Monthly Archives: December 2016

Arbonne Protein Powder and Shakes Reviews

arbonne protein powder reviews

While doing research for this article and looking at Arbonne protein powder reviews online, I had some reservations.

I’m friends with people who sell it, and they’re generally very passionate about Arbonne’s shakes and other products. And I sell a plant-based protein powder of my own, so this opens the door for potential bias.

So first off, let me say I have always thought of Arbonne as a good company that has helped a lot of people lead healthier lives.

But the goal of every review I write is to present the facts based on my analysis of the nutrition label and ingredients list.

Read on to learn what I discovered about Arbonne protein powder and shakes.

Arbonne Protein Powder Review

Similar to my other reviews, I am reviewing Arbonne protein powders based on health and nutrition … NOT taste.

This is what I look for in a healthy protein powder:

  • Organic, real food ingredients sourced from North America
  • No allergens or inflammation-causing soy, dairy, or gluten
  • No fillers, natural flavors, or gums
  • Protein per serving
  • Protein sources
  • No added sugar or other artificial sweeteners used

Here’s an analysis of the ingredients Arbonne uses in its protein powders:​

arbonne feelfit protein powder arbonne essentials daily protein boost
Arbonne Feel Fit Pea Protein Shake Mix Arbonne Essentials Daily Protein Boost
Calories 130 50
Grams of Protein  20  10
Protein Source(s)  Pea protein, rice protein, cranberry protein  Pea protein, rice protein, cranberry protein
Grams of Sugar  1  0
Free of “Natural” Flavors No Yes
Free of Gums & Thickeners No Yes
Organic No No
Vegan Yes  Yes
Cost Per Gram  $.06  $.06

Arbonne Protein Pros and Cons

Pros: 

  1. The Arbonne Essentials Daily Protein Boost and FeelFit Protein Powders have a unique plant-based, multi-source protein blend. The benefits of multi-source vegan blends is they provide a wider array of nutrients. 
  2. Low or no sugar in all of their protein products
  3. Arbonne also has an Ingredients Policy “Not Allowed List” page that states:

We develop each product with meaningful ingredients, continuously raising the standards to find the perfect balance between plant-based, bio-based, and scientifically derived ingredients. We set the standards for our high-quality and effective ingredient policy, and continue to back our formulations with science, clinical research, and third-party certifications.

Cons: 

  1. Unclear where Arbonne sources its protein ingredients from (most pea protein is from China).
  2. These are all unnecessary filler ingredients that have no nutritional value: natural flavors, high oleic sunflower oil, xanthan gum, dicalcium phosphate, and tricalcium phosphate
  3. Cost is on the higher end and is comparable to organic plant based proteins (even though they don’t use organic ingredients).

​Arbonne FeelFit Protein Powder Nutrition Facts and Ingredients

Vanilla

arbonne feelfit vanilla protein
Ingredients: Arbonne Protein Matrix Blend (pea protein isolate, cranberry protein, rice protein), natural flavors, high oleic sunflower oil, xanthan gum, steviol glycosides, flax seed, dicalcium phosphate, tapioca starch, tricalcium phosphate, rice hull

Chocolate

arbonne chocolate protein powder nutrition
Ingredients: Arbonne Protein Matrix Blend (pea protein isolate, cranberry protein, rice protein), cocoa, natural flavors, high oleic sunflower oil, xanthan gum, steviol glycosides, flax seed, dicalcium phosphate, tapioca starch, tricalcium phosphate, rice hulls, chicory ro

​Arbonne Essentials Daily Protein Boost Nutrition Facts and Ingredients

Arbonne Essentials Daily Protein Boost Nutrition

Let’s wrap this up …

Arbonne Protein Powder Reviews Summed Up

Based on my nutrition and ingredients analysis, Arbonne FeelFit Protein Shake Mix (formerly Arbonne Essentials Protein Shake Mix) and Arbonne Essentials Daily Protein Boost are both decent products that check most of the boxes for a healthy plant based protein. They contain zero sugar but do have some filler ingredients like natural flavors, high oleic sunflower oil, xanthan gum, dicalcium phosphate, and tricalcium phosphate.

