Vega Product Review

• I just got a sample of these – can’t wait to try them!

• They are sending me a sample of their new Sport powder. Can’t wait to try it – sounds tasty and nutritious.

• I bought a large container of the vanilla chai vega powder and tried it 5 different times, every time it made me feel sick to very sick. I tried it with water and even blending in a banana and it just made things worse throughout my work day. I don’t know what is in it, but I gave it away to a friend and will stick to plain fruit smoothie for breakfast instead.

  I met brendan brazier at a health talk and he said that the products were not cooked, but they were milled at a high temperature and they do get heated through the process. I don’t know if this has something to do with it. But I won’t be using his products for health reasons.

• This product makes me very ill. I bought the berry flavour and added it to fruit smoothies, just one scoope for 8 cups of smoothie. My husband and kids were fine but each time I add this to our smooties, withing 4-5 hours I’m nauseous and have even thrown up. Diarrhea also. This has happened 3 times and I’m positive it’s the vega. I’m sorry I wasted my money and wished it could have worked.

• I bought two packets of Vega powder to see which flavor I liked best. I tried the vanilla first & liked it. Then I spent 12 hours throwing up with a terrible headache and diarrhea. I thought it was caused by something else I ate & I was thrilled to have another Vega packed to sooth my stomach the following day. I ended up waiting three days before I tried the berry flavor. I got really sick again – nausea, headache, very upset stomach, diarrhea. I wish I knew what it is in Vega that I reacted so poorly too. I have read great reviews on the powder but it’s definitely not for everyone.

• I have had terrible migraines with this product. Glad to see I am not the only one who has reacted to this…. I am also VERY curious to know what it is in this product that I cannot process properly.

• I decided to join my husband in his morning ritual of a Vega shake with fruit. I spent hours throwing up, with a headache and diarrhea. He convinced me that it must be a virus or something else that I might have ate, so I waited a week and tried again. I’m sorry I did, I was so sick all over again. He loves it, I can’t take it.

• I’ve been on the “Natural Flavour” twice per day for a month. Once it ran out, I picked up the “Chocolate Flavour”. Tried it for the first time yesterday just before work. an hour and a half later I was completely ill. Severe nausea, cramps and bloating. Same thing today, totally putting me off of my workout. Headache to boot. What gives?

• I tried the Vanilla Chai- headaches were horrible! My daughter tried the product also, and she had the same reaction to it. I’m sorry to see others have had a similar reaction, but at least I know we’re not crazy! I had called the company I bought it from, and the woman was not friendly at all- telling me she had never heard of such a reaction and didn’t see how it was possible. Guess she was wrong!

• I, too, got sick having the protein. But, I have no issues at all with the Smoothie Infusion and the other new smoothie product. I love love the smoothie infusion.

• I have been eating this powder for breakfast every day for the last few months. Suddenly I started getting the same problems everyone here is reporting. I’d eat a shake for breakfast, and 2 hours later I’d be horribly sick. I’d throw up for an hour or so, and then once my stomach was completely empty I’d start recovering. At this point I’m positive it’s the shake, I’ve scienceized it, mostly by eating exactly the same things day to day, but having the powder being the only variable. Now I’m glad to see it’s not just me.

  Scary stuff. I really can’t recommend anyone eating this product based on what it seems to do to some people.

• hi all. i started on vega last summer. in three months i losy 40 pounds!!! i dident even excersie…. at the start it was hard to deal with the taste but i got over it… i never had any sickness its too bad it affects people differently.

  no i can tell you this my good friend chris is a huge health nut. he got me started on this due to me being 340 pounds at the time. he went threw the ingrideints and told me it gives your body more then it can process at once. so you poop most of it out.

  what i do is get a blender and mix 2.5 cups of unsweetend pineapple juice, 2 scoops of vega berry powder, and i add 2 ladel scoops of frozen fruit, and 2 table spoons of frozen blueberrys. mix it all up.

  that gives me 2 glasses of smoothies. so in the end im only taking in one scoop per serving. its more then enough.

  i highly recommend this stuff. it really did change my life. im a very stubborn man but i trusted my friend and it did wonders for me.

  i suggest you people that had bad luck to try again. use my recipe. it works wonders. and it alot easier on your body.

• Hi I bought the smoothie infusion and have been feeling horrible after I drink it, dizzy, stomache ache etc I like the taste but can’t seem to drink it Ive had other vegetarian protien powders with no effects like this so I wonder if its the actual vege stuff in it like the grasses and sprouts.

• These side effects may be due to detoxing.

  http://myvega.com/products/whole-food-health-optimizer/cleansing-symptoms

• I tried a sample packet, about 1/2 a meal. It tasted fine and I luckily had no bad reaction. But people having bad reactions sounds pretty scary, especially that Dave got sick after using the product for several months. I might give it a full try for a few weeks or just make my own smoothy with rice protein and berries. I already take a boat load of supplements, fish oil, etc. and haven’t had any reactions, so the coast is clear on that end.

• I haven’t had any reactions – tried both chocolate and plain. My biggest issue is that it tastes unbelievably horrible. I’ve tried mixing it in the blender with coconut milk but still tastes disgusting. My oriental medicine person told me to take 1 or 2 scoops and if I am having problems, to only use 1/2 a scoop. My guess is that it is the MACA that’s in the product that is making people sick. You are ingesting 5,000mg of Maca powder with one full serving, and that’s the upper limit so for a smaller person that would probably be a lot all at once.

• I was really excited to try this product and bought two sachets of the chocolate flavour from my local health food store. I took the first sachet at work one lday with my lunch and within half an hour of taking it, I experienced incredible vomiting and diarrhea, the likes of which I’ve never experienced before. When I eventually made it out of the bathroom and back to my office, I was in such distress that my colleagues called 911 and I spent the afternoon in the emergency room, where they put it down to possible food poisoning. I didn’t suspect the Vega at first, but when I took the second sachet a few days later and had the same reaction, I knew then that it was that which had sent me to ER. My husband did a bit of research and found out that Vega recommend adding this product to your diet bit by bit until you can tolerate it, but on the sachets there’s no mention of that. So, I would recommend you exercise some caution with this, it’s clearly not for everyone. I can’t even see the name Vega now without feeling a bit queasy…!

• Wow, really surprised to see such terrible reviews! I have been using Vega on and off, but consistently for awhile now, everyday first thing in the AM and I feel great! I have more energy than I have had in YEARS and never wake up tired anymore. The taste? AWFUL AWFUL AWFUL. But you sort of get used to it. The chocolate is horrible though I couldn’t finish it. I had to give it away. I have a bunch of friends using the same product, and we have also tried the smoothies and nobody has had any of the reactions that were described here apart from some minor cleansing symptoms (ie. bloating). But we all only use one scoop per day. Sometimes I use two, but never all at once… it’s just too much. I find that usually the detox symptoms subside and everything is dandy by the third day. I have not had any headaches, nausea, no diarrhea, no vomiting, nothing. Hopefully it stays that way!

• Drank my first glass of berry flavoured Vega last night. Today I have diarrhea and very painful stomach cramps. Has this product ever been tested? Does this kind of thing even have to be tested before it can be sold?? Vega is not safe for consumption! Don’t drink it.

• I was having the Vega Natural Flavour (1-1.5 sc.) every morning for about a month, maybe a month and a half. I found the taste bearable when mixed with orange juice, banana and some balkan yogurt in a smoothie. At first I experienced the “cleansing symptoms” mentioned, specifically diarrhea and gas. Over time, they lessened, but I still had occasional bloating and the gas never really went away.

  When I finished the Natural Flavour I decided to try out the Berry Flavour. I found it way too sweet, and started feeling horrible once I switched. No vomiting, but bouts of nausea, severe bloating and cramping along with gas and diarrhea. My skin on my face (usually clear) broke out horribly in red bumps, and my rosacea around my nose (which had not been a problem for years) became painful and really irritated. I also developed a bumpy rash on my neck and chest (felt similar to heat rash). I stopped taking the Berry Flavour after about a week and a half and my stomach pains disappeared, as did the rash on my chest. It has been about two weeks now, and my face is still somewhat irritated, but the redness has gone down, just some small patches left, so that could have been a reaction to something else.

  I ended up giving the rest of the Berry Flavour away. Not sure what it is in the Vega, but something definitely disagrees with my system. My friend found that she had the same reaction to Vega protein powder, and after some subsequent testing with other products, narrowed it down to Stevia. I can’t say for sure if that’s what it was for me, but unfortunately I’m on the lookout for a new protein powder.

• Thanks for all the reviews. I am sooooooooo glad I red them before I decided to buy it. I do not do any dairy at all. I thought I would try this with my soy milk. But, now I am happy I didn’t bother to try it. I saved my money on the product and all my good tasting soy milk.

• I take vanilla chai vegan powder 1/2 a scoop since I’m have a smaller appetite. Its fabulous, along with some fruit. Usually I make it with hot water like a latte. I think what most people are experiencing (in terms of getting sick) is the detoxing effect of it. Try it for at least 2 weeks-a month. Its vegan, gluten free, soy free and delicious. Just make sure to keep stirring it while you consume as natural seperation will occur (no persvatives, additives).

• I really REALLY wish I had found these reviews before I bought my Vega powder! I tried it last week with horrible results, stomach pain and excessive vomiting. I tried it again today with worse results than before, now spending my entire morning subjected to extreme pain and ceaseless vomiting. I have read about the detoxing, and this is DEFINITELY not the case, as I already eat a fruit/vegetable/whole food laden diet and have utilized a multitude of similar powdered blends over time. Please be careful when trying this product, as though it works famously for many, it is certainly not safe for all.

• Their website states that you should start out with 1/4-1/2 the recommended serving size and slowly work your way up to lessen chance of unpleasant detox symptoms

• I followed the directions on the packet and got horribly ill. I would not call what I went through detoxing…poisoning would be more accurate.

• Hi everyone,

  This is Victoria from Vega. I wanted to address your issues about our products as I’ve spoken to our quality control. It is beneficial to start off slowly when starting to take Vega as it contains quite a bit of fiber and chlorella which can be detoxifying. It is best to detoxify slowly.

  We recommend you start with 1/4 to 1/2 scoop to 1 full scoop and work your way up to the desired amount over the course of a week. Please make sure you drink a lot of water to help with this cleansing process. Also, the extra water helps to allow for the expansion of the fiber.

  There always is the possibility that there is something that does not agree with you in the formula, as people are all different (some people are allergic to foods and some are not). It would be difficult to determine which of the ingredients that you might be sensitive to. We do test all of our Vega products on a batch by batch basis to ensure quality.

  I’d be happy to refund anybody who wants to send their product back. Please email me victoria[at]sequelnaturals[dot]com. Thanks!

• @Ashley:

  “These side effects may be due to detoxing.

  http://myvega.com/products/whole-food-health-optimizer/cleansing-symptoms”

  Not in my case. I was drinking the shake for at least 4 months every day. And one day it just turned on me and started making me ill. I still try it periodically to see if my reactions are any different but it still makes me badly, badly sick.

  @Victoria

  There is clearly something wrong with this product. Was it ever put through any sort of semi-rigorous testing? My problems were not due to cleansing, my problems happened after months of continued use of the product – one day it spontaneously started disagreeing with me, and I have no food allergies whatsoever. And everyone seems to have the same symptoms. Based on what I’ve been reading and my experiences with the product, I can’t see myself recommending this as something that’s safe to eat.

• @Dave

  Every batch of our product is tested for potency, and microbial and chemical contaminations. We do not release the product for sale unless the testing is satisfactory. Please provide the UPC, product description and lot code for this product that you are speaking about.

  Thanks!

• Just tried the vanilla sports powder for the first time and was violently sick within an hour (vomiting heavily). If we are supposed to start with a smaller amount until our body adjusts, as the company representative states, then the package should indicate this and warn of possible side effects.

• @Dave (and anyone else)

  I’m so glad I came across this blog post and read the comments here. Late last year, I bought the container of Vanilla Chai to try out. Being a vegetarian and on the road often for work, I felt this would be a good diet supplement and help on my hotel workouts. I was drinking 1 or 2 scoops with water practically every day. The taste took a while to tolerate, but mostly the gritty texture was a challenge for me. Anyways, I felt it actually provided me a fair bit of energy throughout the day. I had been drinking it for weeks without issue.

  Then one day in December 2010, I didn’t eat much, worked out while drinking it, and had a small frozen pizza afterwards. I got so violently nauseous and began vomiting intensely. So much so, I got an ambulance to pick me up to take me to the hospital – I was so dehydrated from all the vomiting. At first I thought it was either the pizza, or just lack of eating, or just a stomach flu.

