{"id":223455,"date":"2025-10-24T21:16:25","date_gmt":"2025-10-24T21:16:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/223455\/"},"modified":"2025-10-24T21:16:25","modified_gmt":"2025-10-24T21:16:25","slug":"are-superdrinks-worth-it-ag1-huel-and-kachava-put-to-the-test","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/223455\/","title":{"rendered":"Are Superdrinks Worth It? AG1, Huel, and Ka\u2019Chava Put to the Test"},"content":{"rendered":"

THE FIRST TIME Eric Su tried AG1<\/a>, formerly known as Athletic Greens<\/a>, he was conflicted. <\/p>\n

\u201cPersonally, I don\u2019t think I really like the taste,\u201d Su said in a 2023 YouTube review<\/a> of the forest-green superdrink. (Watch carefully around the 3:10 mark and you\u2019ll see his face sour.) \u201cMaybe I\u2019ll try it with milk<\/a> in a couple days,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Su, 26, is an entrepreneur and a self-described health optimizer with more than 74,000 YouTube subscribers at press time. He says he committed to drinking AG1 daily for three months to see if it would change his blood biomarker levels or mood. The drink, after all, advertises a wealth of benefits, from improved digestion<\/a> to increased focus to a boosted immune system<\/a>\u2014all thanks to its whopping 75 ingredients, which include probiotics<\/a>, ashwagandha root<\/a>, and reishi mushroom<\/a>.
<\/p>\n

The promise of AG1, and a rising number of superdrinks like it, is alluring: Instead of buying, storing, preparing<\/a>, and eating all the nutrients you need through healthy foods\u2014or a supplement stack\u2014you can just knock everything back in a few big gulps.<\/p>\n

\"manchester,Ben Roberts\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Logan Paul chugs a bottle of Prime.<\/p>\n

Su learned about AG1 as many health-conscious guys learn about new products these days: through celebrities. At this very moment, podcasters Joe Rogan<\/a>, Tim Ferris<\/a>, Peter Attia<\/a>, and Andrew Huberman<\/a> are, in one way or another, doing business with AG1. <\/p>\n

In 2022, actor Idris Elba<\/a> contributed to a $24 million investment<\/a> in Huel<\/a>, a company that sells nutritionally optimized ready-made drinks. That same year, Internet personalities Logan Paul and KSI launched Prime<\/a>, their own line of now-coveted coconut-water-based sports beverages and energy drinks. Olympic snowboarder Shaun White<\/a> endorses<\/a> Ka\u2019Chava, a superdrink that, not to be outdone by AG1, advertises that it contains 85 health-promoting ingredients. <\/p>\n

On the whole, the nutritional-drink market has swelled globally. In 2021, the industry was worth roughly $12 billion<\/a>, and it\u2019s expected to rise to $19 billion by 2027. AG1 alone carries a valuation of more than $1.2 billion<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"shaunCourtesy Publicity<\/p>\n

Shaun White swears by Ka\u2019Chava.<\/p>\n

One contributing factor to that valuation is that none of these drinks are particularly cheap. AG1 offers a subscription service that costs $79 a month. A pouch of Huel\u2019s complete-meal drink starts at $33.50. A 15-serving bag of Ka\u2019Chava costs $70. And you can\u2019t even buy a 12-pack of Prime for less than $29.99, more than three times the $8.29 price tag on 12 Gatorades at Target.<\/p>\n

But there are factors beyond just celebrities (and their promo codes) driving the superdrink craze\u2014factors that experts say touch on much deeper issues. These are issues many of us experience: loss of control, lack of self-care, unfulfilled goals, and the desire to find a solution through what we eat and drink.<\/p>\n

\"icon\"<\/p>\n

NO, TRENDY NUTRITIONAL drinks aren\u2019t a recent invention.<\/p>\n

SlimFast ruled the late 1970s with slogans like \u201cGain new freedom over food to help put you in control of what you eat.\u201d Soylent<\/a> stirred attention in the 2010s after CEO Rob Rhinehart lived on the futuristic beige liquid for 30 days straight.<\/p>\n

But neither product could claim it was at the crest of a wellness wave\u2014or at least a status symbol along the lines of Lululemon joggers<\/a> or an Oura Ring<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Then came AG1. Its origin story centers on CEO and founder Chris Ashenden,
a native New Zealander who says he suffered from gut issues related to nutrient deficiencies. (Ashenden declined to be interviewed for this article, though AG1 provided press materials.)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe seem to be in a cultural moment where a segment of society is OBSESSED WITH OPTIMIZING<\/a> every aspect of their life, including their health.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spotting a gap in the highly specialized supplement market, the entrepreneur envisioned something more comprehensive\u2014a sort of all-in-one nutritional product.<\/p>\n