What’s a Good Arbonne Alternative?

What sets Pure Food Protein Powder apart from Arbonne and other vegan powders is Pure Food has none of the filler ingredients … and these make up a healthy percentage of most proteins on the market.

On top of that, every ingredient we use is sourced from North America. You will not find another multi-source plant-based protein that can say the same.

Try Pure Food Protein risk-free today 

No Bake Chocolate Protein Balls (Vegan, Paleo, Gluten Free)

no bake protein bar

Creating this no-bake chocolate protein balls recipe (that will please both vegan and paleo palettes, by the way) stirred up some hilarious mental images of the classic SNL Schweddy Balls skit.

All jokes aside, these protein balls are made for clean eaters. They contain 100% real food ingredients, no added sugar, and are gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, and paleo-friendly.

Best of all, there’s no baking required. You just mix all the ingredients together, roll the dough into balls, and refrigerate it.

My Schweddy balls (sorry, couldn’t resist) are a guilt-free dessert too. One ball will only set you back 122 calories, while delivering a healthy balance of carbs, good fats, and protein.

No Bake Chocolate Protein Balls Recipe (Vegan, Paleo, Gluten-free, Dairy-free)

What’s In ‘Em:


How to Make ‘Em:

  1. Put the dates in a food processor and turn on for about a minute.
  2. Add pecans and pulse 8-10 times.
  3. Stir in the almond flour, protein powder, and coconut milk powder. Turn on food processor for 1-2 minutes.
  4. Use a sharp knife to chop up dark chocolate into fine shavings and combine with slivered almonds in a bowl.
  5. Roll the dough from the food processor into balls. Roll each chocolate protein ball in the bowl of slivered almonds/dark chocolate shavings.
  6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread your protein balls into 5 rows of 3 (or however many you want).
  7. Refrigerate overnight. They’ll be ready to eat the next day. They should keep in a tupperware in the fridge for about a week.
vegan protein balls
Here’s what the batter looks like.

Nutrition Facts (per ball … this recipes makes 15 balls):

  • 122 calories
  • 9 g fat
  • 9 g carbs (2 g fiber, 5 g sugar)
  • 5 g protein

Here’s the final product:

These chocolate protein balls would be a hit at any holiday party (and gives you a funny ice-breaker starter because someone is sure to mention the Schweddy balls skit). Or just make them as a healthy snack like I did. Either way, you’ll be happy you tried this awesome recipe.

See more recipes like this every day when you follow me on Instagram:

No images found.

Orgain Review: The Truth About Their Protein Powders & Shakes

Finally, the long-awaited, much requested Orgain protein powder review.

Just like my other reviews, in this article I’ll show you exactly why clean eaters should avoid Orgain organic protein powders (and shakes). 

I’ve broken this into two versions: a short version for those who have a limited attention span like me, and the full version for those who want to explore Orgain’s ingredients and nutrition facts a little deeper.

(Disclaimer: I sell a protein powder. This admittedly creates some potential bias. That’s why my reviews focus on Orgain’s nutrition facts and ingredients. At the end of the day, this is just one person’s opinion).

Click here to get instant access to my FREE Google spreadsheet comparing 20 of the best plant protein powders (including Orgain) by ingredients, nutrition, and cost.

Orgain Protein Powder Review

First, let’s get this out of the way: I evaluate protein powders based on health and nutrition … NOT taste. If taste is your number one priority when choosing a protein powder, then this article probably isn’t for you. I’ve tasted most of Orgain’s products and they taste quite good.

Anyways …

When I analyze whether a protein powder is “healthy” or not, I look at the only two objective pieces of information you will see on any protein powder package:

  1. The Ingredients
  2. The Nutrition Facts

The ingredients and nutrition facts label will help you answer these important questions:

  • Do they use organic, real food ingredients?
  • Any allergens or inflammation-causing soy, dairy, or gluten?
  • What about fillers, natural flavors, and gums? (these are all warning signs of a cheap, highly processed protein powder)
  • How much protein does it have per serving?
  • What are the protein sources?
  • How much sugar is added?
  • What other sweeteners (real or artificial) do they use?