  I stopped drinking it because after that experience, I couldn’t imagine drinking it again. But after a month, I felt I’d give it another shot. Drank it in the morning, and by the afternoon, nausea hit and I left early to go home where I ended up vomiting again.

  So, much like Dave, the nausea/vomiting came after I had been using it for a while without issue so it doesn’t seem like a “cleansing” issue. It seems my body just didn’t like something within the formula, and got worse over time rather than better.

  I’m glad I have now read these posts and seen that I’m not crazy for thinking it had to do with the powder.

• Hi! My and my wife are taking this product for years now and no problems shown up yet. The vanilla chai flavor is the favorite, but original is quite good too. We blend it with a powerfull Vitamix, so no grainy texture, sometime with half a banana, some flax or hemp seeds, it depends. I almost always try some new combinations, but once nicely blended, it’s vey tasty and filling. No need to eat for long time and no “down or crash” before luch. I’m a bit surprised of all the bad experiences here and sorry for you, because this is a terrible product! I believe that if you have some problem in your GI tract, you can have these symptoms with any fiber rich meals.

• Good evening,

  Unfortunately, I got very sick too tonight after taking Vega. It’s too bad because I took the product during almost 3 weeks without any bad “side effects”. The product gave me many benefits during those weeks as higher energy, less fatigue and well being. I started then to have nauseas after taking it and tonight was the hell!! I will not take it anymore, I’m disappointed because it seems to be a good product if your system can take it.

  However, I hope the company will change the posology on the bottle to reflect what Victoria from Vega said in her comment higher.

  Frederic

• I’m starting to suspect that it’s the Stevia found within the product. My hypothesis is that it doesn’t breakdown or leaves the system, so over time, it builds up in the body to higher levels with each use thereby triggering the dizziness/nausea after a while. Seems like nausea is a common side effect of Stevia.

• I am very glad I cam across this review and all the comments. I haven’t sufferd from migraines for years, but have now had one every time I try the Whole Food Health Optimizer. I thought this would help get me into better condition for a half marathon in October but I’ve ended up missing training sessions because I feel so ill from taking this.

  Very disappointed.

• I haven’t experienced nausea as others are describing but that sounds horrible and something I definitely don’t want to experience!! I’ve already had food poisoning 4 times (in 10 years as a world traveller) and am working thru my gastrointestinal recovery since the last (and worst) time.

  I did however have really stinky gas, a couple-per-hour at least, accompanied by cramps and bloating. Enough so that I didn’t want to do anything after I got home from work last night.

  I must stop using the product at this time and I have emailed Victoria to ask if Sequel are ACTIVELY RESEARCHING this feedback and product, to determine what may be causing adverse reactions in new and longer duration users. I believe the company should begin researching and testing this more extensively to find answers. I will post the response when I get one.

• @Lisa:

  It sounds like in your case, it may be just the body “cleansing” itself as Sequel always state. And as you may have read, they suggest starting with smaller portions.

  Otherwise, couldn’t agree with you more that more research is needed of their ingredient listing. I find it curious – and sadly comforting – that there were others like myself who were fine after multiple servings, and then one day got severely ill.

• i recently purchased both the berry vega and the natural vega. i tried the berry, and had horrible stomach pains! really bad. i then realized that it felt like when i used stevia in the past. i checked ingredient label…..all the flavored vega have 300 mg of stevia, but the natural unflavored only has 100 mg. a couple of days later i tried the natural flavor. i had NO stomach problem with it. i just made it again today and thankfully again i had NO problem. I think there are a lot of people who have a serious reaction to stevia and don;t realize that is the problem!

  Approx a month ago i also tried NOW brand tru vegan protein powder, and was very seriously ill from that one. never again!!! The company rep said a lot of people were getting sick from it, and basically didn;t care, and wouldn’t give me a refund. Never will i buy a NOW product again!!!

  I’ll stick to the natural flavor vega, but wish they’d get rid of the stevia all together. I can sweeten it on my own…. The vega is kind of hard on your system, so i would suggest starting out with a small amount. i only use 1 scoop once daily, when i tried 1 1/2 -2 scoops, i was in the bathroom constantly, and felt bloated. 1 scoop is just fine, and helps keep my vegan lifestyle on track.

• does vega make your stool green?

• I had a similar experienced. Used it just fine for over a month. Then suddenly became violently ill after eating just one scoop. This reaction was definitively NOT a cleansing symptom nor an issue of too much fiber. I thought the coconut water I mixed it with must have been bad, so I tried the vega again the following week. Same vomiting & diarrhea. I wish I had found these reviews before purchasing.

• I just filed a report with the FDA. I encourage others to do the same. This product is clearly not safe for all users to consume, and the company has not taken complaints seriously. There is an online form for reporting: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch/medwatch-online.htm
  Note that the form seems to have some technical issues and required me to check all boxes in several places in order to submit, even when they were not relevant for my report. I did so and noted the issue in the narrative portions of the form.

• @EZ
  Though some people may have allergies to stevia, it is actually a plant, so it should not “build up” in the body. I grow stevia in my yard and have used commercially produced stevia as well with no ill effects, so that is not what poisoned me in this case.

• @jo:

  You’re likely right, but that said, just because it’s a plant doesn’t mean that the chemical compounds in it cannot reside in your body, especially if it’s an “artificial” sweetener. All I know is that there is something wrong (for me, and some others) with the Vega Optimizer, and I have no idea what it is yet.

  A couple Sundays ago, I actually tried it again, not having touched it for 8 months. I also decided to make a smoothie out of it, thinking that maybe my body is triggered to the taste/texture or something. Without fail, 4 hours later, my heart was pounding, and I was vomiting everything up. Took the remainder of the day, sleeping, to feel better.

  I just started taking MacaSure to see if it was that causing the issue, but so far, I’ve been alright, although I’ve only taken 1-2 pills a day. So for me, I think I can rule that out. The obvious targets to me are either the Inulin or the Stevia.

• I’m glad I read these comments. I just bought a huge container of the vanilla chai powder, and it will be going straight into the garbage now. Better there than screwing up my digestion with a bad/septic mix of ingredients.

  From what I’ve read, I would hazard a wild guess that while the formulation may technically be safe, and while each batch is tested before it ships, there must be some combination of ingredients in there that go bad over time, either reacting to each other in some unexpected way or simply decaying in the container. The rate of decay may also be variable, depending on what exactly is going on. That explains why some people can take it for months and then suddenly get sick from it. Clearly, from everyone’s testimony here, it’s not *JUST* a detoxification reaction, and it’s also very unlikely that their bodies would just decide out of the blue that they can’t tolerate it any more, without any previous warning signs. Obviously, then, the product breaks down somehow, and – as with any food that goes rotten – if you eat the bits of it that have gone bad, you get horribly sick.

  Clearly, Vega needs to go back to the drawing board, if they haven’t already. The container I picked up was marked down severely, so I think word has gotten out.

  I’m also glad that Vega is showing comments like these right on their own web site. I think it takes real guts to do that when it means that one of your product lines may need to be discontinued as a result. The whole food optimizer obviously works for some people, but with this many serious complaints, I think they have little choice but to reformulate!

  Last but not least, I am a die-hard fan of their bars. They make great products, just obviously not this one!

• Hi Jo,

  This is Victoria from Vega. I saw your comments about feeling ill on both our community forum and this site. We appreciate you bringing this to our attention. We take our customers’ concerns and your health very seriously, therefore, all quality and reaction complaints are investigated individually. As you can see from the above comments, I left my contact information and other instructions freely available as to how to get a hold of us.

  If there is something wrong with the product, we need to know immediately, so we can determine the cause of the problem and corrective actions. When you contact us, we will ask you to fill out a detailed reaction report and also to return the product in order to conduct our investigation. We offer a full refund of the product at your convenience.

  Please email me at Victoria[at]sequelnaturals[dot]com so I can speak to you directly about next steps. Thank you.

• Makes me very ill! Everything from throwing up to diarrhea. Make me sad since it wasn’t CHEAP!!

• I’ve taken a closer look at the ingredients in the Whole Food Optimizer.

  I’m no nutritional scientist, but to me, it seems foolhardy for Vega to have added digestive enzymes in with the product itself. While enzymes do not break down foods on their own, if the least little bit of moisture and/or bacteria enter the container, then it’s very likely that something is going to react with something else, and that you’re going to see some kind of decomposition over time, which could lead to rot. Is that not a reasonable guess as to what’s going on here?

  Also – currently, I take digestive enzyme supplements to support my digestion. The way I do that is to take a capsule right before I eat. That way, the enzymes are right there in my stomach, so that once everything mixes together, the food can be digested more easily. Taking supplements SEPARATELY is a perfectly convenient way to facilitate digestion. Why, then, I wonder, has Vega chosen to swim against the current by including digestive enzymes right in the mix with everything else? Would it not be easier to just sell them separately and say, “Please take Vega Digestive Enzymes just before consuming our Whole Food Optimizer”?

  I’ve contacted Vega with these concerns, and I got a courteous but also somewhat dismissive reply. Naturally, I could be off the mark with my theory, but I also think they’re running scared, a little.

  I’ve also just looked at one of their pamphlets. Their overall philosophy is so admirable! I agree whole-heartedly with the idea of offering “nutrient dense” whole food products. I just think that, in this case, they may have taken it too far. I hope they fix their mistake ASAP so that they can continue to offer good products that do JUST WHAT WE NEED, NOT MORE!!

• Hi Vega Fan,

  Please be assured that digestive enzymes added to the product does not contribute to decomposition and “rot”. Our product is tested to ensure that the content meets its label claims, including the amount of nutrients and vitamins and minerals. We also conduct testing throughout the products’ lifespan to ensure that our product quality is consistent through its shelf life.

  Let us know if you have any more questions or concerns.

  Cheers,
  Victoria

• Hi Victoria. I appreciate the reply, but I still don’t feel safe eating this product.

  Please pass on my posts to whoever at Vega is looking into this problem. I know I sound like a complainer, but I actually know a thing or two. If it helps, great. If not, no one there should take it amiss. My use of the word “rot” was not meant to offend, it was just to identify one possible cause for why some people claim to be vomiting from this product.

  All the best.

• I consume Vega products religiously and I feel fantastic! I live an exceedingly active lifestyle, and Vega provides the clean food energy that can keep up to my pace. I detoxed pretty hard at first. Didn’t realize I had so much junk in me! Now, I function like a machine (most of the time)!

• This has been good for me to read. I bought the Berry Vega product for the first time a few months ago. I slowly went through an entire container and I was really happy. I bought a second container and I got sick with the first serving. I got stomach pains and diarrhea for a couple of days. I didn’t try it again for a week or so, but when I did, same result. I waited another couple of weeks, and now same results. I think the person who commented on the product decay seems to be on to something. That resonates with my experience since I had no issues with the first container. Thankfully I bought it from Amazon and I was able to send it back to them.

• I’ve been taking half a serving of Vega Whole Food Health Optimizer on and off for the past few years and fortunately haven’t experienced any kind of illness so far. As for those people that have gotten horribly sick from it, the symptoms of severe nausea, headache, fever, vomiting, cramping sounds like a classic case of vitamin A (retinol) poisoning. The only other possible cause I can think of is the probiotics included in this product. They may not be compatible or suitable for everyone since each person is different and has a unique makeup/balance of intestinal flora just as our body chemistry is different. Perhaps if this delicate balance is tampered with it wreaks havoc so to speak and results in the above related symptoms. Could it be that for some users this negative effect occurs immediately while in others it takes some time? Who knows, it’s anybody’s guess. We won’t know the exact cause of this serious problem unless and until the people at Sequel Naturals conducts a proper and thorough investigation. Not to alarm anyone, but for all we know, the chlorella could be contaminated by radioactive waste due to the recent fallout at Fukushima nuclear power plant back in March and this is what is making everyone so violently ill. It is grown and sourced from an outdoor pond in Japan, after all. I hope this is not the case because if in fact it is, it means the product would most likely be discontinued and that would really suck.

  Anyway, just some food for thought (no pun intended).

• Okay, after re-reading my previous post I’d like to say that I was way off in thinking that these symptoms of illness may be related to nuclear fallout or radiation poisoning. I mistakenly overlooked those posts made prior to March of this year, before the devastating tsunami in Japan; so clearly it’s not a case of radioactive waste contamination in the chlorella.