He launched the product in 2010, instantly garnering recognition from body-optimizing time-saver Tim Ferriss<\/a>, who plugged AG1 in his New York Times bestseller The 4-Hour Body<\/a>. The marketing around the superdrink hasn\u2019t let up since. In podcasts\u2019 sponsor spots, #ag1partner<\/a> social posts from a legion of influencers, YouTube deep-dive reviews like Su\u2019s\u2014AG1 is everywhere and positioned for anyone looking to \u201coptimize\u201d their health.<\/p>\n

Su found out about AG1 from The 4-Hour Body, but he\u2019d been intrigued by the culture of optimization long before. \u201cWhere a person ends up in life is often a function of the tiny optimizations they\u2019ve made,\u201d he says. \u201cThe beauty of optimization as a mental model is that it pushes you to find inefficacies and question the status quo.\u201d<\/p>\n

Su\u2019s quest for optimization, he says, emerged from a love of video games; he would spend hours customizing characters and increasing his stats. \u201cI realized that real life wasn\u2019t all that different, except it was way more fun when you actually were improving and optimizing yourself.\u201d For optimizers, products like AG1 aren\u2019t merely drinks\u2014they\u2019re level-ups.
<\/p>\n

As he mentioned in his video review, Su\u2019s first obstacle in learning to love AG1 was the taste\u2014which, like that of a lot of superdrinks, basically boils down to bad.<\/p>\n

\"energy<\/p>\n

Getty Images<\/p>\n

Scroll through Amazon reviews for the mushroom-based coffee alternative MUD\/WTR and you\u2019ll find comments like \u201cIt certainly lives up to its name.\u201d On Huel\u2019s Internet forum, a thread<\/a> about its Daily Greens powder poses the unnerving question \u201cAnyone not puke after drinking?\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet this acquired-taste experience may actually be part of the draw for people who have a \u201cno pain, no gain\u201d approach to health. (This same approach is often promoted by early-waking, ice-plunging<\/a>, cold-showering<\/a> influencers such as Rogan, Ferriss, Attia, and Huberman.) <\/p>\n

\u201cThere are multiple reasons we might make significant compromises in the taste, pleasure, and satisfaction of our food lives,\u201d says Emily Contois, Ph.D.<\/a>, an associate professor of media studies at the University of Tulsa. (Think back to the fish-oil-supplement<\/a> craze, during which \u201cfish burps\u201d were a mere speed bump on the road to better heart health.) \u201cWe seem to be in a cultural moment where a segment of society is obsessed with optimizing every aspect of their life, including their health,\u201d Contois says.
<\/p>\n

One possible reason for this focus on optimization is the pandemic<\/a>, says Smithsonian Institution food historian Ashley Rose Young, Ph.D. <\/a>\u201cThere was a huge sense of a lack of control for so many people,\u201d she explains. \u201cWhen I think about self-optimization, I sometimes see that as a way for people to try to regain a sense of control after such a destabilizing worldwide event.\u201d<\/p>\n

For anyone who strives for an optimized lifestyle, superdrinks seem like a simple solution. \u201cThese products echo our contemporary moment that\u2019s filled with preoccupations about work and lifestyles that, in general, can feel too busy to take time to eat slowly and well,\u201d says Contois. <\/p>\n

Worse yet, proprietary blends may HIDE NUTRIENT DOSES<\/a> so high they could negatively interact with medications\u2014and harm your health.<\/p>\n

Superdrink brands capitalize on this sense of busyness, too. Huel markets its product as less time-consuming than normal meals, perfect for the overworked professional. One of its taglines is \u201cLess time cooking, more time living.\u201d<\/p>\n

Plus, some of these brands argue, cooking is expensive due to continued inflation<\/a>. Yet the argument that turning to superdrinks to defray food costs hasn\u2019t really held up. In 2023, two of Huel\u2019s advertisements were banned in the UK for claiming that its\u201cmeals\u201d could reduce people\u2019s food bills. (The Advertising Standards Authority ruled<\/a> that Huel \u201chad not provided evidence\u201d to sufficiently prove that its products are cheaper than traditional food.)<\/p>\n

However, the high cost of many nutritional drinks might hold value for people, says Men\u2019s Health nutrition advisor Abby Langer, R.D.<\/a> \u201cThese drinks are having a moment because they show everybody that you\u2019re rich enough to buy them.\u201d It\u2019s a flex, an investment in yourself, like hiring a personal trainer<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But even on that very basic selling point\u2014that superdrinks really are an investment in yourself\u2014these products might come up empty.<\/p>\n

