Hi guys!

Recently a friend told me about this hemp powder: Hemp foods have been used by humans for over 12,000 years and as i'm told, still is the toprated superfood. It contains all of the essential amino acids, essential fatty acids, fiber and is rich in minerals like iron.

So, i went to the store(or should i say; a tiny weird store where they sell the weirdest stuff, because they don't sell it in normal stores) and bought a pack. I got home and read the following:

Nutrition facts 100g:

kcal 477

Total fat 12g

Saturated fat 1,2g

Omega 3 2,4g

Omega 6 6,6g

Omega 9 1,8g

Total carbs 28g

Dietary fiber 23g

Sugars 5g

Protein 50g (!!!)

Calcium 81mg/10%

Iron 9mg/64%

Phosphorus 2,1mg

Sodium 21mg

Vitamin E 0,8mg/10%

So... Why am i doing protein supplements when this natural stuff exists?

I would just like to get Your opinion on this, if you've got any experience with it and etc.

For my part, i'm going to start using this magic in my breakfast and other shakes!

BUT! There are some downsides though:

1. The color is awfull! I mixed it in with some cottage cheese, bananas and jam, and the result was this horrible dark greenish color.

2. The taste is a bit weird(naturally nutty, as they say), but shouldn't be a problem when mixing it in with yoghurt, juice or a shake. Going to try that out tomorrow.

3. The PRICE though! Holy moly. At least here in Norway. 250kr or 42 dollars for 450g!! (Can't believe i gave away 2 tbs to my buddy so he could try it out!)

Boeger,

If you can afford the price and deal with the taste, more power to you. One thing to remember about plant-sourced proteins. They usually aren't as complete as animal sources and/or you have to eat a lot more than the equivalent of animal-based proteins. Case in point: Horses and Gorillas are very muscular animals that are not carnivores. They need to eat constantly and in larger quantities, however, to maintain their muscular size.

Whey/egg/milk protein supplements tend to be cheaper and are more complete proteins and better tasting :-) The choice is yours.

John

I recently tried a sample of hemp protein and I finished it faster than any of the others I tried. I f*cking love hemp protein, even though it's a little weird and I haven't figured out my ideal way to have it yet. I got a huge bag of it too and I'm basically eating it every day. I like the flavor, it's the texture that gets me. I had some today mixed in with pulled pork & beans and it was good.

As far as John's concearns, hemp protein contains all 10 amino acids the body cannot produce itself and requries from food sources, that means that hemp is classified as a complete protein, just like meat, dairy, eggs & poultry. He's right on about better tasting and less expensive though :p

My favorite thing about hemp protein is, in my body at least, it seems to be slower digesting than whey isolates, so any time of the day you need a longer lasting feeling of fullness or if you like to take protein right before bed these are great times to take hemp. In my opinion combining slow and fast digesting proteins together (even in the same meal) could be a very beneficial combination. Like most people take whey + caesin you could eat meat and supplement with hemp.

Good luck with your hemp protein, I hope you grow to enjoy it as much as I do.

Diana,

What I meant is the following: Hemp is a complete protein as you stated. What I am referring to is its BIOAVAILABILITY. Not all protein is digested and absorbed the same. Egg protein is the gold standard for bioavailability - meaning almost 100% is absorbed and used effectively. Meats, fish, and milk follow on the bioavailability scale. Plant-based proteins have lower bioavailability because humans are primarily carnivores not herbavores.

Our digestive systems and enzymes are better suited to digesting non-plant based proteins. What this means is you have to eat more of a protein source like hemp to get the same amount of amino acids into the bloodstream than the equivalent amount you would with eggs, meat, and fish - hence my reference to horses and gorillas who are quite muscular but need to eat lots of plant based protein sources and lots of food per day versus humans to grow and maintain their musculature. It may have 50g of protein in 100g but your body will only be able to absorb and use about 50% of that (25g) versus 50g of egg, meat, fish protein where 85% and higher will be able to be absorbed and used :-)

John

Right on John! Can't argue with science :)

Thanks alot for the feedback! Wow, i've never thought of it like that. Like lions, how many meals do they have? They can do 3 days without eating anything, but when they do, they eat MEAT(and alot of it though:p). But like you said, gorillas and guys like that has to eat all the time to maintain their weight! Really a good way to explain it:) (totally screwed up if the lion-thing is not correct:p)

I mainly use it in my shake, and my stomach gets really bubbly if i use protein-powder too much, so hemp is a very nice supplement to whey:) Don't really think meat is that good to put in the shake;P At least that's how i feel.

Again, thanks alot, really helped!

Thanks alot for the feedback, Jade! Really appreciate it:)

The consistency is awfull, the taste is a bit weird, but i think i'm getting used to it. I start every morning with a shake containing; oatmeal, banana, blueberries, glutamine and milk. I've tried to put it in this shake and it works out well. After that i take my 5g of creatine with juice. Lately i've tried to put 1 spoon of hemp in this mix, but the taste is unbarable and the consistency is reaaally weird, but i think i'm going to try to get it with my creatine+juice-combo before i go to bed. I like to think that if my gets that hemp before i go to sleep, my body can build on it while i sleep, and hemp is a really good "building brick":)

I totally agree with the feeling of hemp being slower digesting, so it really makes me feel full for a longer time!

I was also wondering about the Hemp.

I receantly bought a hemp protein powder at Trader Joes with 8g of protein every 4tbsp. What I liked about this is that it is really low in sodium (10mg per serving) so I thought it was a good trade off of calories, sodium and proteins. I used to drink Myoplex protein before but it was kinda expensive compared to this 10dlls bottle with 15 servings. Its been 1 week since I regularly drink it for breakfast and it Ive been feeling OK, it has chocolate flavor and I mix it also with soy milk and vainilla scent afor a better taste, of course I also have a portion of eggs to complet my protein requeriments. Ill try this for a couple weeks to track the results..