  Dave: It sounds to me like you’ve experienced a certain form of vitamin A toxicity known as “chronic hypervitaminosis A”. Google this term to read more about it. Those people who got sick almost immediately after their first dose of Vega probably experienced acute vitamin A toxicity or acute hypervitaminosis A. Unfortunately, it’s very easy to overdose on this vitamin, especially if your diet is rich in carotenoids (beta-carotene is converted into Vitamin A) or you have very low levels of vitamin D in your body. Both is even worse. The fact that Vega contains Vitamin D2 does not help at all since it is known to interfere with Vitamin D3 which is the superior and preferred form of Vitamin D. Too much Vitamin D2 can actually contribute to a deficiency of Vitamin D3. I’m not sure if the 400IU of vitamin D2 per serving that’s found in Vega is problematic but it certainly doesn’t help matters. Personally, I’d like to see it completely removed from the formula because I think it does more harm than good. The latest research and lab testing indicates that most people in North America are severely deficient in vitamin D. Therefore, we need to get a lot more vitamin D3 from sunshine, eggs, salmon, cod liver oil, and supplementation during the winter/spring. Most people need anywhere from 2000-5000 IU per day. THIS IS THE OPTIMAL AMOUNT. The current RDA of 400 IU is simply not enough. Not only does an adequate and sufficient intake of Vitamin D3 significantly improve your general health, it will also help prevent Vitamin A toxicity. Vitamin K2 is also extremely important and beneficial for your health. I take both in supplement form.

• One more thing I forgot to mention is that everyone needs to carefully monitor their total daily vitamin A intake from both food and supplements. It would be wise to avoid any foods or supplements that contain preformed vitamin A while using Vega. This also includes fortified breakfast cereals and dairy products. Cod liver oil is best avoided unless it has an acceptable ratio of vitamin A to D (2:1 but no more than 5:1) and only a small amount is used. Regardless, it’s always a good idea to supplement with extra vitamin D to avoid vitamin A toxicity/poisoning.

• My husband and I have been taking Vega Complete Whole Food Health Optimizer for 6 months now and we feel great. I do have a slight stomach discomfort after drinking it but usually only lasts 10 minutes or so. It has been like this since the beginning and is not bad enough to stop me from taking it. We both work out and run on a regular basis and Vega gives us amazing energy and an overall feeling of well being. I really miss it on the days I opt to eat a different breakfast. My husband is a commercial airline pilot and has full physical examinations every six months and this past one was the best he’s ever had and he is sure it is because of the Vega. Although I am not crazy about the taste I will continue to plug my nose and drink it until I die!

• I had taken the vega meal optimizer I think it is called a few months ago and never had any adverse side effects. However my boyfriend and I just bought a new tub of it and now when i take it within three hours I am vomiting uncontrollably with diahrrea, bad stomach cramps and get sweats. At first I thought i kept getting the stomach bug but realized it was the vega product. I am so disappointed because I feel it has so many beneficial nutrients. I am just very curious as to why it has this side effect for some while others like my boyfriend are perfectly fine. I cant believe this is detoxing because i have detoxed before when i switched to vegetarian. Now I am too nervous to try any other vega products because of what my body does. Any suggestions?

• Another one here on the this-product-made-me-really-sick train. I emailed Victoria and have not received a response. I can’t believe is is months later and this is still an issue. How do they allow something like this into the market? Seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen….

• I bought the Vega Berry flavour mix on sale to try switching up my protein powder. I was fine the first day, the second day I was at work and I started having hot flashes and my face and ears went bright red enough that people commented on it during a meeting. I then went to another meeting but had to leave 2 minutes into it and run to the bathroom and vomited everything, had cramps and diarreah. I am not normally someone who throws up at all. I didn’t attirbute this to the protein however I had it again and felt extremely nauseous on the weekend and then once again vomited it all up. I stopped protein and started to feel better after a few days, bought my old type of protein however just the thought of having a protein drink brings back the feeling of vomiting so much that now when i have 3 sips of any kind of protein drink I am nauseous for the whole day. I definitley know the start of this was this Vega berry protein drink. I’ve used various protein products for many years and this is the first time I’ve ever had this reaction and it seems to have ruined me for any other protien supplement.

• I had the same problem with this product. This past Monday I was at Whole Foods in Pasadena, California and bought a container of the complete whole food health optimizer, chocolate. I tried this tuesday morning after my morning run and was on the toilet most of the day. I had the shakes and felt clammy. I didn’t use it at all until about 15 minutes. Let’s see what happens. I’ll keep you updated.

• Amanda Marie: As I mentioned previously, my theory as to why so many people are getting sick from Vega WFHO is because of vitamin A toxicity due to a deficiency of vitamin D (also known as the sunshine vitamin). It contains 5000 IU per serving which is enough to cause symptoms of illness such as nausea, vomiting, severe cramps, diarrhea, etc. You are most likely severely deficient in Vitamin D which helps prevent vitamin A toxicity. The reason you never got sick the first time you took Vega a few months ago is probably because you had enough vitamin D stored in your liver from getting plenty of sunshine during the summertime when the sun is strong enough to allow your body to produce and store a lot of vitamin D (exposing your skin to the sun produces vitamin D). But you got sick the second time around because your liver was depleted of vitamin D. If you plan to continue taking Vega WFHO (recently reformulated and renamed Vega One), you should first consider taking anywhere from 2000 to 4000 IU of vitamin D per day to replenish liver stores, especially during the winter and spring when the sun isn’t strong enough to produce vitamin D in your body. I’ve been taking 4000 IU per day for the past five months and never once got sick from Vega. I would strongly recommend Vitamin D liquid drops which is the most convenient method. If you’ve got any questions or concerns you can email me at enindo@yahoo.com. Good luck.

• I too have been taking vega for a year and have been experiencing vomiting and diarrhea with this last container. I had thought I had norovirus all this time but now think its the vega. Wondering if they had some contaminated product? Just bought some new today so we sell see.

• I just started taking Vega and so far no major side effects except that i’m feeling very bloated…
  However I am extremely disappointed in their customer service off their Vega website.. they were not the most friendly when I tried to order products (should of been my first sign not to order via them), they just said go to the website and order which I did, but some of the stuff they sent me were “EXPIRED” – who does that that promotes health products? I’ve left msgs and sent them email and it’s been few days and still NOTHING… not even a peep from them.
  Just from this bad customer service, I may be banning this product..

• But Vega never ever had this problem before… I think it is only with the new VegaOne does this sort of problem exists? Do you guys find it even in the Sport System products too?

• I am currently using Vega and VegaOne. I bought the new formula in a different flavor although I still had the old formula left. Never experienced any issues with old formula. I also did not experience any issues at first with new formula until now. Because I had the old one I was making larger size shakes for dinner and using the new formula for afternoon small shakes before working out. About a week ago I tried a full size shake (1 full scoop) for dinner and about an hour or two later I was extremely nauseous thinking a may get sick to my stomach but never did. The nausea continued next morning and throughout that day but got over it.
  Yesterday I took a full scoop for breakfast on an empty stomach and exactly 2 hours later I was vomiting non-stop. It was only the shake, nothing from night before which had digested. I am very upset as I have been such a big fan of Vega until now. I hope something is figured out or they release some type of instructions to deal with eating this new formula.

• I was using Vega One chocolate formula. I purchased it from Whole foods last week and it is now the fourth day on the product and I am experiencing severe explosive diarrhea. I have been going every half an hour. I am not planning on taking it this morning.
  After reading these other posts it makes me wonder what is going on with this product. I have been a vegetarian for about a year and used to getting a lot of fiber and leafy greens in my diet so I doubt I would be experiencing any cleansing effects.
  Also, I have used the Vega sport products (bars and protien powder) and never had a reaction like this

• Please everyone stay away from this product. I got violently ill 3 times while taking this product. I have been drinking this product for a year and it was fine, the problems started when they changed the formula. I dont know what they did to it but they should be put out of business!!

• This product should NOT be out on the market. Yesterday I tried the chocolate nutritional shake for the first time. Just picked up an individual packet at Whole Foods after reading about it somewhere. I used the whole amount in the packet since there were no cautionary labels on the individual packets… but it did seem like alot more than one scoop. Anyway, I got violently ill about 45 mins later…and pretty much spent the rest of the day/night in the bathroom. It was awful and would not want anyone to experience it! I definitely won’t be trying this again. But not sure why I got this sick… I have taken other nutritional shakes before, I’m not vegan or vegetritian but I’m an endurance athlete and eat pretty healthy. After reading some of these comments on here and other sites, I guess this was an eye opener for me to be careful with these supplemental shakes, etc… they aren’t always what they seem!!

• I have had the Berry Vega Meal Replacer for awhile now and have always mixed a little bit in with my smoothies. Today I decided to drink it as they suggest, mixing with water (although I used almond milk instead) and like 15 minutes later started feeling incredibly nauseous, having hot flashes, clammy hands and a burning up hot face & body. Any idea why this would happen when I never had any side effects while mixing it w/ the smoothies? I used one level serving and 14 oz of almond milk.

• I had been trying the Fiber35 shake, but stopped it because it made my stomach all acidy, and gave me a headache. I figured since I am sensitive to artificial sweeteners that was probably the cause.

  The Vega Whole Food Optimizer was on sale at the grocery store, so I thought I’d give it a try. I am making shakes with Almond milk, and only one scoop.

  After taking the shake I get hot flashes, feel dizzy, and my head begins to feel like I’m running a fever. The first time this happened I thought it was detox…the second time I began to wonder. I had a shake today at 11 am…it is 230 in the afternoon now, and i’m still going through boughts of feeling awful. The best thing I can equate the dizziness and head fog/ache to is the most awful point of withdrawals from an SSRI or nicotine.

  I read the thread, and someone mentioned using D vitamins. I’ll pick some up later today and let you know if that works. Regardless…i’d be very sad if I can’t continue to use Vega…I bought a large tub, and now it could be a waste of money.

• You can add me to the list of people getting violently ill using this product. I thought I was dying then I made the connection. Every time I had a vega, within a couple of hours I was feeling faint and shaky, followed by being violently ill – more sick than I have EVER felt in my life. I used the product a few months before it started to happen, so it must be a build up in your system that triggers it. I stopped for a month because I was trying to figure out what the heck was going on with me, then I had one this morning and bang – I was out and literally threw up all the way back to my house, in public. How lovely is that? I’ve been caught so many times having these ‘spells’ now I know for sure it’s the Vega causing them.

• Victoria has left the company – I’m sure her job hearing all of these complaints was pretty stressful!!

  My message to Vega just sent to info@myvega.com (I encourage everyone to speak up as responsible consumers to warn anyone thinking about purchasing this product):

  I am quite concerned about numerous spells I’ve had after consuming Vega. They were serious! I thought I was dying!

  This product is not safe and people should be warned.

  I’ve lost days at work over this (and probably some credibility). I’ve thrown up all over my neighbourhood, my neighbours must think I’m a total freak. I’ve sat in the back room of businesses feeling unwell enough to drive home.

  I recently even turned down a very lucrative job because my health was unstable and I never knew when I’d be caught throwing up spontaneously.

  Seriously a very big issue.

  How will the company compensate its customers for putting us at risk? When will it be pulled from the shelves?

• On Friday, July 13 I mixed a scoop each of Vega Berry and Vega Almondila. Then I sat and watched TV. After about two hours, I suddenly started feeling nauseated with hot flashes and cold sweat. I threw up. The puke was brown colored and next day had diarhhea. This is the second time I had the same symptoms. Last time I drank the Vega Meal Replacement. Something is not right. The reactions described by others are the same. Could it be the hempo protein? The probiotics or as someone pointed out the extra vitamin A?? Now I have been sick for three days. This is sad and needs to be resolved.

• I have been on vacation for two weeks, and have been taking D3 regularly.

  Next Wednesday or Thurs I will have another Vega shake as an experiment and let you all know.

  I talked to ladies at a health food store – apart from telling me to see a naturopath :p, they said it sounded more so like an allergy than anything else. They suggested the type of protein used in it, or the sweetener…since I do seem to be sensitive to those.

• I had violent vomiting and diarrhea with vegan Shakeology this summer and the same with the Vega energizing smoothie. A cross-reference may be needed. I doubt it’s a vitamin D deficiency in my case, it’s summer and I’m outside all day.

• I have used the VEGA Sport pre workout energizer, the electrolyte hydrator, and the endurance gel. Over the last few months I couldn’t understand why my stomach was hurting or feeling nauseous during my training runs. I thought it was something I ate the day before or I picked up a stomach virus, etc. I modified my diet trying to find the culprit. Usually after mile 6 I would start to feel nauseous, but again, ignored it. Today I puked during my run and felt pain in my stomach. I had to get a ride home. I immediately got online and did research to see if other people were experiencing the same symptoms with VEGA Sport products and evidently there are…..I won’t be using VEGA Sport products anymore.

