It looks like I’m finally going to have to accept that Huel won’t work for me. I’ve been on and off Huel since 2016 and I want to love it, but it doesn’t love me back. Same as many people, the bad stomach never passed, even only having a single shake for lunch. After coming off Black these past two times I noticed a disturbing shift in my health. It seems to make me lethargic and destroys my libido. I experimented with enzymes for the stomach issues and prebiotics, but nothing worked for long.
I honestly don’t think it’s a bad product, but there must be something I’m either allergic or intolerant to that’s in it that I’m not having in other food. My best guess is maybe flax seed as that isn’t in much food (that I have at least), so I should really buy some to do some proper self-testing.
A big reason I got into Huel was because of my gluten allergy as it means I always have something I can eat in the house pretty easily. But it seems it’s not to be.
I’m not totally done with Huel yet as I’m going to try the Complete Protein shakes as I’m attempting to bulk up a bit anyway. Not too sure how to use it as it’s pretty low in calories and protein compared to other gainers, even less than Huel Black. But I figure maybe a shake of that with lunch and sometimes as a snack could give me a nice boost. Also interesting that a lot of people who struggle with Huel like me are ok on Complete Protein and it just happens the latter doesn’t have flax seed.
I’ve read a lot of pushback from Tim and Huel in general about the flax issues based on studies that showed it bombing testosterone. I agree it’s hard to apply those results to Huel since those tests were very specific and / or small sample situations that don’t relate to what we’re doing here. But it seems like some testing needs to be done. It certainly doesn’t universally effect people like it does me, so the mechanisms must be complex.
So if anyone has an advice on how to actually use Complete Protein as a mass gainer, pop it below 
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I’m sorry to hear you’ve been having trouble.
Complete Protein has a lower amount of everything per serving, including nutrients/ingredients like fibre and flaxseed. If you feel that might be your issue that could explain it. However, this isn’t a product issue and there are no tests which are going to give the answer you’re after as the question is so broad to start with.
It depends on what you like to eat and what works for you. You could try adding porridge oats, olive oil, frozen fruit, nuts or nut butters to bulk up the calories in your Complete Protein. It also depends if you have specific macros you’re trying to hit.
This article might help you out.
Sorry Dan, but it feels a bit dismissive when you say this isn’t a product issue when I only have this issue with Huel GF White and Huel Black. I think I’ve been pretty fair in my statements above and I don’t remember asking any questions, so I’m not sure what that refers to.
Despite all my trouble I’m still supporting the company as I put my first order for Complete Protein in just yesterday to see how I fair with that. Although I did totally miss it also contains flax seed as you correctly pointed out. Maybe the ground flax seed of regular Huel has a different effect that the flax seed oil powder in Complete Protein.
It also makes me wonder how much the combination of ingredients in Huel and how they interact is tested. Two completely safe ingredients can become a problem with they interact, often in hard to predict situational ways.
I’m sorry that I’ve come across that way.
We test all our products and raw materials on a scheduled and ad-hoc basis. Without knowing about your medical history, diet and a host of other factors I can’t pin down what might be causing your issues. If you’re worried, I recommend speaking to a dietitian who can help you on a personalised 1:1 basis.
If it is an allergy or intolerance as you suspect, then our tests are not going to be able to help you in this case. What I can say is both the GF v3.0 and Black Edition powders are tested for gluten and wheat allergens and the results come back as not detected.
What I’m trying to get at with Complete Protein is that the serving is much lower at 105kcal vs 400kcal for v3.0 and Black Edition. So, it might be the quantity of something. Have you tried having a smaller serving size and seeing how you find that?
sounds like an intolerance to an ingredient.