I’ve been a drinking Huel fairly regularly since around 2018, I’ve found it to be the best breakfast option for workdays and great as a quick meal if i don’t have the time to prepare anything or am just feeling lazy and want to continue with it, however i’m having some serious digestive issues recently that i’ve (maybe stupidly) only just clicked seems to be related to my consumption of huel.
For most of this time my guts have has mixed reactions, passing wind was often fairly potent and a number of my movements are less than solid, but recently (last 6mo to a year, I only properly made the connection recently but thinking back it’s been happening for a while) It feels like it goes right through me, within half an hour i’ll feel the need to use the toilet and it’s never solid, and i will usually be having 3 or 4 similar movements within the 4 hours after
I’m having the same experience with Vanilla and Mint Choc (white bags), and i’ve tried drinking slowly, or just one meal a day but the effect seems to be the same. Today I had my breakfast huel over the period of about half an hour, but before i was halfway done i felt my stomach reacting
I’m afraid i may need to stop using it, but on the chance that someone here has had the same or similar issue and has a way to mitigate it i figured i’d ask and see
It’s tricky to say. I’ve been an even longer regular consumer of Huel with no issues at any point…so I guess stopping your Huel consumption for a number of weeks would be a prudent thing to do, to see if the issues disappear.
to echo Hunzas’s thoughts - if you do take a pause and things don’t improve, it may be a good idea to see your GP and see if there are any underlying gastric issues that Huel may or may not be exacerbating
Appreciate the responses, and yeah, I came to the realisation it was Huel because I didn’t have Huel over the weekend (after Breakfast Friday, and through until Monday) and from late Friday afternoon my stomach etc was fine. Within half an hour of having Huel on Monday morning though not so much.
I’ll take a break, and see how things go over a longer period, and then look at my options I guess.
Sorry to hear you’ve been having gut issues. I will say from speaking to many others, you’re certainly not alone in your experience!
I’d definitely echo hunzas and Phil here in taking a few weeks off Huel and then slowly reintroducing one scoop at a time to see how you respond. Huel Powder is especially rich in soluble fibre from the oats, which forms a gel in the gut, as well as some insoluble fibre, which draws water into the large intestine. This should, however, be taking several hours to happen rather than while you’re still drinking your breakfast, so there’s a chance there may be something else going on.
If your symptoms return after reintroducing, my other suggestion would be to try a different product in the range and see how you fare with a different formula and slightly different ingredients. Perhaps Black Edition Powder instead? It also goes without saying to chat with your doctor if you have concerns to rule out anything medical.
Here’s another perspective. In my case “digestive issues” are microbiome related (everyone’s microbiome situation, the exact bugs and their gut location, is different). My understanding is that eating a lot of Huel (or anything for that matter) feeds up the population of bacteria that like it and can opportunistically go for it. So, if one is “at risk”, then eating the same thing repetitively is never a good idea. (The effect on day 3 of Huel is worse than on day 1 because there are many more bugs there waiting…)
In detail there are a number of tricks that might be brought to bear on a case by case basis. But, as more of a Huel Eater (Hot meals), I’d like to share one of them. Garlic is a recipe ingredient that, apart from adding a distinctive taste, also has a strong antimicriobial effect. By trial and error I’ve confirmed that, if I take a clove of garlic, chop it up and add to a Hot Meal before adding water and stirring, my “digestive issues” are much reduced. I can eat Huel more often with fewer problems. As a side note, in cooking in general, I’ve noticed that the garlic effect is increased if it’s lightly fried in oil (and the whole lot added), but I haven’t resorted to that with Huel (yet). The hot water seems to do enough in terms of leeching out the chemicals. In a cold Huel drink I’d experiment, if necessary, putting the chopped garlic in a little hot water and then mixing in, for example.
Another point about garlic, it’s also a bit of a brain stimulant, has a subtle effect making the mind a bit jittery if you eat a lot of it. So it’s contraindicated for meditators and you’ll definitely notice if you start piling in multiple cloves!