What is the best protein powder for digestive issues?

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If you are looking for the best protein powder for digestive issues, you have come to the right place. In this article, you will learn how to easily increase your protein intake without upsetting your stomach. This article was written by Jack Schrupp.

Protein powder and digestive issues

Does protein powder cause digestive issues? 

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One in five people experience gastrointestinal (GI) side effects after drinking protein shakes, so if your protein powder upsets your stomach, you are not alone. Some of the most common side effects are bloating, constipation, diarrhea, and stomach pain. 

Regularly using many protein powders can also cause long-term gut health problems. This is part because many protein powders are made with extra processing and added junk, and in part because people tend to consume them every day.

Is protein powder good for someone with digestive issues? 

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Eating enough protein is important, especially if you have digestive issues. Many inflammatory gut conditions increase your protein needs, sometimes by as much as 25%. Chronic inflammation can also impair your ability to absorb protein from food, which can lead to serious problems like weight loss and malnutrition. 

You should try to get as much of your dietary protein intake as possible from sources like eggs, fish, legumes, meat, nuts, and seeds. Getting enough protein this way can be challenging for some people, however, which is where protein powder can help. Adding protein powder to your diet can help you fill in nutritional gaps and ensure that you are meeting your dietary protein needs. As you just learned, however, not all protein powders are created equal.

What is the best protein powder for digestive issues?

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Many protein powders are made with ingredients that can cause painful side effects and long term health problems for someone with digestive issues. Among these ingredients are food additives, dairy-based proteins, and protein concentrates and isolates. 

Avoid food additives

Regularly eating emulsifiers, thickeners, sugar substitutes, and other additives can not only upset your stomach, but also alter the composition of your gut microbiome – the collection of microorganisms living in your gut. This can lead to gut dysbiosis, which is linked to a number of chronic digestive issues. Here is a list of the most common food additives in protein powder:

acacia fiber, acacia gum, acesulfame potassium, artificial flavors, ascorbic acid, aspartame, calcium carbonate, carrageenan, cellulose gum, dextrin, dicalcium phosphate, dipotassium phosphate, erythritol, gellan gum, guar gum, gum arabic, inulin, locust bean gum, maltodextrin, mono- and diglycerides, ‘natural’ flavors, rice bran extract, rice dextrin, rice hulls, rosemary extract, silica, silicon dioxide, sodium alginate, sodium bicarbonate, soluble corn fiber, soy lecithin, sucralose, sunflower lecithin, tocopherols, tricalcium phosphate, xanthan gum, xylitol, zinc oxide

Avoid dairy-based proteins

Dairy-based proteins like whey and casein, although not an issue for everyone, can cause digestive issues like bloating and diarrhea. This is in part because they contain lactose, a sugar most adults cannot fully digest.

Avoid protein concentrates and isolates

Most protein powders are made from protein concentrates and isolates, which have been mechanically and or chemically stripped of everything but the protein, including the enzymes, fiber, and other natural digestive aids that help you break them down. As a result, they can cause digestive issues and possibly even disruptions to the gut microbiome. 

Finding a protein powder free from food additives, dairy-based proteins, and protein concentrates and isolates is hard. In fact, 99% of protein supplements contain one or more of these problematic ingredients. This is why we created drink wholesome. Keep reading to learn more about why we make the best protein powder for IBD.

drink wholesome is the best protein powder for digestive issues

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We make the best protein powder for digestive issues because we use a short list of simple ingredients free from food additives, dairy-based proteins, and protein concentrates and isolates.

our ingredients: 

egg whites, coconut, vanilla, monk fruit

the alternative:

Protein Matrix Comprised of (Whey Protein Concentrate,  Whey Protein Isolate, Calcium Caseinate, Micellar Casein, Milk Protein Isolate, Egg Albumen, Glutamine Peptides), Polydextrose, Sunflower Creamer (Sunflower Oil, Corn Syrup Solids, Sodium Caseinate, Mono- and Diglycerides, Dipotassium Phosphate, Tricalcium Phosphate, Soy Lecithin, Tocopherols), Natural and Artificial Flavor, MCT Powder (Medium Chain Triglycerides, Nonfat Dry Milk, Disodium Phosphate, Silicon Dioxide), Lecithin, Cellulose Gum, Salt, Yellow 5, Sucralose, Acesulfame Potassium, Papain, Bromelain

Note that instead of using protein concentrates or isolates, we use whole food protein sources like collagen, egg whites, and almonds. Simple protein sources like these are easy to digest and absorb. They also each bring a unique set of digestive benefits to the table.

Collagen has been shown to reduce bloating and improve digestive symptoms. Almonds are rich in prebiotic fiber and improve the composition of your gut microbiome. Egg whites are alkaline, meaning they balance the pH levels in your gut, and promote the growth of good gut bacteria.

Our customers thus experience fewer digestive issues with our protein powder for digestive issues than with any other type of protein supplement. Order samples to see for yourself.