Pea Protein is a relatively new form of protein powder which is valued for its high digestibility (90-95%), low potential for allergic responses and ability to supress the appetite.
Pea protein has a light, flurry texture and slightly sweet taste which mixes well in solution.
Soy is the most controversial protein today. Unlike the Asian culture, where people eat small amounts of whole non-GMO soybean products, western food processors separate the soybean into two golden commodities—protein and oil. And there is nothing natural or safe about these products. Soy foods contain anti-nutritional factors such as saponins, soyatoxin, phytates, protease inhibitors, oxalates, goitrogens and estrogens.
Do your research as soy protein has been linked to breast cancer, brain damage, Infant abnormalities, Thyroid disorders, Kidney stones, Immune system impairment, Severe, potentially fatal food allergies, Impaired fertility, Danger during pregnancy and nursing.
Glutamine is the most abundant free amino acid in the body. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. Glutamine is produced in the muscles and is distributed by the blood to the organs that need it. Glutamine might help gut function, the immune system, and other essential processes in the body, especially in times of stress. It is also important for providing “fuel” (nitrogen and carbon) to many different cells in the body. Glutamine is needed to make other chemicals in the body such as other amino acids and glucose (sugar).
L-lysine is an essential amino acid that is not produced by your body but is critical for maintaining your health.
L-leucine is an essential amino acid, which means the body does not manufacture L-leucine, and it must be acquired through diet or supplementation.
L-Isoleucine is an essential amino acid, it is required by everyone for health reasons.
L-valine is an essential amino acid and, along with L-leucine and L-isoleucine, is part of the branched chain of amino acids.
Fructose is a monosaccharide (simple sugar), which the body can use for energy. Because it does not cause blood sugar rise tremendously (has a low glycemic index), it was once thought that fructose was a good substitute for sucrose (table sugar). However, the American Diabetes Association and nutritional experts have changed their minds about this. When too much fructose enters the liver, the liver can’t process it all fast enough for the body to use as sugar. Instead, it starts making fats from the fructose and sending them off into the bloodstream as triglycerides (you can actually gain weight).
The definition of natural flavor under the Code of Federal Regulations is: “the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.”
Cocoa powder is made when chocolate liquor is pressed to remove three quarters of its cocoa butter.
The remaining cocoa solids are processed to make fine unsweetened cocoa powder.
Dicalcium phosphate is commonly added to food as a dietary supplement for a source of calcium and phosphorus.
Due to its fairly high concentration of calcium, it should be used with caution by breast feeding mothers and those suffering from lung disease and kidney stones.
Potassium citrate is a potassium salt of citric acid with the molecular formula C6H5K3O7. It is a white, slightly hygroscopic crystalline powder. It is odorless with a saline taste. It contains 38.3% potassium by mass.
As a food additive, potassium citrate is used to regulate acidity. Medicinally, it may be used to control kidney stones derived from either uric acid or cystine.
Potassium is an essential nutrient we get from the food we eat. It typically comes in the form of potassium chloride.
Along with sodium, chloride, calcium, and magnesium, potassium is an electrolyte, meaning that it helps to conduct electrical charges in the body. Like all the other electrolytes, our bodies have evolved elaborate systems to control blood levels in a narrow range.
This is good news since normal levels of potassium are absolutely critical to life—if potassium levels get too high or too low, the heart and nervous system completely shut down.
Magnesium is an element your body needs to function normally.
Magnesium oxide may be used for different reasons. Some people use it as an antacid to relieve heartburn, sour stomach, or acid indigestion.
Magnesium oxide also may be used as a laxative for short-term, rapid emptying of the bowel (before surgery, for example).
It should not be used repeatedly. Magnesium oxide also is used as a dietary supplement when the amount of magnesium in the diet is not enough.
Choline occurs in a wide variety of foods, including meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, peanuts, broccoli and Brussels sprouts. For inclusion in supplements, manufacturers combine choline with a type of salt, such as bitartrate.