Orgain’s ingredients and nutrition facts information for their protein powder and shakes reveal a lot:

orgain organic protein review orgain organic protein powder Orgain Nutritional Shake Orgain Vegan Nutritional Shake Healthy Kids Shake Orgain Slim Protein Powder review
Orgain Organic Protein Powder Orgain Meal Powder Orgain Nutritional Shake Orgain Vegan Nutritional Shake Healthy Kids Shake Slim Protein Powder
Calories 150 220 250 220 200 150
Grams of Protein  21  20  16  16  8  20
Protein Source(s) Organic brown rice protein, organic pea protein, organic chia seed, organic hemp protein Organic brown rice protein, organic pea protein, organic chia seed  Organic milk protein concentrate, organic whey protein concentrate  Organic brown rice protein concentrate, organic chia seeds, organic flax powder, organic hemp protein concentrate Organic milk protein concentrate, organic whey protein concentrate  Organic pea protein, organic brown rice protein, organic chia seed
Grams of Sugar  1  1  12  9  13  1
Free of Natural Flavors No No No No No  No
Free of Gums & Thickeners No No No No No No
Organic  Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Vegan  Yes Yes  No Yes  No  Yes
Amazon Review Rating  4.3  4.3  4.2  4.1  4.2  4.4
Cost Per Gram  $.02  $.04  $.10  $.08  $.09  $.05

Let’s start with what I like about Orgain …

  1. Orgain only uses Organic ingredients.
  2. The plant-based protein sources in Orgain vegan products are solid.
  3. Orgain was developed by a medical doctor and cancer survivor.

However, when I analyzed the ingredients list on many of Orgain’s products, there were some things that concerned me:

1. Sugar content

The sugar content in many Orgain Shakes is quite high:

  • Orgain Original Shakes: 12 grams
  • Orgain Plant-based Shakes: 9 grams
  • Orgain “Healthy” Kids Shakes: 13 grams

Orgain uses LOTS of different sweeteners. Tap/click the following links to learn about some of the negative health effects of each:

2. “Natural flavors

The Environmental Working Group says natural flavors are:

Unspecified mixtures of as many as 100 flavoring substances and solvents, emulsifiers, and preservatives.

Food manufacturers are only required to list “flavors” on their ingredients lists, without revealing the original sources or chemical mixtures of these flavors.

Long story short:

[bctt tweet=”Your natural flavors may not be natural at all” username=”nutritionguy”]

To learn more about this mystery ingredient, read my article “What Are Natural Flavors?“.

 

So let’s look at the big picture view of all the junk ingredients in Orgain’s products … I’ve highlighted ingredients that I personally avoid:

orgain protein review Orgain Meal Powder Orgain Nutritional Shake Orgain Vegan Nutritional Shake Healthy Kids Shake Orgain Slim Protein Powder review
Product Orgain Organic Protein Powder Orgain Meal Powder Orgain Nutritional Shake Orgain Vegan Nutritional Shake Healthy Kids Shake Slim Protein Powder
Nutrition orgain vegan protein powder nutrition facts orgain meal nutrition facts orgain nutritional shake nutrition facts orgain vegan shake nutrition facts orgain kids nutrition facts orgain slim nutrition facts
Ingredients orgain ingredients - organic protein blend orgain meal replacement ingredients orgain original shake nutrition facts orgain ingredients - vegan shake  orgain kids shake ingredients orgain slim ingredients

Phew, that’s a lot of red flags! Let’s sum up this review …

Orgain Reviews: The Final Verdict

Orgain’s sugar-free products are cost-effective and contain all organic ingredients. 

However, many of their products contain 10 grams or more of sugar per serving. The average American already gets plenty of sugar (82 grams per day).

I recommend sticking with one of their sugar free products or looking for a plant-based protein powder  style=”font-size: 14.4px;”>instead.

Click here to get instant access to my FREE Google spreadsheet comparing 20 of the best plant protein powders (including Orgain) by ingredients, nutrition, and cost.