I’ve heard a lot of people say it would be impossible or unhealthy, but I don’t understand why, if you are just getting all the macro and micronutrients. What exactly would you be lacking? Or what adverse interactions or effects could it have?
(This is a purely hypothetical question.)
EDIT: I think I phrased the question wrong. What I meant is a drink with a balance of all the necessary macronutrients, and not simply a regular protein shake.
I was just thinking about this the other day and started to do some noob research. I found a really great podcast called “Cut through nutrition.” I’m no expert in nutrition but am a biomedical engineer by education and they made some really salient points about why it’s so hard to answer these kinds of questions and it really just boils down to how complex of a bioreactor the human body is and how little we know about how specific nutrients interact with food. A good example they gave was a failed vitamin E trial, turns out we really only understand one of the 18 known isomers of vitamin E that have been proven to exist. There are simply too many variables in the human body to know the exact mechanistic reaction that happens. Those few reactions we do understand become “pharmaceuticals” and the rest is just an ongoing study. So in short, the answer to your question is maybe - but certainly a higher chance if you were to liquify whole foods as a source of complex and diverse nutritional isomers than using a lab-concocted supplement
The thing with liquid diets is that you no longer have to chew. Once your jaw and teeth are formed it may be fine, but eating is more than taking in stuff to our gut. How your jaw forms affects your face shape speech, sleep apnea, swallowing etc. Not chewing much means you are not exercising muscles and joints that need to be used just like other parts of our body to develop and maintain function. https://myfaceology.com/2018/10/facial-development-chewing/
I sorta do this now but YMMV. I drink two smoothies a day loaded with greens, cashew+almond milk and protein powder. At other points of the day I eat nuggets, cheese, Greek yogurt or eat out 1x a week if I’m bored.
I lost 20 lbs like this but you can adjust it - I upped my protein significantly for recomp.
One thing I lack is fiber. Should supplement the smoothies with oats.
Again this is just me and what worked. YMMV.
First thing that comes to mind is becoming deficient in fiber, which has a myriad of health implications on its own.
There are also compounds like phytochemicals, like carotenoids, you’d be missing out on.
I don’t think we actually know enough about nutrition to say that a fully processed “food” diet contains all the necessary nutrients, esp micronutrients. Also, the bioavailability of certain nutrients in supplements has been shown to inferior to nutrients in organic foods, e.g., choline, magnesium, selenium, and Vit E.
By organic, I’m not talking here about how the food is grown but rather that it is grown (or raised) rather than processed into a pill or powder.
You can probably survive off of that. I know people who eat nothing but fast food and are still alive and kicking. That said, I don’t think you thrive, but you probably would survive.
You would likely be deficient in fats and fibre at the very least, unless you make the shake with whole milk and lots of berries…
Plant-based foods, including fruit, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and nuts, are prominent features of healthy dietary patterns. In addition to providing energy and essential micronutrients, plant-based foods contribute thousands of biologically active phytochemicals (plant chemicals that may affect health) to the human diet. While there is ample evidence to support the health benefits of diets rich in fruit, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and nuts, evidence that these effects are due to specific nutrients or phytochemicals is limited. Although scientists are very interested in the potential for specific phytochemicals to prevent or treat disease, current scientific evidence suggests that plant-based foods are the healthiest phytochemical delivery system.
https://lpi.oregonstate.edu/mic/food-beverages
Who told you that you get all the macro and micro nutrients if you just take concentrated and processed proteins and vitamins? It’s one of the worst diets you can ever follow.
It’s a contraddiction to say that you just eat proteins and saying you also eat carbs and fats… Isn’t it? lol
If you do such diet expect some skin irritations soon, plus bad digestion and lot of pain. It’s one of the most unbalanced diets you can do, it lacks everything. It’s maybe worst than eating only candies.This is something you can use for travels maybe, to survive, powdered food.
I’ve often wondered about the same thing. With resent businesses like huel and multiple other similar products it’s clearly a thing a lot of people think of. I think personally I got the idea from sci-fi shows like star trek.
That all being said it intrigued me when I watched this video recently.https://youtu.be/xJAL5eUBpIQ