_Huel will be most helpful here
Hi @dgossage
Sorry to hear this; a couple of friends have had kidney stones and they reported excruciating pain.
Calcium oxalate stones (assuming this was the type you had) have been associated (in men, not women) with high doses of supplementary vitamin C. However, the level of vitamin C is considerably higher than the amount we add to Huel, even based on a 2,000kcal per day intake; i.e. 5 servings per day and most people don’t have Huel anywhere near this much.
There could be numerous factors contributing to the stones and looking for a causal heuristic is intuitive. Kidney stones have been linked to lack of hydration, being overweight, infections, high sodium/salt intake, refined carb intake, exercise and family history.
I had surgery to get 4 kidney stones removed 
. There is no way that taking Huel or many other supplement drinks would cause you to have kidney stones in that short space of time
The formation of kidney stones usually takes longer than two months.
Hoooooow Much??? 
what were the other 2-3x a day meals
I would be very surprised if the kidney stone was the result of consuming Huel once a day for a couple of months. I have had kidney stones, and I know how painful they are! But they were not due to the consumption of supplementation or vitamins/minerals.
It also took more than two months for my kidney stones to develop, and although I was on a waiting list for lithotripsy (to shatter the stone) it did not develop into a massive problem over the months I was waiting.
I did develop further stones, over several years, which were also shattered using sound waves (I believe). 
I wouldn’t so quickly dismiss the potential that Hot and Savory variant of Huel could lead to stones not via its vitamin C content but via its oxalate content. I myself suffered from several stones a few months after starting Huel and I stopped as a result. I obviously cannot be sure that Huel was the main source of the stones but I don’t want to risk increasing my chances of developing more. In particular, I was advised to avoid “high oxalate foods” by my doctor and became a bit worried by some of the ingredients in the hot and savory selections, e.g., brown rice / quinoa, which are supposedly foods to avoid for those who develop calcium-oxalate stones.
Hi @pb32
Some fair points. We’ve been unable to find an accredited lab that reliably tests for oxalates. However, you’d have to have a fair bit of rice and quinoa and rice, at least, is pretty prevalent in a lot of diets. Otherwise, we now have the pasta Hot & Savory variants available with neither rice nor quinoa; a possible alternative?
