Image of Cassava Plants
Understanding Maltodextrin: What It Is & Why It's Safe
At Equip, we believe in complete transparency about our ingredients. One question we occasionally receive is about maltodextrin in our products. Let's break down what it is, why we use it, and explain why it's not only safe but can actually be beneficial in certain contexts.
What Is Maltodextrin?
Maltodextrin is a naturally occurring carbohydrate found in cooked starchy foods like rice and potatoes. In its isolated form, it's a white powder derived from plant starches - in our case, from the cassava plant (tapioca). It's extracted through mechanical processing and water filtration, without the use of harsh chemicals. During digestion, your body naturally breaks down starchy foods into similar carbohydrate chains, making it a familiar compound to your digestive system.
Do Equip Products Contain Maltodextrin?
Most of our products, including our best-sellers Prime Protein Chocolate and Prime Protein Vanilla, don't contain any maltodextrin. We only use small amounts of non-GMO, tapioca-derived maltodextrin in specific flavored products like Prime Salted Caramel, Prime Peanut Butter, Prime Iced Coffee, Prime Berry, and Vanilla Collagen.
Why Do We Use It?
In these specialized flavors, maltodextrin serves as a "carrier" - essentially a vehicle to hold and stabilize natural flavor compounds. Think of it as a delivery system that helps distribute tiny amounts of natural flavors evenly throughout the product. This is crucial for maintaining consistent flavor and quality in our products.
The Benefits of Maltodextrin
While we use maltodextrin primarily as a carrier for flavors, it's worth noting that in appropriate doses, maltodextrin can actually be beneficial, particularly for athletes. It's widely used in sports nutrition as a carb source because it's:
- Easily digestible
- Provides quick energy during endurance activities
- Helps replenish glycogen stores post-workout
- Can improve athletic performance during prolonged exercise
Many endurance athletes – including our team members who prioritize quality, real-foods as much as anyone, specifically seek out maltodextrin as a fuel source during training and competition because it provides steady energy without the digestive issues often associated with simple sugars.
Is It Safe?
Absolutely! Maltodextrin is designated as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) by both the FDA and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). But we understand that you might have questions or not trust those labels, so let's address the three most common concerns with scientific context:
- "It's not natural" Our maltodextrin is derived naturally from the cassava plant through mechanical processing and water filtration - no chemicals involved. It's similar to compounds your body naturally creates when digesting starchy foods like rice and potatoes. The process is similar to how other natural ingredients like vanilla extract are isolated from their source materials. It’s important to note that not all maltodextrin sources are natural. When researching, be sure to ask companies about what their maltodextrin is made from and how it is processed.
- "It causes blood sugar spikes" While maltodextrin can impact blood sugar in large amounts, we use less than 400mg per scoop - an amount so small that extensive testing with Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs) and ketosis test strips shows no significant impact on blood sugar or ketosis. For context, this is far less than the amount of similar carbohydrates you'd get from eating a small serving of rice or potatoes.
- "It causes gut issues" The often-cited study showing negative gut health impacts used 30 GRAMS of maltodextrin daily - that's equivalent to over 80 scoops of our Prime Protein Salted Caramel! For perspective, even natural substances like water and salt can cause health issues at extremely high doses. The amount in a few of our products is a tiny fraction of what was used in this study.
Our Commitment to Quality
We continuously evaluate our ingredient choices to ensure they meet both our high standards and yours. All our products are third-party tested for added assurance. For those who prefer to avoid maltodextrin entirely, we recommend our Prime Chocolate, Prime Vanilla, or any of our unflavored options.
The Bottom Line
When sourced properly and used in appropriate amounts, maltodextrin is not only safe but can be beneficial in certain contexts. The amount used in some of our products as a natural flavor carrier is minimal and has been thoroughly tested. It's part of our commitment to creating products that are both delicious and aligned with our high quality standards. If you still have any concerns about maltodextrin, try our Prime Protein Chocolate and Vanilla, or any of our unflavored products - they’re all maltodextrin free!
