so, i known some people have complained about the increased amount of salt in v2, so i’ll try and make my topic here both unique and to the point:
i am not a 100% Hueler. i eat normal meals with my family in the evening and at the weekends, i.e. i eat meals with them, when im with them. i am 100% certain that i will not be deficient in sodium if i eat huel (v1.2) in this way, but im fairly sure that eating v2 will put me over the recommended salt intake (most people would tend to consume more salt with their evening meal than their breakfast, so if im eating huel v2 and getting sodium throughout the morning, then this leads to more sodium overall)
so, if you’re not considering reducing the sodium content in the next version of huel, could you at least make an unsalted version for people like me, in the same way that you have a gluten-free version? im pretty sure that there are other “niche” huel users, such as the guy who made the other topic saying that he uses huel because he wants a low-sodium diet, who would really appreciate this.
also of some note: im a pharmacist so not only am i vaguely aware of the role that salt plays in hypertension, im supposed to be leading by example and doing health promotion. i use huel at work and was extolling the virtues but i was not aware of the formula change until i noticed that my newest delivery of huel said v2, then i read the change notes and then was (like others on here) shocked to see how much salt had been added. i think that anybody who is not 100% on huel will have an adequate sodium intake from basically everything else in their diet.
Thank you for flying the flag of Huel at work and really glad you have been enjoying it. Sorry you don’t like our version 2.0. we will be considering your point of view and the other opinions stated on the forum. I’m sure you can appreciate that it is difficult to please all the people all the time. By not adding any salt, it will take level back down to v1.2 levels of 3.4g per 2000 kcal, which was considered not enough salt. So we must assess what the best solution is, objectively. Currently we are 0.4g, or 6% over the guideline daily amount intake per 2000 kcal.
Thanks for the feedback and we will be addressing any issues with the best solution possible.
Hi Tim, It would be great if you did go back to version 1.2 then people can add a little more salt of their own to taste while others who are getting a little too much from V2 would be happy with the older level of salt. Would that not make everyone happy?
Worth noting that you are 1.4g or 28% over the WHO recommended maximum salt intake (5g per day):
“WHO recommends that adults consume less than 5 g”
That is based on 2000 calories, a guideline intake for women. Presumably the average man using 100% huel will be aiming for 2500 calories, and be consuming 8g salt a day, 3g or 60% over the WHO recommended maximum.
Even using the higher 6g a day figure, the 2500 calorie per day man will be 2g or 33% over the recommended maximum.
Any athlete or active person with higher caloric demands will be exceeding the maximum salt intake by even greater amounts.
I think this really raises the issue that “calories consumed from Huel” is likely to vary so widely across customers, while maximum safe salt intake is relatively fixed - that really the only thing that makes sense is to have Huel low salt and let people add the right amount they need for a day if necessary.
Did you even read the other threads about salt in Huel? 6g of salt is not the recommended value - it is the maximum value.
To put it in even simpler words: They recommend that the maximum you consume is 6g - that does not mean they recommend you eat 6g per day. The recommendation stands at 3.75g/day.
Absolutely, that is what the WHO recommends and in the future we may look to bring our formula in line more with the WHO. However, European law is not using this recommendation currently.
The Guidance on the Provision of Food Information to Consumers which is a summary of the EU regulation governing food stuffs provided to consumers is considered law in this country. In this law it states that the Reference Intake for salt is 6.0g. It then goes on to define the % Reference Intake as:
% Reference intakes (% GDAs) are typical nutrient intake levels that most people are guided to consume daily for a healthy diet. Because people vary in many ways, such as size and activity levels, GDAs are not targets for individuals, but provide a benchmark against which the contribution from specific nutrients per serving of a food product can be assessed.
Whether this is wrong or right, 6g is the recommended you can consume going off the EU Reference Intakes.
hi guys, happy to see some more discussion of this.
as far as i am aware, there was no problem with the levels of salt in v1.2. in fact, when i first started i checked first to see that all of the sodium was naturally occurring and not added to the recipe afterwards, and i was reassured that this was the case. i can dig through my fb activity to find the quote, but the gist is that the huel staff told me that there was no added salt (added salt is clearly a concern to many people so i really dont understand why its been added into v2)
also i agree with what rikefrejut is saying about salt “RDA” versus “requirements”. with what i know, as a pharmacist, “low sodium” or hyponatraemia is basically never caused by low dietary salt intake, but rather by losing too much salt and/or drinking too much fluid. drinking too much fluid is difficult to accomplish: its usually done by drinking about 12l of water within a day, or super-excessive amounts of beer.
basically i think that salt deficiency is so marginal a problem, it is unlikely to exist.
Well said, we’ve evolved to be quite good at retaining a working reserve of sodium in our system. To be topping it up so much so regularly is unnecessary. Particularly over the long-term.
I love Huel and don’t get any pleasure from criticising what I love (wife not included), but agree with others that the salt intake is too high. Huel 2.0 actually tastes of salt (to me, and others on the forum have expressed a similar taste experience).
to reduce the risk of high blood pressure, it is recommended that adults should not be eating more than 6g of salt (2.4g sodium) a day.
According to the above from the NHS website, to reduce the risk of high blood pressure, it is recommended that I should not be eating more than 6g of salt per day. Less is preferable.
The below quote is from this website (I take it from the boss himself):
How to use Huel
If I wanted 100% Huel, I would simply mix 2200 calories worth and leave it in the fridge to drink throughout the day.
So if I am consuming 2200 calories of Huel a day, every day, (as this website suggests for full time Huelers) and therefore with version 2.0 I’m consuming more than 6g of salt per day, every day, - am I increasing my chances of having high blood pressure in the future by drinking Huel full time? (like I want to do).
Hi guys - some very fair points raised in this thread and good idea keeping this in its own thread.
Yes, we are looking at the salt issue and I have made the decision that we WILL be revising the content in V2.1. However, we will not be going back to V1.2 as there are so many improvements in V2.0 like the lycopene, lutein, folate and change in the ingredient ratios.
Do bear in mind that there are labeling rules that have to be followed in respect of salt and much of the sodium (which will have to be labeled as salt) will be from the main ingredients and there are other considerations.
I am working on finalising the recipe and then there will be stock issues and other logistics before V2.1 will be ready to be shipped. When I have sorted this all out, nearer the time of launch, I will announce the tweaks and this will address the other ingredient issues as well.
The salty taste during drinking, and salty aftertaste, isn’t nice at all, and was really noticeable when first trying V2. But it’s the new consistency, gloopy and lumpy, that is most unpleasant, which along with the salt has really put me off Huel. Will this be looked at for version 2.1 as well? Fingers crossed!
when i saw the red dots of lycopene “bleeding” into the huel that was a bit freaky, but reading all the change notes for v2 e.g. the eye supplements, its all really positive stuff.
so indeed, please dont remove any of these positive changes and indeed, don’t get the wrong idea: i love huel and the way its evolving, the only thing which i dislike is this random and unexpected addition of salt.
the fluoride discussion is for another day (and another thread) but i think all of us on this thread are pretty unanimous about wanting all that salt removed, for the sake of our cardivascular system
I am already taking on board the Community’s comments. Also, bear in mind if I do ask people here, these thoughts are only reflective of a few; plus there are certain ingredient parameters that I have to stick to. Please don’t think I’m being negative or shunning your comment - nothing would be further from the truth; and I certainly will be asking opinion should I need to.
I’ve found absolutely difference in consistency since the change to 2.0. I get almost no lumps whether I blend it or shake it. I do shake it really vigorously though, and always have.