• Do NOT buy the new Vega One. I used to be an enthusiastic supporter of Vega , but when I bought the new formula, both times I used it, making my smoothie in the same exact way I had been drinking the old Vega, I threw up multiple times shortly after drinking it. I mean, whatever is in this made me REALLY sick to my stomach on both occasions (and I have a strong stomach). I am shocked they are still selling it. On the recommendation at Whole Foods, I have switched to Raw Meal by Garden of LIfe.

• I am so glad I found this site. I just made a vega all-in-one nutrional shake for my husband and I for breakfast this morning. I made our normal morning smoothie and added one packet (1 serving size) for the two of us to split. My husband got violently ill 45min after drinking it, throwing up uncontrollably for 20min…. terrible.

• Juse puked my guts up after using this product. 45 min after I was bellowed over in a parking lot. Must have puked 10 times. Ended up on my hands and knees dry heaving after my stomach was empty. Finally made it home and had mean diahrea . Needless to say, this product didnt agree with me. Still hurting three hours larer. Thank you vega, for making me sooo healthy.

• PLEASE READ WARNING — “Note to our readership” on this page.
  My two cents:
  If this many people are getting ill from the product, why is it still on the shelf? Why is this website not telling people that it is not worth the chance? All the issues posted are similar, as was mine before I ended up in the hospital. Based on what is written here as well as my experience, it would seem that this product could be dangerous. And if someone uses the product that does not have a strong body, I am guessing it could be worse.

• All I can say is WOW!!! I had a colonic on 9/5/12 and thought I try the Vega mix along with a probiotic to replace what was cleaned out during my colonic. I had the runs like I never had in my life!! And I was at work too. I thought I picked something up from the colonic but something said check the internet and now I know what happened. I was thinking about trying it again once I felt better but know it will go in the trash where it belongs. I will also let the company know what happened too.

• And to think I was so happy when I saw Vega One on sale in the natural food section of my grocery store :( I was a loyal fan of the VEGA WFSO and used it for extended periods (when I could afford it) with great results and no issues.

  Now I’m three days into a morning smoothie of one scoop of Vega One and have been battling flu symptoms and wicked stomach pains. No explosive vomitting, thankfully, but still lots of discomfort. I think I’m going to try to return it. Very disappointing.

  Thanks for this great resource, I thought it was the Vega and this helps cement that hunch.

• Wow! I just saw an ad for the Vega One nutritional shake in my new issue of Clean Eating magazine. I already went on the company website, set up my account, and put some in my cart. Then I thought I should look for some reviews before I spent the $70.00. I found this and soooooo glad I did! After seeing how sick everyone is getting I can’t believe that this product is still out there! I am so glad I looked on here first and feel so bad for anyone who does not get these warnings. I HATE throwing up more than anything!!

• I wish I had seen this website before I called the restaurant and accused them of trying to kill me. I am new to this healthy living thing. I was told I needed more protein in my diet and the ladies at my natural grocery store recommended these Vega Engergizing smoothies… I tried the berry and within 2 hours got sweaty, horrible stomach cramps followed by 3 hours of violent vomitting and diarrhea. Seriously it had to be the chicken from the night before… but today, I tried the chocolate and again.. 2 hours later I was wishing for death.

  It’s scary to me the excuses that are being used regarding these symptoms. Vitamin D, Vitamin A whatever, I feel like crap and really I shouldn’t from a smoothie. I guess I got some crow to eat with Red Robin since clearly they didn’t try and kill me after-all

• NBarker: Not an excuse. It was just a theory of mine seeing as how the symptoms of vitamin A toxicity/overdose/poisoning are exactly the same as the symptoms being described by everyone here (severe nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, diarrhea, etc.)

  Anyway, now that I know it’s not just the Vega One that’s making so many here sick, it seems that the most likely reason why so many people have become violently sick from these products is because of food poisoning due to mold or bacteria contamination in one of the ingredients. Whether the source of contamination is the savi seed or one of the green foods in the mix is unknown. There are also many people (approximately 30 percent of the population) who are extremely sensitive to chlorella and cannot tolerate even the smallest amount; so who knows for sure. So far, I haven’t experienced any symptoms of serious illness after finishing several bottles of Vega WFHO including choc-a-lot Vega Energizing Smoothie. But I’ll probably stop taking all of Sequel Naturals’ products just to play it safe before my luck runs out. I also hate feeling nauseous and having to vomit. No thanks. I don’t think I want to take any chances.

• I thought it was just me and then someone told me they read about other people experiencing everything from cramps to extreme vomiting after consuming various Vega products. The first time I ate a Vega One protein bar, within an hour I was violently ill. As it so happened, I consumed the protein bar 1 hour before visiting my dermatologist and I became ill at his office — extreme vomiting and diarrhea. Thankfully, my doctor gave me Zofran to help calm my stomach, but even then, I wasn’t well enough to leave his office for 3 hours and felt lousy for the next 24 hours. Everyone told me I was crazy and the Vega One protein bar couldn’t possibly be the issue. A couple of weeks later, I came across a Vega energizing smoothie shake in my kitchen and decided to drink it. Same reaction. Within one hour, I was vomiting and had diarrhea. Because I did not have Zofran, this went on for over 8 hours and then I felt lousy for a few days and could only eat crackers and toast. I am not deficient in Vitamin D or iron nor do I have celiac disease. I have my blood tested every 3 months for an underactive thyroid and have never been deficient in either and my doctor tested me for celiac disease and it was negative. I assumed my issue might have something to do with the savi seed protein. I am a vegetarian because I can no longer eat fish — fish upsets my stomach and I usually get diarrhea after eating it. I bought a bag of savi seeds about 6 months ago and my stomach got upset similar to my reaction to fish so I assumed it had something to do with the high omega in savi seeds. At this juncture, I just know to stay away from any Vega products.

• I was always fine taking one scoop of Vega WFHO before but hadn’t taken it for a few months because I just hadn’t been craving smoothies. Went to the store the other day to pick up some more because my boyfriend wanted it again and saw it had been reformulated as Vega One. He took some and has been fine every time but the two times I took it I ended up in the emergency room because I started vomiting uncontrollably to the point of vomiting blood because my esophagus and stomach were so inflamed. The first time they even threw me in the code room because my pulse was so high from my body freaking out that they though I might be having heart issues. Luckily, I live in Canada so I didn’t have to pay ridiculous amounts of money for my two emergency visits and they even sent me home with some free prescription anti-nauseates. It took me two days to recover from my first bout of vomiting and I’m currently recovering from my second attack. I’m never touching this product again. (PS: I do take 2000-3000 IU of vitamin D3 most days)

• One day last year I got quite ill (nausea, vomiting, headache) and the only thing I had eaten was a Vega smoothie for breakfast. I never had it again because I thought it could have been something in the Vega. Today, I decided to try chlorella for the first time. I mixed it with my whey protein smoothie in the morning. About two hours after consuming it I started feeling nauseous and was throwing up for most of the afternoon. I don’t normally get sick like this so I thought it was strange that the last time I had it I had consumed only a smoothie as well. I decided to look up the ingredients in Vega, and of course, it has chlorella in it. I’m thinking I must have some type of allergy to it, and as mentioned in a post above, apparently 30% of people do. I wonder if this could explain why so many are getting ill from this product.

• ..bought the new vega one chocolate the other day and for all three days of drinking smoothies i have felt extremely tired and dizzy. i’m taking it back. thanks everyone for posting, googled ‘tired’ from vega one and this review is what came up. ugh.

• I got similarly sick eating the savi seeds by Vega.

  I bought a bag each of the karmalized and the chocolate-covered savi seeds, though expensive, to try. I ate a few of the karmalized but thought they tasted kind of musty and didn’t finish my serving. A little while later I got very nauseous and it lasted for the rest of the day. Not realizing the connection, I tried the chocolate ones the next day. The chocolate masked the flavor at first but inevitably I tasted the mustiness of those too. Very quickly I began to feel extremely nauseous and had bad digestive issues, and figured out it was the seeds. I didn’t feel right for a few days and came close to vomiting.

  My vote is that the savi seeds are moldy or “off.” Or, perhaps, there is a mass allergy to savi seeds?

• I have been sick from the new formula on three occasions. At first I thought it was food poisoning. The only three times I have had it, months apart, I got violently sick. I felt hot, shaky, stomach pains, really bad diarrhea and vomiting on two occasions. It really puts a damper on your day when you think you are starting your day right.

  I had consumed several tubs of the old formula with no problems. I wrote to their customer service, and they were very helpful and responsive. Funny part is the rep said that she had heard no reports of anyone getting sick from it. Really? They were very nice and offered to send me some samples. I accepted some samples of the energizing smoothie and had one for breakfast today. A few hours later I was sitting at my desk trying not to throw up. There is definitely something funky in the new formula and I really hope they are investigating.

• I have been drinking vega for a few months now without any issues. Last week I worked out pretty hard and had a vega optimizer shake. Like I do everyday. A few hours later I became very shaky, extremely nauseated, crampy, and I vomited 4x. I figured I was sick , but really it was the sickest I’ve ever been. I thought I was dying I even asked my husband if I should go to the hospital. It felt like I was having a panic attack it was insane. A felt bad for about 2 days after. Again, had a shake today like normal. A few hours later I am in bed ill. Nauseated, worn out, feel like I am young to vomit. I actually hope I do so maybe ill feel better. Why is this happening? I so disappointed and yet scared this is bizarre. I will not drink vega ever again. The thought makes me sick to my stomach. What a disappointment.

• DO NOT EVER BUY VEGA PRODUCTS. I just spent the whole night with my boyfriend on the bathroom floor putting cold facecloths on his neck as he vomited…does this sound fun to anyone? I am new to vega products, however they came recommended to me as they are gluten free. Unlike my boyfriend who has experienced serve and violent vomiting, I have had headaches, and heart palpitations. I’m glad I have learnt that we are not alone. I have sent two emails to the company and am waiting for a response. I plan on calling them first thing tomorrow as this is a very serious issue, and I can not believe that the product is on shelves. What I find weird is that vega has been on sale for the past few months on and off in my local supermarkets. This product should headline on Consumer Alert.

• I have been dealing with the EXACT same issues. I guess I never thought it was Vega because I didn’t have any issues with the old formula… Anyways, I have an auto-immune illness that WAS in remission until taking this product. It caused me a great deal of problems including extreme nausea, horrible acid reflux/heartburn (had to go on actual proton pump inhibitor – Pariet), and constant stomach upset (flu-like symptoms) with the big D… I will NEVER buy Vega products again, and am definitely spreading the word to friends and family. After discontinuing I was able to stop taking Pariet, and my illness is back in remission.

• Please go back to your old formula. I have gone online a bought enough of the old product to last me 1 year. Maybe by then they will be back to producing the old formula again.

• Thank God for these postings. I have been nauseated since trying the Vega Chlorella and I thought I had the FLU! Now what should I try???

• @Page: if you’re looking for a meal replacement nutrilean is a great alternative. It’s a very high quality product manufactured by Genuine Health with many positive reviews. Although it’s not a 100% gluten-free product because it contains traces of gluten. Since I am extremely sensitive to gluten, I take their greens+O along with vegan proteins+ (chocolate flavor) to improve the taste/texture and turn it into a healthy protein/green drink. I drink this combo on a daily basis.

  Here’s the official website for you if you’re interested in trying their products:

  http://www.genuinehealth.com/

• Wow, I thought it was just me. I have enjoyed Vega shakes for years, but the new formula makes me violently ill almost instantly and lasting for 6-8 hours. I spoke with someone at the company, and they said that Savi Seed is the only thing that has been added to the new formula. They also had me return the product that was making me sick (Vega Energizing Smoothie) to them, for quality control purposes. After testing, they found no problems with the product that I consumed. Unfortunately, all of the new Vega formulations now contain Savi Seed. It is obvious to me that I need to stay away from Savi Seed now, but it seems from all of the above posts that this is a widespread reaction.

  Why is this not being recognized/talked about?? Everywhere I look, people are singing the praises of this “miracle seed”. This page was the only online information I found regarding intolerances to Savi Seed. I was the ONLY person that my local health food store had heard a complaint from, and my local gym is putting this product in all the smoothies they serve! Vega needs to deal with this!