Ascorbic acid is another word for Vitamin C. Ascorbic acid is a naturally occurring organic compound with antioxidant properties. Ascorbic acid works to preserve food.
Inositol, sometimes known colloquially as “vitamin B-8,” is a beneficial nutrient that has been implicated in the treatment of some behavioral or emotional disorders.
Dl-alpha tocophyl acetate is a form of vitamin E.
Biotin is a water soluble vitamin and another name for vitamin H.
Biotin is associated with many health benefits including the metabolism of fats and amino acids, as well as the production of new cells.
Zinc oxide is added to many foods as a source of zinc.
Niacinamide and niacin are slightly varying forms of vitamin B3.
Vitamin B3 is naturally in many foods like fish and green vegetables and is also found in many vitamin B complex supplements.
Selenomethionine is a naturally occurring amino acid containing selenium.
Vitamin K, and vitamin K as MK-7 in particular, plays an important role in keeping calcium in the bones and out of the arteries. Hopefully, as we cast a broader net of understanding, clinical bone trials will include analysis of vitamin K status along with calcium intake evaluation.
Chromium makes the metabolism of carbohydrates, fatty acids, cholesterol and protein more efficient by increasing the effectiveness of insulin. The citrate is added as a chelating agent.
Riboflavin also known as vitamin B12. This is naturally found in many foods and it is added to many protein shakes.
Folic acid is a B vitamin. It helps the body make healthy new cells.
“Folic acid” and “folate” mean the same thing.
Folate is found naturally in some foods and folic acid is a manmade form of folate.
Since 1998, folic acid has been added to most enriched bread flours, cornmeal, pasta, rice, and other grain products in the U.S. and Canada.
This was done to help prevent spina bifida and anencephaly, two birth defects that are caused in part by too little folate in a mother’s body around the time her baby is conceived.
Cholecalciferol is a form of vitamin D, also called vitamin D3.
Pyridoxine is one of the compounds that can be called vitamin B6, along with pyridoxal and pyridoxamine.
Thiamine hydrochloride is a white, crystalline hygroscopic food-additive used to add a brothy/meaty flavor to gravies or soups.
It is a natural intermediary resulting from a thiamine-HCl reaction, which precedes hydrolysis and phosphorylation, before it is finally employed (in the form of TPP) in a number of enzymatic amino, fatty acid, and carbohydrate reactions.
Cyanocobalamin is a man-made form of vitamin B12 used to prevent and treat low blood levels of this vitamin. Most people get enough vitamin B12 from their diet. Vitamin B12 is important to maintain the health of your metabolism, blood cells, and nerves. Serious vitamin B12 deficiency may result in a low number of red blood cells (anemia, stomach problems, and permanent nerve damage.
Sodium molybdate is a chemically altered form of the mineral element, sodium.
Sodium is a natural salt and sodium molybdate is used in the food industry as a fertilizer and as a nutritional supplement for health.
Sodium molybdate use in food may have some benefits, as well as some side effects.
Potassium iodine is an organic compound that is commercial sold as white table salt.
Gum Arabic is a natural gum made of hardened sap taken from the acacia tree.
It is primarily used in the food industry as a stabilizer and a natural dietary fiber.
Flaxseed oil contains both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which are needed for health. Flaxseed oil contains the essential fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which the body converts into eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil.
One of an array of factory-made additives, cellulose is increasingly used by the processed-food industry to thicken or stabilize foods, replace fat and boost fiber content, and cut the need for ingredients like oil or flour, which are getting more expensive.
Cellulose is especially popular because it can be used in many ways in food and is relatively inexpensive.
Xanthan gum is a sugar-like compound made by mixing aged, or fermented, sugars with a certain kind of bacteria.
In manufacturing, xanthan gum is used as a thickening and stabilizing agent in foods.
Medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) are partially man-made fats. The name refers to the way the carbon atoms are arranged in their chemical structure. MCTs are generally made by processing coconut and palm kernel oils in the laboratory. Usual dietary fats, by comparison, are long-chain triglycerides. People use MCTs as medicine.
