A Pilot Pre and Post 4 Week Intervention Evaluating the Effect of a Proprietary, Powdered, Plant Based Food on Micronutrient Status, Dietary Intake, and Markers of Health in a Healthy Adult Population

Abstract

BackgroundA “balanced, adequate, and varied diet” is recommended as the basis of nutritionally sound diet by the World Health Organisation and national public health agencies. Huel is a proprietary, on-the-go, powdered, plant based food, providing all 26 essential vitamins and minerals, protein, essential fats, carbohydrate, fibre, and phytonutrients.ObjectivesAssessing the effect of solely consuming Huel on micronutrient status, dietary intake and markers of health was achieved through a 4-week intervention of solely Huel powder.MethodsHabitual energy intake was assessed through a one-week lead in period with healthy adult participants (aged 18 or over) logging their food intake, after which only Huel was consumed for 4 weeks. Blood samples and body composition was assessed before and after the lead in week as well the end of the intervention. Thirty participants were recruited with 20 (11 females, median age 31, range 22–44) completing the study, 19 sets of blood samples were collected. 22 blood markers were analysed along with weight, BMI, waist circumference, visceral adipose tissue (VAT), and body composition. All blood micronutrients, except for Thyroid Stimulating Hormone and choline were sent to Royal Victoria Infirmary NHS, Newcastle Laboratory (Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom) for analysis.ResultsFourteen of the parameters significantly changed over the course of the study with circulating haemoglobin, iron, vitamins B12 and D as well as selenium significantly increasing (p < 0.05). HbA1c, total and non-HDL cholesterol, vitamins A and E, potassium, BMI, VAT, and waist circumference all significantly decreased (p < 0.05) post intervention.ConclusionAlthough energy intake decreased during the intervention period, the adherence to recommended micronutrient intake, as quantified by the dietary Total Adherence Score, significantly increased which tallies with the preservation or improvement of micronutrient status. This study potentially demonstrates that consuming only Huel for 4 weeks does not negatively affect micronutrient status.

The Nutritional Quality of Food Provision at UK Government-Funded Holiday Clubs: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Energy and Nutrient Content

“…For the energy, macronutrients and sodium components, the cut-off value was determined as 50% of the age-specific standard. This approach to determine cut-offs, albeit arbitrary, has been applied in other diet quality scoring approaches [46,53,54]. In the instance of nutrients without a maximal recommended intake, such as carbohydrate, fibre and protein, any value greater than or equal to the nutrient-based standard was given a score of 10, while for a value less than or equal to 50% of the standard, the score was 0.…”