Feed: "Huel's nutritionally complete meal is not complete"

That’s fair enough, don’t worry I understand your point of view. I don’t know the angle your doctor is coming from so I’m not going to comment too much but it there is a vast amount of evidence out there that what we originally thought as “too much protein” is incorrect. Of course, too much of anything is bad, carbohydrates, fat, calories, vitamin A.

I will tag @JamesCollier in this so he can explain a bit more and you can hear from someone else.

If Huel lowered their protein content I’d no longer see the product as a viable alternative to a generic training diet, i.e Tonnes of chicken and eggs. I’d be forced away from it and would have to assess other options.

Please keep protein as it is now. :frowning:

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Thanks for raising this @butt

Feed have some good products and, like most other complete food brands, I think creating more buzz in this relatively new product space is a positive thing. I like to get on with all the complete food competitors! So, if a member of Huel staff was posting misinformation and scientifically incorrect stuff like that, I’d be speaking with them, teaching them some basic nutrition myths and also tutoring them on a more positive posting style.

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Thanks, @vanquish, I know I look 25 years old, but I’m actually 46! :heart: :wink:

There are only four macronutrients that supply energy: fat, carbs, fibre and protein. We have the right levels of saturates, monos, omega-3 and -6 polys and this works out at about 30% total energy (%TE); fibre - Huel’s high so we don’t want to go higher (about 3%TE); carbs - people don’t want too high carbs, but too low has its issues too (and the ingredients that supply the carbs are necessary for the fibre and other nutrients), so the carbs are at the level (and low glycaemic index) to maintain sustained energy (about 37%TE). So, with percentages, the remainder of energy has to come from protein, ie about 30%TE.

This level of protein also has key advantages: protein is satiating and also more thermogenic (‘fat-burning’) relative to other macronutrients. Plus it’s important to have sufficient of the amino acid leucine in a serving as this is a key regulator of protein synthesis (if protein synthesis is not triggered, then more of the protein ingested may be stored as fat).

Can too high a protein intake be dangerous? yes, sure there is evidence, but - in a healthy non-renal-compromised individual, you’d really have to go some for potentially dangerous levels and this is likely to be a large caloric intake too - so I’d be more concerned with being overweight. The myth seems to come from the fact that people with renal failure have to restrict their protein intake, but this is because the kidneys aren’t functioning properly. My challenge to people who make this claim that 150g protein per day is dangerous is to demonstrate the claim. Moreover, someone who typically consumes a Western diet is consuming that much anyway.

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Something else to point out about the protein content is that Huel is Vegan.
Although not everyone consuming Huel is following a Vegan or Vegetarian diet, lots of vegans do come to Huel because it’s Vegan and convenient.
Although correct nutrition has vastly improved amongst vegans in the last ten years, following a Vegan diet is still tricky : in particular getting an appropriate and good quality protein amount.

Personally, although I am not 100% strict Vegan, I do prefer to follow a Vegan diet as much as possible.
Huel is perfect for me as the adequate protein level means that I can eat mainly fruits and vegetables for the remainder of my diet and not have to worry too much about additional proteins although I do love moong Dahl !)

Not many people actually eat 100 % Huel and yet everyone seems concerned about things that really aren’t an issue for anyone consuming Huel for 30/50/70 % of their calories like the majority do

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So why is there kind of a general statement that eating too much protein is dangerous?

Huel is 40% carbs, 30% fat, 30% protein, is that the perfect balance for the body or is it just what you have been abled to acheive for this product, that must remain cheap?
If Huel would sell at any price, would you have made the same choices?

I’ve read on many bodybuilding websites that 2 boundaries should not been crossed: the “2g per kg” and the 1 to 1.5g fat per kg. I’m currenly in lean mass gaining and have always read that the ajustment variable are the carbs so if i want to gain more weight, i rise the carbs and keep fat and protein as they were already. Is it wrong to do that? Is it bad to eat too much carbs? Feed philosophy is to make you eat lots of carbs while maintaning protein at “classic levels” so i could think it is better for me.

About the fat, the 1 to 1.5/kg leads me to 100g fat per day max which represents 20% of my day but huel is 30% fat. Here again it is higher than the limit i’ve heard about. Why is it good to eat that much fat per day?

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The issue is to decide how much is “too much”, since by definition “too much” of anything is going to be bad. Too much oxygen, too much exercise, too much fat, too much sugar, too much TV etc etc.

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Second Huel’s current protein levels; I’m literally not trying Feed bc their protein levels are so low.
The way I see it, more protein in Huel means I have more carbs & fats for treats! Carbs & fats are way too easy to over-eat unlike protein.
Also 40:30:30 is often deemed “perfect” weight loss macros (ofc, depending on your calories you’ll lose or gain) I’ve heard(?)

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So why is there kind of a general statement that eating too much protein is dangerous?

Like I say, I’m guessing it comes from the fact that people with renal failure have to restrict their protein intake.

Huel is 40% carbs, 30% fat, 30% protein, is that the perfect balance for the body or is it just what you have been abled to acheive for this product, that must remain cheap?
If Huel would sell at any price, would you have made the same choices?

Is it the perfect balance? impossible to answer - there is no ‘perfect balance’ for all individuals. it’s certainly a ‘perfect balance’. It’s certainly not price lead - if it was we’d be using less expensive fat powders and cheaper carbs like maltodextrin.

I’ve read on many bodybuilding websites that 2 boundaries should not been crossed: the “2g per kg” and the 1 to 1.5g fat per kg. I’m currenly in lean mass gaining and have always read that the ajustment variable are the carbs so if i want to gain more weight, i rise the carbs and keep fat and protein as they were already. Is it wrong to do that? Is it bad to eat too much carbs? Feed philosophy is to make you eat lots of carbs while maintaning protein at “classic levels” so i could think it is better for me.

I’ve read this too. I’ve also read the opposite on bodybuilding websites. That carb adjustment advice is sound, but there’s more to it than this. I don’t really do bodybuilding diets for others anymore as Huel work dominates my life these days, but I prefer a more tailored approach.

The most. Annoying thing. Is insisting on using the full stop. Every. Time. the word. Feed is used. We get it.

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Every time the word Feed.** is used :wink:

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Ha I deliberately left it out, which I realise as I type this sounds very petty but it’s ok because my fellow Huel cultists will back me up in a fight with a competing brand, right guys?

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Perhaps they should have called it Feed-dot instead

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That’s not it? :open_mouth:

Not spelled out like that :grin:

I think we need a keto / low carb huel as the answer :slight_smile:

Think you may have a wait for that.

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Yeah: most research that points to high protein intake contributing to kidney issues suggests it’s meat / dairy diet that contributes more so than actual protein.
There hasn’t been enough research into specific protein sources and the benefits / risks (if any) of high protein vegan diets.
As far as I know, Vegan / Plant protein isolates has been introduced relatively recently so it’s hard to know what the long term effects or benefits might or might not be.
Personally I noticed a drastic improvement in my overall health when I switched to a high protein diet but this coincided with me also switching to a mainly Vegan diet.
I’ve been consuming larger than average amounts of plant proteins for nearly ten years now, and started consuming pea protein isolate about 5 yrs ago. My kidneys are absolutely perfect despite being on some medications that can cause reduced renal function (hence regular blood tests)

I’m going to be terribly pedantic here and point out there is a fifth macronutrient that supplies energy (though one that certainly shouldn’t be in any meal replacement): alcohol. Completely irrelevant really to the topic at hand, but some may find it interesting.

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