What is the best paleo meal replacement shake?

drink wholesome is the best paleo meal replacement shake.

Written by Jack Schrupp & endorsed by Baylee Reller, RDN

What is the paleo diet? 

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The Paleo diet attempts to emulate the dietary habits of our ancestors from 10,000 years ago, a period known as the Paleolithic era. In simple terms, it places a strong emphasis on whole foods rather than processed ones. Foods that align with the Paleo diet include meat, fish, eggs, seeds, nuts, fruits, and vegetables.

If your goal is to completely steer clear of processed foods, then meal replacement shakes are not an option. If you are open to a bit of flexibility in your definition of what counts as a “processed food,” however, then you can add certain meal replacement shakes to your diet.

Are meal replacements paleo? 

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Finding a meal replacement shake compatible with the Paleo diet is challenging. For starters, most meal replacements contain either whey, soy, or pea protein, none of which are Paleo. Whey protein is derived from milk, and soy and pea protein are legumes – both milk and legumes are excluded from the Paleo diet.

The real reason why most meal replacements are not technically paleo, however, has nothing to do with the type of protein they contain. Save for only a few exceptions, meal replacement shakes are not paleo because they are made from protein concentrates or isolates. Heavily-processed ingredients like these have been stripped of everything but the protein. They were absolutely not on the menu during the Paleolithic era, and cannot be part of a Paleo diet.

Another reason why most meal replacement shakes do not suit the Paleo diet is that they contain emulsifiers, thickeners, flavors, and sweeteners. Food additives like these, including natural flavors and natural sweeteners like stevia, are not Paleo.

Here is a list of the most common food additives in meal replacement shakes:

acacia gum, acesulfame potassium, artificial flavors, aspartame, carrageenan, cellulose gum, dextrin, dextrose, erythritol, gellan gum, guar gum, gum arabic, inulin, locust bean gum, “natural” flavors*, maltodextrin, rice syrup solids, soy lecithin, silica, sucralose, sunflower lecithin, xanthan gum, xylitol

Why egg whites and almonds?

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Here are the top four reasons why we use egg whites and almonds into our Paleo meal replacement shakes:

1. Both egg whites and almonds are in line with the Paleo diet’s guidelines. They serve as excellent sources of Paleo-friendly protein, each offering unique health benefits.

2. Egg whites and almonds undergo minimal processing. Converting an egg white into powder takes pasteurization and drying. As far as food processing goes, this is about as minimal as it gets. While almonds require a bit more processing, it is still minimal. The almonds we utilize are just roasted, pressed to reduce some oil content, and ground.

3. Egg whites and almonds also happen to taste great. Since they retain their non-protein components like fats and carbs, they don’t leave behind that chalky aftertaste associated with meal replacements made from concentrates and isolates.

4. Furthermore, egg whites and almonds are gentle on your digestive system. Unlike protein concentrates and isolates, whole food protein sources like egg whites and almonds contain enzymes and other digestive aids that make them easy for your body to break down.

What is the best paleo meal replacement shake?

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We make the best paleo-friendly meal replacement shakes with a short list of simple ingredients. In case you were wondering, the other ingredients that we use to flavor and sweeten our paleo meal replacements are also paleo. For example, in our vanilla meal replacement we use coconut for texture, vanilla beans for flavor, and monk fruit for sweetness. Monk fruit is a melon-like fruit native to Southeast Asia.

our ingredients: 

egg whites, almonds, oats, coconut, cocoa, monk fruit

the alternative:

SOY PROTEIN ISOLATE, CANOLA OIL, MALTODEXTRIN, ISOMALTULOSE, SOLUBLE CORN FIBER, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, VITAMIN AND MINERAL PREMIX, CELLULOSE, NATURAL & ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, SOY LECITHIN, SALT, MONO & DIGLYCERIDE, XANTHAN GUM, SUCRALOSE

★★★★★

simple and delicious

“I find it hard to find a meal replacement powder that doesn’t have over a handful of ingredients in it AND doesn’t have lots of sugar. This checks both of those boxes and tastes great.” – Cassi

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