Ever since I began eating cleanly more than a decade ago (no sugar, no agave, no honey, no barley malt and no other sweeteners, plus, no dairy and no gluten), I’ve been hunting for high-quality, nutrient-rich, dairy-free, gluten-free, sugar-free protein powders to use in my nutrient-rich Cacao-Cado-Chia-Berry Protein Shake every morning.
But this week, in particular, I’m actually surviving and thriving on Power Shakes alone, because I’m recovering from painful dental surgery, can’t eat solid foods for a week, and need ample protein to quickly heal my sore mouth.
So protein powders are on my mind, and I’m so grateful that in recent years, I’ve found plenty of sugar-free, dairy-free, gluten-free protein powders. Here are my current 8 Favorite Sugar-Free Protein Powders, which can help you get valuable nutrients that you might otherwise not get.
Frankly, it weren’t for my morning shakes, especially this week — when I can’t have any solid food due to dental surgery — I’d be starving or fainting. So here are the protein powders I like best. Please note that I recommend the unflavored ones so you won’t get any sugar, agave, honey or other sweeteners. Since I like all of these options, I’ve put them in alphabetical order.
- Amazing Grass Protein Superfood, The Original. This sugar-free, organic, all-in-one protein nutrition shake is touted to promote lean muscle, help digestion, satisfy hunger, and provide 20 grams of complete plant-based protein, 7 alkalizing greens and 2 full servings of fruits and veggies. This company also makes Raw Reserve, which contains 25 billion probiotics and nutritious greens from the land and sea. I love the company’s goals “to help people lead healthier more active lives by achieving their full potential through better nutrition” and to “educate the world by spreading the word about the amazing benefits of green superfoods.” This company’s history is fascinating. What began in 1946 on Brandon’s family farm in Kansas has now expanded to a network of small farmers across the country, who are all “dedicated to growing the highest-quality organic, non-GMO fruits and vegetables.” Check out the fascinating process used to create this product.
Ancient Nutrition Bone Broth Protein. This is another of my favorite protein powders, because you can use it to add nutrition to your morning or afternoon shakes, soups or even side dishes. If you’re sugar-free as I am, you can choose from three flavors — the pure, turmeric or greens bone broth. This company, Ancient Nutrition, comes to you, courtesy of co-founders Dr. Josh Axe, a wellness physician, and bestselling author Jordan Rubin. Bone broth is typically rich in protein, collagen, gelatin, glucosamine, chondroitin and key minerals often missing in the diet. Bone broth has been praised for helping the health of your gut, joints, muscles, skin and metabolism. Check out my lunch today (to your left), a turmeric- bone broth soup, with blended cooked zucchini, half an avocado, curry powder and seaweed salt. (Thankfully, since I have to eat only liquid foods for several days, doing so can be quite tasty and nutritious, thanks to this and other awesome products.)- Garden of Life Raw Organic Fit. This protein powder, which purports to burn fat, satisfy hunger and help fight cravings — is one of the best tasting of those listed here, but that’s because it contains stevia, about which I have mixed feelings. (Although I can handle stevia in limited quantities, some people suspect that stevia makes them hungry or that it’s even bad for you.) So I recommend that you decide what works for you. But know that if you’re already sugar-free, this powder may be too sweet for you to use by itself. That’s why I can only use one tablespoon at a time and then I combine it with another one or two unflavored protein powders on this list. On the other hand, if you’re cutting back on sugar and other sweeteners, this protein powder may help you ride it out. One thing I like about this product is that you get 28 grams of complete per serving. Plus you get organic Svetol® Green Coffee Bean Extract and organic Ashwagandha,
- Ground-Based Nutrition superfood protein. This company’s motto is impressive: “Organic…Always Ground-Based!” The idea of this product is that it “emphasizes our belief that better health starts from the ground up.” Again, what’s awesome is that all products are purportedly “formulated with 100% natural organic ingredients” and “use no artificial sweeteners, colors, flavors, dyes, additives, or man-made synthetic chemicals.” I’m in total agreement that “all-natural and organic food supplements can improve the quality of one’s life.”
- Paradise Herbs Protein & Greens, Original Unflavored This ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) Energy® Protein & Greens product is described as containing 20 grams of protein, the antioxidant power of over 24 servings of fruits and vegetables and a total ORAC score of over 40,000.* It contains certified organic pea protein and over 42 certified organic and pesticide free ingredients.
- Sunfood Raw Organic Hemp Seeds. You may already know that for thousands of years, hemp has been cultivated for millennia for fiber, clothing, paper, building materials, and food, but now you can get raw, organic, shelled hemp seeds, which are rich in zinc and magnesium, may contribute to healthy immune function and bone health, provide 36% protein with all essential amino acids and contains healthy plant fats. Hemp seeds give you a mild, nutty flavor, soft texture and texture, and are manufactured with a cold process to ensure delicate enzymes and nutrients stay intact to bring you high quality, pure hemp seeds.
- Sunwarrior Warrior Blend, Natural. What’s so cool about Sunwarrior is that this is a raw, unflavored, organic, plant-based protein powder which you can not only use in the morning, but you can add it to a variety of shakes, soups and desserts. You can learn how to become a Sunwarrior here. This company has been named one of the “Healthiest Companies” in “Utah Business. On its Facebook page, the company points out that the company “isn’t about making as much money as possible or stuffy corporate environments.” In addition, the company points out that they “love making great products that work for you,” that they “love unique, creative people and all the weirdness that comes with them.”
- Warrior Food Natural from Warrior Force. This “ultimate protein supplement” — is as advertised — a vegan, raw, “hard-core” (not my language), complete protein that’s also non-toxic. HealthForce, the parent company, was started grassroots style back in 1990 by Jameth and Kim Sheridan, who are both “deeply dedicated to full spectrum hard-core health and healing, the environment, and ethics. ” One of the things that impresses me the most about this protein powder is its awesome dark glass bottle, which allegedly protects 100 percent of nutrients., recyclable and is non-toxic. The only drawback is that the neck is too small to fit my heart-shaped tablespoon so I hope that will be changed soon. I also love the smaller, easily transportable protein powder, which make it easy to bring it with you when you go out of town.
By the way, although the protein shakes are nutritious, I also add nutritious goodies such as these, thanks to my NutriBullet:
- Chia seeds
- Flax seeds
- Coconut flour
- Coconut butter
- Organic Avocados (thank goodness for them)
- Organic Berries
- Cooked cauliflower and zucchini