\"icon\"<\/p>\n

SU SAYS HE was sort of sold on the idea that AG1 would improve his health.\u201cIt\u2019s a lot easier to drink an eight-ounce drink than it is to down a dozen pills, even if they\u2019re functionally the same thing,\u201d he says. \u201cA drink like this helps people solve the the problem of not knowing what supplements they should take and how much they should take.\u201d
<\/p>\n

Except that, according to experts, what\u2019s actually in superdrinks is murky.<\/p>\n

Take what superdrink companies call \u201cproprietary blends.\u201d According to AG1, its greens drink contains an \u201calkaline, nutrient-dense raw superfood complex\u201d and a \u201cdigestive enzyme & super mushroom complex.\u201d And while the amounts of some of its individual ingredients are listed, those within proprietary blends are not given specific numbers.<\/p>\n

This is a major red flag for Langer. \u201cIf you see a proprietary blend, you turnaround and you run,\u201d she says, because you have no way of knowing whether the ingredients are included in effective doses. That means a superdrink product maybe shortchanging you on a nutrient.<\/p>\n

Or, more granular still, the amount of a nutrient may not be one your body can even absorb. Dietitians call this \u201cbioavailability,\u201d your system\u2019s capacity for taking in nutrients from a meal (or drink).<\/p>\n

Nutrition therapist Jenna Hollenstein, R.D.<\/a>, author of Intuitive Eating for Life, echoes Langer. \u201cSome of my nerdy questions include: Is this the most bioavailable format of the compound? Do any of these interact or hinder absorption of another?\u201d She says, \u201cEven the lack of chewing<\/a> reduces the amount of amylase [a digestive enzyme made by our salivary glands] released in the mouth, which contributes to early digestion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"an<\/p>\n

Getty Images<\/p>\n

Yes, liquids actually limit your body\u2019s ability to absorb all those supposed supernutrients you just chugged. AG1 claims it harnesses \u201cthe power of synergy by combining nutrients that work better together\u201d and uses ingredients that \u201care selected for how easy they are to absorb.\u201d (AG1\u2019s PR team doubles down on this claim but adds that \u201cwhole foods always come first.\u201d)
<\/p>\n

Worse yet, proprietary blends may hide nutrient doses so high they could negatively interact with medications\u2014and harm your health.<\/p>\n

Again, AG1 provides a great case: Its \u201cnutrient dense extracts, herbs & antioxidant\u201d blend has an unstated amount of dandelion, an ingredient that may interact<\/a> with diabetes medication. So if you are diabetic, that could really mess with your risk of suffering the dangerous effects of low blood sugar. And when superdrinks contain 70-plus ingredients, some in undisclosed amounts, the risk is multiplied.<\/p>\n

You might be thinking, Um, FDA? Well, superdrink companies are able to skirt strict FDA requirements for claims and labeling because their products aren\u2019t food\u2014they\u2019re supplements. AG1\u2019s ingredients have been third-party-certified by NSF, but in general the FDA does not verify supplement marketing claims.<\/p>\n

And then there\u2019s the other Big Claim: that food is selling you short on nutrition. \u201cYou can\u2019t really get all the micronutrients that best support your gut microbiome and health just from food,\u201d Huberman said in a 2023 YouTube video<\/a> promoting AG1. Critics say this is a form of nutritional fearmongering<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have become so afraid of food and so afraid of what it means to have a normal human body that we resort to some manufactured silver bullet to provide everything we might not be getting,\u201d Hollenstein says. \u201cThe diet culture and the wellness industry are both responsible for instilling this fear that somehow a normal diet can\u2019t possibly meet all your needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

These drinks should NEVER REPLACE TRADITIONAL MEALS<\/a>, and despite claims that food isn\u2019t enough, you can indeed be 100 PERCENT HEALTHY WITHOUT SUPERDRINKS<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Both Langer and Hollenstein say that even though brands like Huel claim<\/a> their product is a \u201cnutritionally complete meal,\u201d drinking a processed cornucopia of nutrients is not equal to eating whole foods. One reason for this, Langer says, is that reducing ingredients into powders slashes their fiber<\/a> content, and a lack of fiber <\/a>can result in subpar digestion and increased hunger. Huel\u2019s \u201cmeal replacement\u201d drinks contain just 400 calories per bottle\u2014a paltry amount of energy considering that active men should consume at least 2,800 calories daily.<\/a><\/p>\n