• I recently ordered the Chai Vanilla Health Food Optimizer on sale at the Vega website. It seems they were clearing out the Optimizer product after starting the new Vega one product. Yesterday I drank it in water at about 5pm within two hours I was vomitting violently with severe stomach cramps. The stomach cramps were so severe I was doubled over on my bathroom floor and could not sit up. I am not one to have stomach trouble or vomit. It was a horrible experience and I will never use or reccomend a Vega product again.

• I recently tried a one pack from Vega shows it was made in BC of Canada. Felt super sick after, had diarrhea, sweats, notice my skin itched and got inflamation all over my body is allergic reactions been around a week its like a virus. Shi_T never buying their stuff again. Going on hard vitiams after taking their shit may need to go to see the doctor to check for viruses. Body ain’t doing so well, but was fine before.

• I love Vega One vanilla chai. I’ve been taking it for months and have never had an issue with it. I’ve lost weight and feel like a million bucks.

• This product is NOT safe – the savi seed that has recently been added is known to cause extreme diarreha and vomitting. There have been many cases of this and it is extremley dangerous. THIS NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED. Consumers deserve a warning about the possible reaction of the savi seed before someone dies from it.

• THIS PRODUCT IS DANGEROUS!
  After a few uses I was VIOLENTLY ill. The product contains saviseed which to some people creates a violent allergy which includes, sweats, chills, extreme vomiting and diarrhea. Never felt worse in my life. A few hours after my first time drinking it I felt pretty nauseous, thought maybe I worked out too hard, the second time I was on the floor calling my husband to come home because I thought I needed to go to the hospital. No question that it was the Vega. Don’t believe me? Google it, you’ll find hundreds of people with the same experience. They need to put a warning label on the package, its just a mater of time before someone gets seriously hurt. Never, never, never again would I support this product. PLEASE check your products ingredients for savi seed and steer clear or better yet, eat a balanced diet, to hell with these powders.

• This product is dangerous. I bought containers of the French Vanilla, vanilla chai and the chocolate thinking that I was getting a fantastic product. The first few days were fine then I started having diarrhea, cramping and extreme stomach gurgling. Today I read that the French vanilla had been recalled due to bacteria. I checked my lot number and it wasn’t from the same batch. I have been off this stuff for 4 days now and still have intermittent diarrhea and stomach gurgling. I think other batches might be contaminated or have something that is seriously wrong with it. I had such high hopes for it. I also noticed that it has a large amount of added iron that might be detrimental to some people who can’t metabolize it.

• I have been drinking a Vega shake every day for about a year and a half with no side effects. A few months ago, I noticed that my stomach was becoming a bit distended and bloated. I had terrible gas as well. Over time, it progressively worsened. I am not a big girl so I began to look like I was pregnant! I have the BRCA2 gene which means that I am at a high risk for ovarian cancer (I have already had breast cancer at a young age) and the symptoms of ovarian cancer include gas and bloating. I was hoping it was something else so I eliminated gluten from my diet and even took worm medication! A few weeks ago, I scheduled an ultrasound.

  Last week, I was sitting by my computer, drinking my daily Vega shake and for some reason, thought I’d google if there have been any reported side effects. I came across this page and couldn’t believe what I was reading!

  I haven’t had any Vega products for just four days and already my abdomen has reduced in size about 75%. I read the label and it doesn’t say anything about side effects occurring after long-term use – it was such a regular part of my day that the thought hadn’t even occurred to me! At any rate, I think people should be very careful taking this product and Vega should have a warning on their labels. Do you know what it’s like to have had cancer and then think you might be developing it again?? It’s a horrible feeling; one that I would not have experienced if there was a warning label on the product. So not cool. Boo on you, Vega!

• I took for the first time a level scoop of the Vega One Vanilla Chai, tasted great then.. I noticed hives on my ankles but not spread to other areas does anyone know or had this reaction? I need to know for obvious reasons, but had such high hopes and now so disappointed

• Today, I purchased the chocolate covered Savi seed and within hours I was having severe cramping and vomiting. I went to the ER, but I didn’t stay for an evaluation because I was there for 3 hours and couldn’t take it there anymore. I am home now researching about this product I ate.

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• Ive been taking the Vega Nutritional Shake a few times a week for about two weeks. I have had disgusting gas since. Ive noticed the gas is worst on the days I consume the shake. I came on the Internet to investigate, and shocked to find so many negative reviews.
  The first time I took a shake I was in the most foul mood imaginable–everything irritated me–physically, mentally, etc. I should have taken that as a sign. But of course, I attributed it to whatever else. I also have been having occasional uncharacteristic headaches. I am gonna quit this product.

• I found this thread by googling “savi seed side effects.” several days ago I bought a bag of vega’s cocoa covered savi seeds for a healthy treat. I tried a couple immediately out of the bag, but didn’t eat more til the next evening. I had a handful after dinner and felt bloated, nauseated, and weak. I thought it must have been something I ate for dinner. The next day I had diarrhea and an upset stomach. I drank apple cider vinegar and the bloating was helped. I ate a few the next day and felt crappy again, but assumed I still hadn’t recovered from what I thought was food poisoning. About an hour ago I was driving home from work, feeling hungry and I ate a handful of savi seeds in the car. within 30 minutes I started feeling bloated again, then extremely nauseated, then achy, like the feeling you get before you vomit! I’m currently in bed feeling miserable! I can’t believe there isn’t a warning on the bag! I will be contacting vega! has anyone actually received a satisfactory reply?

• I consumed the Vega shakes twice a day for two months with the only side effect being slight nausea occasionally. I actually really liked the energy and sense of fullness I felt while using this product. Then one morning I made a shake and within 2 hours I was suffering extreme nausea and vomitting. I thought perhaps it was food poisoning from the night before. The following week, I drank another shake for breakfast and within 2 hours I was sicker than I’ve ever been in my life. Vomitting, diarrhea, intense running nose, sweating, and chills. I had my daughter on standby to call an ambulance. I was actually so ill that I was frightened for my life (not exaggerating). I put two and two together and decided it must be the coconut milk I was using to make my shake. I wasn’t taking any chances though so I threw away all of the ingredients including the Vega powder. Four days later, silly me….I purchased new powder, new milk and new fruit and faithfully made myself another breakfast shake. Two hours later the nausea began to set in. Man, I knew what I was in for. Barely had time to holler for my daughter to bring Sprite, Pepto, an extra bucket, and a box of Kleenex to dry my tears before settling in for an hour and a half of violent misery. I’m lying in bed researching this product, completely drained and exhausted. This is not detoxification I’m experiencing. It is something else entirely. Buyer beware!!

• I became violently ill after eating a package of the chocolate-covered Vega savi seeds. I cannot believe they sell a product that is so dangerous. I paid $3.50 for that tiny bag, and it make me vomit repeatedly!

• I ate the choclate covered savi seeds and within in hours nausea and vomiting. Fortunately only one bout of vomit, but it was the seeds for sure. Nothing else I ate that day was a new food for me. I eat mostly raw food anyway. I have tried the carmalized savi seeds with no problem in the past but now that the chocolate ones have made me sick and after finding this site never again will I eat any of Vega’s products!

• I bought the chocolate covered savi seeds last night and had a small handful this morning with my breakfast. Within three hours I was violently throwing up at work, the stomach pain was something I’d never experienced before. I had to get my dad to pick me up from work beause i was in no condition to drive, or even walk. I was throwing up bile every 15 minutes for 2 1/2 hours. I had cold sweats and felt like i was on the verge of passing out. It was not pretty. I got some sleep and woke up fine, so it does pass within the day.

• I got terrible diarrhea last week, but assumed it was either a pool-borne illness or food poisoning from the soup I ate right after swimming. I didn’t think much about the Vega smoothie I had beforehand. I discarded the soup and kept my mouth shut tightly while swimming, but had the smoothie again before going out in the evening at 6pm. By 7:45 I was doubled over in pain vomiting in some bushes. I had a horrific drive home and at 5am I’m just starting to feel better. I used a whole container of the meal replacement shake with no incident and hadn’t had any problem with the smoothie until this week. Just now I’m hearing about these issues with savi seed; I was thinking I had stored the product wrong or something. Scary.

• Hello,
  I had a severe reaction to Vanilla Vega One product that I bought in February of 2013. My symptoms included diarrhea and eventually bloody diarrhea. I never attributed it to this product until recently. After being diagnosed with colitis, I thought back in my mind as to when the symptoms began; days after I started taking the Vega One shake. However, the label on the Vega one container assured consumers that detoxifying symptoms such as diarrhea may occur when starting use of the product; so I never discontinued use of the shake mix.
  The Canadian Health department issued a warning against this product in February 2013, due to the presence of K. oxytoca bacteria, which can cause symptoms such as bloody diarrhea.
  http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/recall-alert-rappel-avis/hc-sc/2013/2…
  American consumers were however were not warned about the dangers of this product. Thus, it was sold in places like Whole Foods while simultaneously being recalled in Canada.
  I would stay away from any of these products being that the heads of this company will do anything to make money, even if that means putting their loyal customer’s health at risk.

• There must be class action lawsuit filed against this company

• please contact me, I am gathering names twitter.com/nukushima

• I took the Pre-Workout Energizer because I wanted to work out but was feeling too tired. I put it into a cup of water but was only able to drink half as it didn’t taste good at all. A few hours later I started feeling extremely nauseous like I had food poisoning which was really probable as my city had a power outage so I thought that I either worked out too hard or ate bad eggs. I’m now confident that it was the Pre-Workout Energizer as nothing else changed in my diet. This happened by only consuming HALF of the product, I feel bad for the people who drank the whole thing. Never again. I think it’s also important to mention that I’ve used other vega products and discontinued my usage not because they ever made me feel sick but because the taste alone is really disgusting.

• I also became violently ill after consuming this product. I guess I didn’t the facts together the first time when I crawled across the floor to get to a phone after violently vomiting and having diarrhea simultaneously. I ended up in ER severely dehydrated. A few weeks ago, I decided to start having shakes again and consumed a pack of the Smoothie. Within 2 hours I was on the bathroom floor after suffering the same effects. HOURS later and after drinking pedialyte, I finally started to feel human.
  If anyone decides to file suit, please contact me at mjaajm@hotmail.com. I see Ryan is gathering names via twitter but I don’t tweet.

• Today is the 2nd time I have used Vega Sport Performance Protein. The first time was a month or so ago after working out I made a shake and added strawberries and some frozen banana. About 1-2 hrs later I laid down for bed and ended up with horrible cramps and then vomiting for the next hour until my system was clear. I thought it must have been the strawberries or banana had gone bad because I have used other protein shakes and never had a problem. Today after a longer run I decided I really should have a protein shake for recovery and now I am in the same situation, first stomach cramps, discomfort, and now vomiting. I am shocked that I paid so much for this product just to get sick. I tried calling the customer service line and was eventually put into a voicemail to leave a message. They did call me back and refunded my money. But I told them that their product should carry a warning label. Nothing natural should make me so sick. They won’t change on their own, but maybe enough people can band together to make them change.

• I’ve been reading Brendan’s book and was planning on trying some of his products, but now I’m a bit concerned. On the flip side, I understand everyone’s anger at being made ill. However, it seems like this guy is really trying to convert people to a healthier lifestyle. His company should be held accountable, but I don’t think putting him out of business should be the end goal. Easy for me to say because I didn’t get violently ill.

• Similar symptoms as above. Within 1-2 hours of ingesting a savi seed or anything with saviseed powder I become violently ill. Sweats, fever, bloated stomach, pain in location of stomach at the opening of intestines. Then violent vomiting and weakness until completly expelled from my body.

• I too had similar symptoms after consuming Vega One and their chocolate covered savi seeds. It started with their chocolate covered savi seeds. I thought I had eaten something bad. I had such violent vomiting and it didn’t stop until everything was out. A couple of months later, I bought Vega One, as they no longer sold Whole Food Health Optimizer (which was fine for me). And tried their shake twice. Each time I consumed it, I had the same vomiting symptoms reappear. I thought I had some serious illness. It is only when I looked at the ingredients, I finally made the connection that it was the savi seeds that was causing this nasty reaction. I truly believe they should put a warning on their label.

• Savi Seed Strikes Again! I ate some Vega Chocolate covered Savi Seeds the other night and within 5 hours vomited it out then had non stop dirrahea for about 10 hours….. not fun! Thought it might have been the flu at first, then realized Savi Seed was the only new and different thing that I consumed that day. Yikes! Something else to check labels for :(

• Hmmm??? I use the pre-workout and recovery and hydrator and have eaten the savi seeds and I don’t remember having any issues. I use the pre and post drinks daily. I will have to pay attention how I feel, but don’t think they have affected me at all. I have also had the protein drinks

• I have been using Vega products for over 5 years and I haven’t experienced any issues at all. The quality of Vega is exceptional in my opinion and I will continue using them. It’s unfortunate there are those of you who have experienced unpleasant affects.

