Coffee + huel

I’ve been adding coffee to my Huel for ages. I love it. I always zhoozh up my Huel with fruit and veg too…but lately I’ve wondered about the nutritional quality of the drink when I do this.
I think (don’t know) that coffee inhibits iron and other nutritional absorbtion. So in a sense, am I adding goodness on one hand and cancelling it out with the coffee in the other hand? Would it be better to have a separate coffee another time? Does anyone know please? Thanks Hueligans :call_me_hand:t4:

Coffee inhibits iron absorption only when drunk hot after a meal (as every hot beverage that is drunk after a meal). If you, like me, add 2 shots of espresso to water, powder and shake, leave overnight, and drink cold in the morning, it’s totally fine on this side.

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Only when hot? I never knew that. Thank you! I’ll continue to enjoy my brown glug :grin:

I didn’t know that either. I have read several reports if it, but assumed it was caffeine which is in tea and coffee whether hot or cold.

I think there’s some confusion here on the difference between cold coffee and cold brew coffee. cold brew coffee is different to hot at a chemical level. hot coffee that goes cold is just that - cold but no different chemically. There is patchy research on coffees’ effects on absorption but the general consensus seems to be providing you are not drinking it excessively - and having sufficient levels of other vitamins - its potential absorption properties are largely mitigated. allegedly. :slight_smile:

I remember reading that its the mild diuretic effect of caffeine that causes the problem of iron absorption - basically washing it out of your system before it can be absorbed - rather than inhibiting it. So again, I guess, moderation is the key.

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I’m a blood donor and I’ve been rejected several times in the past due to low haemoglobin and iron levels. What the leaflet they give us says (and my GP confirmed it as well), is to avoid hot beverages right after a meal since it decreases the absorption of iron from food. I used to have coffee as the last thing for my breakfast, now I have it as the first thing to avoid that :man_shrugging:

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yes - I’ve seen a few articles suggesting the same. to the original post point, as you’re adding it to a Huel shake - the volume of cold liquid will cool the espresso down almost instantly so it would be fine. You could also just add regular instant coffee granules instead - dissolved in cold water before hand.

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This is correct. It’s the caffeine and phytonutrients, so the temperature is irrelevant.

I think this is because the information was probably published before cold coffee was a thing. When “hot beverages” are mentioned it’s usually referring to coffee and tea, if the tea was tepid it would still fall into this category.

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