Athletes sometimes use MCTs for nutritional support during training, as well as for decreasing body fat and increasing lean muscle mass.
Stevia is a plant that is native to South America.
It is best known as a source of natural sweeteners.
In fact, native people in South America have used stevia as a sweetener for hundreds of years.
Stevia contains 0 grams of sugar and has no known side effects.
Oat fiber a great source of fiber in shakes.
Oats contain more soluble fiber than any other grain, resulting in that full and satisfied feeling longer.
Pectin is a carb that is made of hundreds or thousands of molecules chemically linked together. It is found in most plants and is particularly plentiful in the peels of apples, citrus fruits, and plums. In modified citrus pectin, the pectin has been chemically altered sometimes by pH and temperature modifications to break its long, branched chains of polysaccharides into smaller, unbranched lengths of soluble fiber molecules. Pectin in its natural form cannot be absorbed by the body and is considered a type of undigestible soluble fiber, whereas modified citrus pectin has a reduced molecular weight compared to regular citrus pectin, is mostly linear homogalacturonanic acid, and rich in galactose residues, which are easily processed by the digestive system and absorbed into the bloodstream if of the correct molecular weight range.
Bromelain is an extract derived from the stems of pineapples. It is a mixture of enzymes that digest protein and is thought to have anti-inflammatory effects.
Papain is an enzyme naturally found in unripe papayas and it helps break tough protein fibers, making it great for digestive support.
Whenever our editors see high protein content in a shake, eyebrows are raised and interest piqued. Advocare promises 24 grams of whey protein per serving, which at first glance seemed like a solid source. They also deliver a good amount of vitamins and minerals, with a great deal of fiber to boot. However, upon closer examination, we found the same issues to be true that we have found in other high protein meal replacement shakes.
These issues surface when you peel back the curtain to see why the protein content is so high. We found that you’ll have to consume 59 grams of shake mix to get the benefits! Besides this, some other red flags were noted by our editors.
Soy Protein is the most controversial protein today. Unlike the Asian culture, where people eat small amounts of whole non-GMO soybean products, western food processors separate the soybean into two golden commodities—protein and oil. And there is nothing natural or safe about these products. Soy foods contain anti-nutritional factors such as saponins, soyatoxin, phytates, protease inhibitors, oxalates, goitrogens and estrogens.
Do your research as soy protein has been linked to breast cancer, brain damage, Infant abnormalities, Thyroid disorders, Kidney stones, Immune system impairment, Severe, potentially fatal food allergies, Impaired fertility, Danger during pregnancy and nursing.
Fructose is a major contributor to:
• Insulin resistance and obesity
• Elevated blood pressure
• Elevated triglycerides and elevated LDL
• Depletion of vitamins and minerals
• Cardiovascular disease, liver disease, cancer, arthritis and even gout.
Advocare seems promising at first glance, but when you start to peel back the marketing speech, you find that the ingredients (both active and inactive) are not wonderful as they seem. As such, we cannot recommend or rank it higher.
Good taste and easy mix did the 24 Day Challenge lost 21LBS saw my friends dad lose 41
Spark also helps with focus
I already eat clean and healthy and was thinking that product would help me to feel even better. Unfortunately it didn’t work for me at all. During these shakes I just felt bloated most of the time and it just didn’t work!. I also drank a lot of water during the time, just like recommended. The sparkling water didn’t boost my energy and I just felt very tired through the entire process. No
Weight loss for me either. I’m guessing the high sugar content didn’t help.
Being a new mother this shake increased my energy and felt like the right amount of vitamins but would choose to do something similar in the future with a less expensive product.
The system worked for both me and my wife. I am now on my way to the same weight or close to it after high school. My only concern are soy protein which seem to be ok for me but not my wife… I’ve read up on Soy and have concerns. Having said that it actually is long enough to get a person into the habit of eating correctly.
I’ve discovered that the pack is pretty good. If you stick with the program, you will see results. I’m unsure how long they will last.
The flavor of the vanilla is good, but it has a strange texture. I mix mine with a magic bullet blender and it ends up in almost a jelly like state.