• So glad I found this posting. I too loved the vega one products and drank the nutritional shake for months with no side effects. In june I became violently ill after having my 2nd shake of the day. It took me a long time to recover from this episode… At least 3 weeks before I had an appetite again. Never thought it was this product, just figured i had a stomach virus…Until today! I made my 1st smoothie since being sick. I only could manage a few sips before feeling naseous, so I stopped drinking it thinking it was one of those weird mind things since it was the last thing I had before being sick. Well, within 2 hours I was violently ill with severe stomach cramping and throwing up every 5-10 mins for 3 hours at work! I was curled in a ball on the nasty bathroom floor and had to get my husband to come pick me up. I should have let my co-workers wheel me down to the ER since I work at a hospital, so I would have evidence of my illness. But I dont think I would have made it without being sick. Im extremely furious and want my money back! If this many people have been violently ill something should be done!

• Apart from the stomach troubles listed, I want to mention the marketing ploy they are using! The containers hold less product and the scoops are bigger! You will go through their containers faster and thus they sell more. The scoops used to hold 80cc now hold 94cc. The weight of a full container has gone from 862g down to 827g. Also a year or more ago, they reduced the amount of Maca root by maybe half, I was alerted to this by a health food store employee. That is one of the key valuable ingredients. Difficult to find this website, glad I did! Will have a hard time finishing this container – if I do!

• I had a chocolate shake package from whole foods vegan…. In 2 hours, I was vomiting then diarrhea
  I stayed in bed weak for 4 days. That was 2 weeks ago. Friday I bought creation gardens vegan protein… 2 hours later vomiting and diarrhea…. This was so bad I went to emergency room as I was writing my will….! First time I thought it was a virus but I realize it’s the protein Doctor said it was bacteria and food poisoning…. Never again will I even try vegan anything. I will never forget this experience!!!

• I had the chocolate covered savi seed at work for a snack last night, proceeded to vomit for six hours. Chills, sweats, cramps, it was awful. It caused me to miss hours of work and I felt horrible! I had never had problems with the Vega Energizing shakes, but this certainly deters me from consuming any of theirs products for fear of the savi seed.

• i am so glad i found this site! I am up with horrible gas and bloating after having a vega shake, it feels awful, i’m so glad to know i’m not the only one, i decided after hours of not being able to sleep bc of the stomach upset to get online and see if it wasn’t just me, and lo and behold, I find this string of posts…I just emailed vega for a refund, i am pretty disappointed in that product and am not buying it again.

• Hi everyone,

  Recently we were made aware that this post had new inquiries. If you have any questions or concerns with any of our product, please contact us directly. Email: info@myvega.com and phone: 1-866-839-8863 (Toll Free). This actual post displays our older Vega Sport branding and is from 2011.
  We are happy to help anyone who has any questions, so please contact us!

  -VegaTeam
  1-866-839-8863
  info@myvega.com

• Tried a sample pack of this shake 3 days ago. I was super excited about it because the list of ingredients seemed incredibly nutritious. I spent the entire night vomiting.. Still felt nauseous and weak the next day and today I have diharria. My drive home was horrendous, I had horrific stomach cramps and thought I’d have to go to the hospital. Still going to a walk in first thing tomorrow to get checked out. Spare yourself the suffering and do NOT purchase this product. What a nightmare.

• Forgot to mention above that I had the vanilla chai flavor.

• Tried another flavor in the past and never had any reaction. Recently bought the vanilla chai flavor at my local health food store, drank a shake and felt nauseous for several hours, so it sat dormant in my cabinet for a couple months. I decided to give it a second try this morning. Same affect. Disappointing, to say the least, after how much I spent on it. Too many saying the same thing. Something needs to be tweaked in the recipe for a certain segment of the population.

• I have tied all sorts of various vega products and love them all….so tried the chocolate savi seeds tonight and have spent past three hours with violent nausea and shakes and sweats. Really hope this goes away soon. Glad I came across this post because thought I was sick. Ugh. This is really painful.

• I used the Vega chocolate flavoured shake for several months a while back and loved it – had zero side effects and really enjoyed the taste and health benefits of getting all my nutrition needs met in a low calorie shake. I decided to try the product again as an easy and quick breakfast so I bought some of the chocolate flavour again. I’ve been feeling bloated all week – this morning was day 4 of having the shake for breakfast. I’ve been passing gas like CRAZY and it smells worse than anything I have ever smelled before. I’ve also felt like I constantly need to have a bm (sorry, too much information!) but can’t. When I do manage to try to force myself to go it’s painful and a tiny tiny amount, but, then I leave the bathroom and immediately feel like I need to go again. My stomach is SO bloated I noticed I had to go up a notch in my belt this morning. I literally look like someone has pumped my stomach with air. I was so upset by these symptoms (and the only thing I changed up was the Vega shake) that I googled my symptoms and Vega and found this page!!!! This is CRAZY. About 7 months ago I would have told you this was the best product in the world … now I feel like I should go home and flush it all down the toilet … total waste of money. I’m so frustrated. I think I’m going to call them and demand my money back. AND, demand that they seriously address these comments.

• Vega One has a dangerous antibiotic in it via contamination from a supplier. They are refusing to recall the product. No more Vega on American shelves! Talk to your local stores and contact the FDA . There is an article on the CBC website about it.

• A Vega One booth was at my local Whole Foods yesterday and I bought a package of the Vanilla Protein smoothie. Drank it at 5:30 am and had explosive diarrhea by 8 am. That followed by feeling crazy sick but I still went to work and hoped for the best. Made it half way there when I vomited violently. Am home now, had more explosive diarrhea and am sitting here with stomach cramps. Am very glad that I found this page – out goes this crappy product.

• I cannot believe how this product has no food allergy/sensitivity warning on the label, very irresponsible! I work in the food industry and we are extremely cautious with food and ingredient allergies. I too experience violent illness with this product today after a morning bike ride. I experienced everything mentioned in above comments and within a half hour of drinking. I to thought I had food poisoning until I kept tasting the shake flavor at the back of my throat each time after violent vomiting. I did google side effects for this product and couldnt believe how many people experienced what I did.
  If this can affect an adults health in this way, I hope no child is ever given a sip off of mom or dads shake!

• Was going to buy this at Whole Foods at some point soon , but a friend emailed me about their many recalls and underhanded business practices. Tons of negative press abut this company out there. How do companies like this stay in business?

• I used the Vega Protein Plus Dutch Chocolate twice and was VIOLENTLY ill. Vomiting, chills and horrific cramps. I
  This product needs to be removed from the market. I’ve contacted the company and will also be contacting Whole Foods and demanding its removal. Thank God for this post.

• Hi! I have been trying this for 1.5 weeks now – and my stomach is bloated and extended and gassy! I’m so uncomfortable. My husband had it once and was violently ill. I too WANT to be able to use this product but can’t. $50 down the drain.

• WOW!!!
  I am so astonished to find this thread. I bought a few packets of the Vega One nutritional shake in different flavors a while back, and the first time I drank one I got really nauseated for several hours afterward. I thought it was really odd, but figured it was something else I ate, or that I drank it too fast, or something like that. Tried a different flavor a couple days later and same thing…severe nausea for several hours. I had heard about the recall with the antibiotics, and found a website that stated that the only affected flavors were the Vanilla chai and the Super-sport some-thing-or-other Chocolate, and as I didn’t have either of those flavors, I was getting ready to give it just one more shot. I’m so glad I found this thread!!! No way am I putting this stuff in my body. Back to Whole Foods it goes in the morning. If someone does decide to do a class-action suit please email me…I dont tweet.

• Twice now I’ve gotten sick with the Vega protein shake products. The first time I thought it was food poisoning. Never have I ever been as sick as I was last night – vomiting for 3 hours straight. I will never ever buy another Vega product, and if the brand ever comes up in conversation with friends, I will be very vocal in telling them to stay far, far away.

  On the one hand, I’m glad I found this post because it was able to confirm that I’m not the only one with this reaction. On the other, I’m outraged that so many others had the same experience . Shame on Vega and Brendan Brazier for not addressing any of this. Have they no conscience? Not only are people getting sick, there is the risk that it may cause some people to move away from a Vegan diet.

• I was told by my classmate who claimed to be “healthy” and who does not drink coffee to give Vega a try because it gives you energy. And since finals are here, I have resorted to drinking three shots of espresso and a venti americano from starbucks everyday since I am in the honours program and had to keep my gpa high.

  The first time I drank vega, I had diarrhea after two hours. The second time, I went to the toilet 3 times after one hour, and I drank three anti-diarrhea pills because I had to leave home for an exam.

• I’ve had the french vanilla Vega One shake every day for a few months and every day that I drink it I feel energized, my skin color and complexion brighten, and my hair feels healthier among other things. When I was younger I struggled with a bad eating disorder that has seemed to have left my bowels in shambles even now- so long after recovery- and since then I’ve always dealt with bloating and constipation. After using Vega One though, my bowels have “revived” so to speak and I now can flow freely, have lost the gas, and have lost quite a bit of extra pounds- I feel so healthy and clean when I drink this stuff. Unfortunately its the days that I DON’T when I have a problem: my head feels “dried out” and its like I can actually feel my body straining to find those nutrients I haven’t consumed. My nose will bleed in the mornings, the constipation returns, I feel nauseous, everything feels awful. I just got it again and just after one shake everything is great and normal again. I am a vegan and have been for a long time…so maybe that makes the difference? Or maybe I haven’t had it long enough..

• Hello, not sure if you are aware but FDA Recalled Vega One Nutritional Shakes and Vega Sport Performance Protein Product For Antibiotic Contamination! It contained trace amounts of chloramphenicol (CAP), an antibiotic used to treat typhoid fever and eye infections! “According to Web MD, CAP can cause aplastic anemia and hella allergic reactions in some people. Pregnant or lactating women should not take this drug!” – http://vegansaurus.com/post/66840423364

  Here is the fda recall accouncement: http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm374392.htm

  Vega one announcement: http://vegarecall.com/

  I started taking it in March, and felt really ill in June for a whole weekend…I felt more sick than ever before and thought it was a bad stomach virus or food poisioning. Literally on the toilet for two days straight. Lost probably 5-10 pounds that weekend and I am very tiny, I might need to go into the docs now and check it see if this was the cause and if I have aplastic anemia or something. Unforutnately I don’t have the vega jars anymore with me to confirm the stock number, but odds are within those 2-3 jars I took over the spring/summer mine were contaminated too…

• Thank you very much for that. We have just written an article updating the story. You can find the article here.

• Just bought vega French vanilla protein powder…I eat a very healthy veggie rich diet. Made a shake this am and was dizzy, nauseous and had 3 rounds of diarrhea within 2 hrs of drinking it!! Not cool. There is something in this mix that causes extreme excavation of your insides!!! Returning it to whole foods tomorrow.

• I’m sure what to believe with all these bad experiences people are reporting about this product. No one here has had a positive experience? I’m tried it about 5 times and feel nothing negative. The product ingredients seem to just be nothing but healthy stuff, which is why I bought it. However, I’m curious if anyone has tried anything else out there there could be a good alternative to Vega, because I certainly don’t want to continue drinking it if somewhere down the road I puke myself to death.

• I recently started using Vega One (within the last month). It wasn’t until these last 2 days that I noticed a lot of horrible smelling gas and bloating. With as many complaints as I’ve read about, I am very surprised they aren’t reformulating this product. Has anyone experienced the same issues with the sports performance as they have with the all-in-one?

• I just yesterday tried Vega One for the first time. A few hours later I experienced the same gastrointestinal upset and heard my stomach gurgling for the whole day. Certainly not something I want to experience on a daily basis. I’m not sure what is in the product that is causing this. I’ve tried many other brands and this never happened. Guess I will have to find another shake.

• It makes me very angry, the lack if accountability on Vega’s part.
  I too, have been using the powder daily for 5 months. This past week I mixed my morning shake and took it on the go. Something didn’t taste right (I actually only drank half…thank God) even though I prepared it the same way as hundreds of times before.
  Two and a half hours later I was violently ill!!!!! I can assure anyone that it was not “detoxing” symptoms or something else I ate. I eat a very clean, repetitive diet.
  I will be returning all of my Vega products!!! And I buy them all!! It’s not worth the risk. I can’t even fathom what would have happened if I’d drank the whole thing. I’d have called an ambulance for sure. I almost did as is.