Prime hydration drinks, meanwhile, lack substance altogether. They\u2019re marketed as electrolyte replacements for athletes, but many of their flavors contain only
ten milligrams of sodium, \u201cwhereas [American College of Sports Medicine] recommendations for sodium intake are 300 to 600 milligrams per hour for prolonged exercise,\u201d says Men\u2019s Health nutrition advisor Dezi Abeyta, R.D.N.<\/a>
<\/p>\n

None of this is to say these various tonics are entirely useless. Langer explains that drinks like Huel and Ka\u2019Chava, which do contain protein<\/a>, carbs<\/a>, and at least some fiber, are fine if you\u2019re in a pinch and \u201cfind yourself stuck with nothing.\u201d
<\/p>\n

As for greens drinks like AG1, Hollenstein says, if you\u2019re feeling like you haven\u2019t had enough variety in your diet, drinking a shake here and there may help fill in the gaps.<\/p>\n

But the consensus is clear: These drinks should never replace traditional meals, and despite claims that food isn\u2019t enough, you can indeed be 100 percent healthy without superdrinks.<\/p>\n

\"superDan Forbes<\/p>\n

Superdrinks tend to come in two forms: powders you mix into liquid and ready-to-drink options, often in cans.<\/p>\n

Or, as Abeyta says: \u201cWhile these drinks can be a helpful addition for some folks, they\u2019re not a meal ticket to perfect health. Think of them as a supporting act rather than the main event. A diet rich in whole foods is where it\u2019s at.\u201d<\/p>\n

People in the U. S. are most likely to have the following nutrient shortfalls: calcium, iron, potassium, fiber, and vitamin D, according to<\/a> the federal government\u2019s Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Superdrinks advertise that they contain all that (and more!) for a steep price. But a simple (and relatively inexpensive) combination of milk, peanut butter<\/a>, and whole-wheat bread will also help reduce those shortfalls.<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t really news to the folks behind superdrinks. \u201cListen, we always advocate for eating whole foods whenever possible,\u201d says Ka\u2019Chava CEO Simon Malone. \u201cBut talk to a workaholic gym rat or a multitasking mom of three and you\u2019ll see that that\u2019s not possible every single day at every single meal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nor is this news to Su, who, after three months of trialing AG1, decided it wasn\u2019t necessarily the miracle drink he\u2019d hoped for. He says he felt a small energy boost throughout the experiment (though he admits it might have been a placebo effect),and his blood tests did show a \u201cpositive trend in my biomarkers.\u201d<\/p>\n

But that wasn\u2019t enough to convince him to buy more. He dropped his daily AG1 habit shortly after uploading his video to YouTube. \u201cThe best way to get nutrients is through real food, and I think the point of supplements should be to supplement an already healthy diet and lifestyle,\u201d says Su.<\/p>\n

\"icon\"THE GREAT MEN\u2019S HEALTH SUPERDRINKS TASTE TEST<\/p>\n

Our team of editors knocked back 14 varieties. Many were rough. But these five we\u2019d gladly chug again.<\/p>\n

BEST SUPERSELTZER<\/p>\n

\"kinKin Bloom<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a citrus-forward explosion of fruit flavors, with 35calories and six grams of fiber, which come from inulin. Yeah, fiber in a drink.<\/p>\n

BEST HIGH-PROTEIN DRINKABLE DESSERT<\/p>\n

\"huelHuel Cinnamon Roll<\/p>\n

All the bakery flavor, none of the bloat. A full bottle has 400calories, 22 grams of protein,and six grams of fiber.<\/p>\n

BEST PROTEIN POWDER +<\/p>\n

\"kachava\"Ka’Chava Chocolate<\/p>\n

Two scoops have 240 calories,25 grams of protein, and six grams of added sugar. It tastes like chocolate protein powder, but it\u2019s super thick (in a good way).<\/p>\n

BEST RED BULL ALTERNATIVE<\/p>\n

\"salud\"Salud Pepinolim\u00f3n<\/p>\n

This caffeinated liquid enhancer tastes like cucumber-lime spa water. A packet has just ten calories along with cane sugar, sucralose, and allulose<\/p>\n

BEST GREENS SHAKE<\/p>\n

\"bloomBloom Strawberry Kiwi<\/p>\n

Powderized fruits and vegetables (and green tea and seaweed) promise a whole lot of disease-fighting antioxidants for only 20 calories a scoop. And, yup, it beat out AG1 in flavor.<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Ian Lecklitner is a writer located in Palm Springs, California who mainly covers food and drugs.<\/p>\n