• A few months ago I purchased 2 single serving packets at Whole Foods. I drank them and liked the flavor and had no problems. I decided recently to purchase two large canisters ( over a hundred dollars) but this time I have had the worst most painful intestinal cramping from gas. Yesterday I tried using only half a scoop and still I was in such pain at work I didn’t know if I was going to make it. Seriously. I just don’t know what to think. I wish I had read about these issues before spending so much money. Normally I eat pretty sensibly so I would never have expected this kind of reaction.

• This is very scary because the only reason I am aware of this is because I recently decided to stop eating meat. I remembered I had this product when I happened to see a link for Vega products on a vegan website. I wasn’t even looking for this information. I drank this shake twice. The first time I added coconut oil and a few kale leaves. I have a sensitive stomach but this went beyond normal stomach upset and caused severe pain and gas/bloating. It was awful. I thought the kale and the fact my stomach was totally empty was the problem so go tried it again with just almond milk and the same thing happened. I have read some peoples take on chloramphenicol and they say, “it’s just an antibiotic, how bad can it be?” Well I purposefully avoid antiobiotics in all of its forms and disguises. I don’t eat meat or use dairy products containing them and I don’t run to my MD every time I have the sniffles to get some Amoxicillen. I’m hyper conscious about what I consume. Why in the world would I have cause to believe there were antibiotics in a VEGAN PROTIEN POWDER? People who purchase items like this are typically health conscious individuals to some degree. They demand a higher quality in the foods they put in their bodies and they pay a higher price for it as well. Does this company only spend the money to test the components of their products after someone consumes them and becomes extremely ill? That hardly seems like a responsible practice for a company in the health food business. The recall list still says at the bottom that these products are safe to consume!? Despite the promise of using another enzyme distributor, I will never buy products from this company again. I wouldn’t need reassurance from this company had they done their research into the components of their products prior to selling them to me. Very dissappointing and frustrating.

• Wow…can’t believe the comments here! I have not gotten violently ill–yet–and don’t plan on it so I will be tossing the remaining 10 serving bag I bought and returning the remaining unopened products I just purchased yesterday at my local food coop. Does explain the bloating, gas and extra “elimination” (sorry) I have experienced this past week though. Luckily nothing worse. And I switched to Vega One because I’m transitioning to a plant-based diet and it was recommended over other protein powders that contain metal pieces. I guess you can’t trust any of these big corporations. I am very disappointed the company has not taken its customers seriously since 2009 when this thread began. Wow.

• I recently tried using the Vega smoothie, Bodacious Berry that had an expiry of 2015. I have had it 3 times now and all three times I have ended up with horrible smelling gas and diahrea as well as this last time vomiting! I am happy to see I am not the only one who has experienced this! I am going to try to return this product as clearly I cannot drink it.

• I tried Vega one nutritional shake 3 weeks ago,,It saved my life,,,doctor has been running all kinds of tests to find out why food is giving me migraines,,was losing alot of weight too fast,,,went into a health food store and the nutrtionist there said it sounds like Leaky gut* so I said I would try it,,2 weeks ago I was starving to death and today Im eating bananas,cookies and steaks,,,thank god I went into that health food store,,I too heard the gurgling in my intestines and attribited that too vega one repairing the flora in my intestines,,the gurgling isnt happening so often now and I have had no ill effects,,I endorse this product 100 %

• I bought vega french vanilla and vanilla chai shake and tried them each two days in a row. Glad to say no problems…Yet. But after reading these I won’t be trying anymore buying their products again. Too bad , they did sound like the perfect drink….to good to be true.

• I bought the single serving packets last year and never had a problem with them so I decided to buy the Vanilla canister. I used it several times (didn’t expire until 2015) and the last 2 times I used it I became violently ill within hours. I didn’t recognize that it was the powder the first time since it was around the same time my office had the stomach virus barreling through but made the connection when I became sick just the other day from using it again. I had not used it since the first time I got sick and thought it was just a fluke. Not sure what’s in it that can make people sick but I was sick for almost 6 hours. It states that if you start out using a whole scoop you may experience bloating, gas, etc but there’s something not right when you are violently vomiting for hours on end. I even had cold sweats and my muscles were twitching. I still use the Vega Sport because I’ve never had any problems with the performance powder (aside from the price).

• I used to use Vega brand protein without any problems. About two months ago, I made myself a shake and within an hour I was vomiting & had diarrhoea for 5 or so hours! I thought maybe it was coincidence, but just tried out their protein again and found myself in the same situation today!! This time, it was made for me at a shop here in town that uses vega products. I decided to dig a little to see if others experienced the same and it led me to your page. I can’t even begin to explain how awful I feel. This started around 2pm. It’s almost 10 pm now and it’s finally been a full hour since I’ve scraped myself off the bathroom floor! Will NEVER be using Vega brand protein or any of their products again!

• I am really disappointed to find all this scary stuff re. Vega One, which I use if I don’t “make my nutritional numbers” for the day via food.
  There have been a few occasions during the two years that I’ve been using this product when I had a gut issue, but the concern I had, and called the company about, was the fact that the formula includes calcium and iron, with the latter known to block calcium and the former known to block absorption of other nutrients. The products person to whom I spoke brushed off my question by saying those things were not an issue because Vega is made from whole foods and not chemicals. I’m also now wondering where the product is made and from whence comes its ingredients. I usually ask that question, but forgot. Although the person who answered my other question didn’t sound really knowledgeable, any way. I’m returning my recently purchased large container of chocolate Vega One, and the company has some quality assurance work to do before regaining my business.

• I am so relieved to find that it isn’t just me. I have tried samples of the Vega brand before and so purchased a bag of their protein smoothie (chocolate flavor). I mixed it just as the package said with water and it tasted pretty good! I was pleased because a lot of other protein powders (normally I use whey) taste pretty awful to me. Within a couple of hours I was feeling very ill. Stomach cramps, nausea and shivers. This came on all of a sudden. I thought I was just coming down with something or that maybe it was the new pea protein that my body didn’t like. Regardless, within another hour I was vomiting violently. It is now 12 hours since I comsumed it and although the vomiting has stopped my stomach is still very sore and distended. I will be returning the product and demanding my money back. No more Vega for me! Health food? Pah!

• I’m always surprised to see bad reactions. Personally I LOVE everything I’ve tried from Vega. I’ve taken the Vega One smoothie on and off over the years (whenever I’ve remembered to buy/drink it), and just recently got back into taking it consistently.
  The first time taking it this time around, I had a full serving (should’ve known better, I’ve been eating crappy food lately), and I ended up with a stomach ache. But the next day I took less and it was gentler, and took a few days to work up to a full serving again. Now I drink it every morning as a breakfast replacement. I drink it slowly rather than chug it, and mix it with coconut milk and cold water. I also take their chlorella tablets (3-4 over the course of the day), and between the two I feel fantastic! About an hour after my smoothie I get a huge boost of energy and feel amazing! I was literally bouncing and dancing around my apartment this morning while cleaning. Plus a little kick of energy after every chorella tablet. Now if I skip my smoothie, my day just seems off. I’m sorry for everyone who has had problems with it, but personally I adore it.

  To anyone considering trying it, start out small! Try only a little bit, and drink it slowly. Also, let it sit for a bit before drinking, it starts out a little “gritty” after mixing, but smooths right out after a few minutes.

• I have been drinking vega one vanilla shake for the past 4 days. I have mixed it with water some days and almond milk others. Ive also tried half scoops and full scops. But each day I have had server stomach pain with diariah. And today I got the cold sweats and vomiting on top of those other symptoms. I havent felt this bad sense I had food poisoning. And its not due to detoxification, as I have maintained a vegan diet for over a month. I will be returning this product and never ussing any of their products again.

• I’ve been taking Vega since I was a teenager. At first I was going to the bathroom more (assuming all the fiber and greens) but it went away after a week. I love this stuff!

• I just started using Vega One (coming from Herbal Life). I do experience gas, but no cramps or pains. I think people forget to or, don’t realize that adjusting to a plant based diet from meat or meat and plants is going to change the body and how it processes.

  Even if you went with an all green diet or raw veggies, you’ll notice an increase in gas. Even if you introduced more raw veggies into your diet, you’d experience more gas.

  Veggies are a lot easier to process than meat and junk food. Of course it’s going to “run” through your system.

• I recently started seeing a nutritionist. I never knew much about whole foods or eating the right foods. Anyway, she suggested I use a plant based protien powder in my smoothies. She suggested Vega One. So I bought a tub of it.

  I got diarrhea/gassy on my first use but I didn’t connect it. But it happened the second time as well and happened to my wife. I decided to look it up online and found this site. I hear that they had some recalls but this is very recent (August 2014) so it can’t be that. But I haven’t gotten sick. I have a pretty strong stomach and it usually takes a lot for me to throw up. But it hasn’t been pleasant, that’s for sure.

• Wow, didn’t realize people were gettinh sick until I did reseach because I got sick both times I drank Vega Viva VAnilla Protein Smoothie. Each time, I got sick to my stomach and felt light headed. I’m taking the product back to Whole Foods for a refund. I’m so disappointed, I have used other products by Vega that I enjoyed and didn’t get sick.

• I seldom create comments, however I browsed a few remarks here Vega Product Review.
  I do have 2 questions for you if it’s okay.
  Could it be simply me or do some of these remarks appear
  like they are left by brain dead visitors? :-P And, if
  you are posting on additional sites, I’d like to keep
  up with you. Would you post a list of every one of your shared pages like your Facebook page, twitter feed, or linkedin profile?

• Terrifying! But not my experience at all. My husband and I started using Vega One chocolate shake powder a little less than a year ago. We were doing a cleanse at the time, but now the cleanse is over and we’re still making our morning shakes. It’s the only powder I have found that doesn’t have a weird aftertaste. I’ve never experienced any of the symptoms listed here… but what I am reading is definitely cause for concern! Yikes!

• Looks like I am also a Vega victim. Two weeks ago I drank a Vega Vanilla protein “shake”. Within a few hours I became violently ill with vomiting and diarrhea for hours. I assumed that I had a stomach virus.

  Tonight I drank another shake with the same exact results. I found this a little coincidental so I started searching the internet and found this page. I will never drink it again!

• This evening two hours before I went to bed, I made a VegaOne French Vanilla shake with almond milk and almond butter, ice. I am up at 1:50 am in total intestinal pain that feels like someone set fire to my stomach lining. I wish I could vomit. I am at home with my two little ones and my husband is out of town. I just hope that I am not on my way to the ER as stated by several other people here. I am currently trying to flush it all out with water in hope that it doesn’t get worse.

• This product gives me cramping, diarrhea and gas. I am taking it back to Whole Foods.

• Interesting comments. I have been using Vega all-in-one powders for about 4 months now, almost daily, 2 scoops mixed with almond milk and definitely have NOT had intestinal distress every day. However, every now and then (maybe once or twice a week) I do get bloating/gas and maybe twide a month have had liquid diarrhea (no other symptoms, no flu, no illness). Never any vomiting, but that is very unusual for me anyway. I can’t say if it is or is not the Vega; if it is a contributing factor it is weird it doesn’t happen more often. I buy the large tubs, so I think the ingredients I’m ingesting are consistent from drink to drink which makes me think I don’t have an allergy to anything but perhaps just the higher fibre and other factors are related?

• No matter if some one searches for his required
  thing, thus he/she wants to be available that in detail, thus that thing is maintained
  over here.

• A word to new comers to the Vega supplement – Vega is packed with many nutrients, high fibre conent and ingredients that help your body cleanse itself of toxins. This cleansing process can sometimes lead to discomfort in your digestive system (think gas, bloating and even diarrhea – If you want to be sure to minimize it, start with 1/4 to 1/2 of a full scoop for your fist week and gradually move up to a full scoop – these symptoms should not last longer than a week. A surefire way to ensure that you minimize this problem is to eat a whole food diet in the first place – that way your body has less toxins to eliminate. I myself didn’t experience any discomfort; however, my pizza/hamburger loving friend did. Try eat a large zucchin, if it’s not common in your diet the same thing will happen (gas, bloating and even diarrhea

• My daughter has twice now had a violent reaction the the Vega Protein Powder…Are we sure this is Gluten, Dairy, Soy free? Or could it be spoiled? Same symptoms…violent vomiting, diarrhea, intestinal pain, bloat, shaky, cold sweats, pain. My husband and daughter threw the huge bottle away, before I had a chance to return it to Whole Foods.

• I’ve had two (two!) separate instances where I found wads of paper in my Vega protein smoothies….I’m never buying their products, ever again.

• Here is what I just wrote to Vega: “Hi there,
  I just purchased your vanilla shake powder today from save on foods in Ricmond, BC, Canada. I had one serving at 4 pm and an hour later felt extreme nausea and then starting vomiting. It was very painful and didn’t stop for hours. Could there have been a recall on the jar I bought? Or is this an allergic reaction? The reason I think the illness is due to the vega powder is because the last time I consumed it, I felt nausea but didn’t vomit. I had thought it was a coincidence and wasn’t convinced it was the vega powder. I am now certain that was it.
  I figured you’d know more about this and might be able to help shed some light. I’ll be visiting a doctor tomorrow to make sure I haven’t got food poisoning.
  Thanks”

  Hope I get a quick response and a refund. Also hope I can eat something soon, I’m starving and still feel terrible. It’s now 10:30 pm. I had the stupid powder at 4 pm.

• So , I too am a Vega victim, back in the fall I started trying a healthier lifestyle in general, I bought a tub and mixed it with almond milk, I drank it for about a month. Yes, I started slowly, yes I found myself having bloating, gas, extra forceful eliminations. Nothing I couldn’t handle and I figured of course it makes sense making a change to my diet. Then I started feeling great!! I ran out bought another tub. First shake I made from the new tub, I got horribly violently ill a couple hours after drinking, gastro pain, cramps, violent vomiting then the worst diarrhea and shivers chills and a fever of 102.5. I figured it must be a bug. Since, my stomach was so raw from the illness, I laid off the rich shake for about a week. a week later, I made another shake, same thing only WORSE. Since I had drank it for a month with only the “typical issues” associated with such a rich shake, I figured it was a fluke. Laid off it for a bit then yesterday, getting back to my gym routine after being hit or miss during the holidays I figured let me add my shake back in too. Yesterday, I ate was a banana and my shake, I got so ill by lunchtime I had to leave work. I was violently vomiting bile, I turned splotchy red, shaking fever of 102.9, BEYOND diarrhea just shear liquid (sorry for the graphic) I was so dizzy I almost passed out, I came really close to calling 911. This has lasted for hours, I thought it passed and it started back up in the middle of the night a bit, chills and all so I had to take another day off work. I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO ILL IN MY LIFE!!! Yet, my husband and I, we eat similar diets and he has had no issues what so ever. So I don’t know what to make of it but three times it sure seems like the shake and like some of us have an allergy to something in this shake. This is WAY beyond my body getting use to a health product. BTW – I NEVER post comments.

• At the local Nesters, there was a Vega representative present whom recommended the pre-workout powder as I am training for my first half-marathon. I’ve used the Vega Sustain powder with no GI issues, so tried the Pre-Workout Energizer this morning. I finished the dose (as recommended on the label) 20 minutes before my workout in small sips over about 15 minutes and drove to the trails. I had to drive back to make it to the washroom! I’m recovering… close to the bathroom.
  After more research, this product contains Yerba Mate, which I already know helps with concentration. However, what Vega doesn’t state is that Mate is also used as a LAXATIVE! Definitely going to miss my workout today. Pretty frustrated. Guess I can use the time to go back to the Rep for a refund.
  Thank you everyone for sharing.
  – Squamish, British Columbia

• I used vega protein in the past as a regular post workout drink for months without issue. Then one day after a long run I had some and within two hours got violently ill-chills, cramps, vomiting even when there was nothing left and diarrhea. I thought maybe I had dehydration sickness because I couldn’t imagine it was the powder that caused me no problems in the past. But then a few weeks later I had the same experience. I threw out the rest of my powder thinking it had gone bad, and picked up a new container yesterday. Then this morning- tada! Same results. I am currently bundled up in a blanket on the bathroom floor waiting for the next wave. The only solace I can offer if you have this issue is try taking activated charcoal; I did so last time and it helped the symptoms pass within an hour. I’m actually quite relieved that a google search turned up so many other people with this experience as I thought it was just me!

• Wow I guess I’m one of the lucky ones. I use Vega products on a daily basis, and have never had any negative effects. I love Vega. I’m really curious as to what’s causing these bad reactions though. Even traces of an antibiotic, although inexcusable, shouldn’t be causing such severe illness. I thought Vega had corrected this issue anyway?

  Just one thing that comes to mind looking at the ingredients…the amount of sodium is very low compared to potassium and magnesium. I’m looking at a container of all-in-one nutritional shake. Especially for those taking this before or after a long workout, could this be the problem? I too eat a very clean unprocessed diet, and no mainstream sports drinks, and sometimes have to remind myself to add a pinch of salt to my salads and smoothies. When I use Vega in the summer months, I will often add salt. I know this seems like a long shot, being that so many people are experiencing the same thing.

  Or– how might the vitamins and minerals in Vega’s products reacting with any other products or multivitamins you’re taking? Could some people be experiencing overdoses of iron for instance? Also, maca root causes stomach cramping in some people, and there’s a good bit of in in the Vega shake.

  I hope that someone figures this out and Vega gets it corrected.

• I started using Vega about 3 months ago. I started with the Protein smoothie and used that for more than 2 months before I tried anything else from Vega. I was so excited to find this product! I’ve been on low carb for a few months and it satisfied my evening sweet tooth, plus I could have a shake in the morning. It tastes fantastic! A couple of weeks ago there was a sale on the Protein and Greens at HEB so I bought that. I also bought a magnesium/calcium supplement with vitamin D3 at the same time. I started using both the same day. After a couple of days I started to get really bad diarrhea. (Horrifically smelly and explosive, sorry for details, but people need to know) By day three I was in so much pain I could hardly stand it. I was close to having my hubby take me to the ER I was in so much pain. I was not sure what caused it either. I couldn’t see that Vega caused my issue at first because I’d been using the smoothie for so long with no problems. Looking back at what was new to my morning routine, I stopped both Vega and the supplement. This were the only two things I’d added. Within 2 days of stopping both I was back to normal, but I thought (hoped) maybe it was a coincidence and I actually had a bug. After a few days, I tried both again and immediately went back to bathroom issues, pain and nausea. I stopped again for a few days. This time I only did the Protein and Greens this morning. I have not had any of the cal/mag supplement. Im in major pain again with nausea. I’m not going to take any of the products. I’m afraid to. What is causing this?! What’s in this product that could make me feel like I am literally dying? I will be retuning all of it, and sending this to their email.

• I am so glad I found this website/feedback. I echo everything that people are saying about the gas/bloating/sweats, etc. I thought I was losing my mind…thinking I had some type of cancer. I just went to a GI doctor because for the last 6 months I’ve been using Vega and did not make the connection that this “healthy” powder could possibly be the root of my problems. I am going to stop immediately And will hope that this cures me! Wow!

• I think the problem might be the sacha inchi seeds.

  I have had two separate major reactions to VEGA products. The first, their sacha inchi seeds, the second, their all-in-one nutritional shake (french vanilla). I’ve volunteered at a yoga studio that sells many of their products and have sampled most of their energy bars. My first reaction was after eating a large bag of sacha inchi seeds – yes, it was gluttonous (and mighty delicious!). I woke up in the middle of the night with severe intestinal pain and began vomiting violently (all of the blood vessels in my face burst from the force, kind of like of a speckled sun-burn). I was vomiting so forcefully and regularly that my boyfriend took me to emergency at the hospital. Nothing was found to be wrong. I assumed I had come into contact with fiesty sweat-loving e-coli-like bugs at the yoga studio.

  I continued to eat their energy bars, which do have sacha inch seeds, and experienced mild nausea which in time, disappeared (tummy discomfort was ignored in favour of yumminess).

  I later bought the all-in-one protein powder, eased into it slowly (as the label directs), drank plenty of water every time, and experienced nausea which dissipated over time. Fast forward to today, I haven’t consumed the product in a while and made myself a simple shake today and became very ill (nausea, diarrhea, would likely have thrown up had I not induced sleep).

  This sounds to me like the symptoms of an allergic reaction to sacha inchi. With small, repeated exposure the body adapts but when reintroduced after a period of absence the reaction reoccurs forcefully.

  Sacha inchi seeds are a specialty item we are not likely to eat unless we seek them out, or consume through Vega products. Perhaps, it is the seed itself, or something they’ve been in contact with from the soil and specific growing conditions….

• Boy am I glad I did a search after experiencing what I did the other day. Our local Sprouts market in San Ramon, Ca had a clearance sale on some of their supplements. The all in one vega meal and the vega sport protein where marked down over half price so I thought I was getting the deal of a life time. I went home and tried the vega sport, just one scoop. It was on an empty stomach. About 45 min after taking my heart rate shot up and I broke into a cold sweat. I did NOT feel good and I really had to fight the feeling of panic that was trying to over take me. I went to bathroom and threw multiple times. Thankfully I it had not been in my system long enough to fully take effect as the vomiting helped eliminate most of it from my system. It took another hour to have my heart rate come back down and my body to calm down from the shock. This product is definitely dangerous. After reading so many bad experiences from honest people who wanted the vega products to work for them, I am surprised after this many years Vega doesn’t take out the ingredients that can cause such horrible side effects. It just doesn’t make sense. If they don’t change their ways, they are really exposing themselves legally. These types of reactions really could kill someone, especially if that person is not in good health. People who are sick or with compromised health are likely to try Vega because they would think it’s good for them. I’m going back to tomorrow to Sprouts to return, I do not want to experience that again.

• Same experience with Vega viva vanilla protein and the French vanilla all in one. The first time was a few months ago and I thought it might have just been a fluke bug. Tried it again this morning (new package)and same nausea, then major dry heaving followed by very violent vomiting and lingering stomach cramps. Going to return it to Whole Foods. I am surprised that with all of the reviews here similar to mine that they are still allowed to sell this poison.

• I tried the Vega One French Vanilla with Chia the first time this morning. Within 30 minutes, I was violently ill! I had severe diarrhea and violent vomiting. So violent that I cannot speak at the moment. My throat feels swollen so I toke a Benadryl just in case. This product is dangerous; I have no doubt! After all traces of the shake were gone, I felt better. I will never use this product again.

• I have been using Vega One for over four years now and have never had a problem or gotten sick. I drink the chocolate flavor every day in my smoothie, along with kale, young coconut meat, 1 date, flax milk, spirulina, and chlorella. I am also a vegan of 22 years and mostly raw. I’m curious if the people posting about getting sick follow a clean, vegan, whole foods diet or do you eat meat/dairy and/or processed foods? If you are eating meat/dairy/processed foods, my guess would be that your body is not used to the ingredients in these products. Also, there are probiotics in the One protein powder, which can definitely cause gas and/or nausea of you are not used to them. If you have food leftover in your intestines from eating meat/dairy/processed foods the night before, I could see how this would make you ill and induce vomiting.

• Hi would you mind letting me know which web host you’re using?
  I’ve loaded your blog in 3 different internet browsers and I must say thhis blog loads a lot quicker then most.

  Can you recommend a god web hosting provider at a fair price?
  Thanks, I appreciate it!

• I spent more than $60 and was excited to use Vega One in my smoothies. I have never had so much bloating, gas and abdominal cramps in my life like I did after using thia product. And I used only 1 tablespoon! I’m returning it today.

• Jane and I were in Costco yesterday and I saw Vega One products. I suggested to her, “should we give it a another try?” She emphatically said “No!” it was so long ago when we tried it; we didn’t get sick, we just didn’t really care for the taste.

• It took me 3 Vegansports berry shakes and explosive vomiting to pin down it came from the shake. Then I found out the product had expired. I suggest people affected may be dealing with prematurely expired powder. On my last shake, since I was suspicious, I only dropped half the quantity, 35 ml. I vomited for over an hour. This stuff is nasty nasty when expired.

• I too would like to report my bad experience with Vega plant based protein powder. At the very least, maybe others will not want to test it for themselves. I never report problems I have with products but this time seems very worthwhile since it made me me very ill two times now. Needless to say, I will never drink this stuff again and will never buy it again.

  On 4/14/15, I purchased Vega plant based protein powder from the Costco on Palomar Airport Road, Carlsbad, CA.

  I consumed maybe 8 servings since that time and the last two times have given me the same adverse reactions. On 5/12/15 and again 5/21/15. About 3 hours after drinking it, my stomach starts cramping and it is soon followed by about 2 hours of vomiting and diarrhea. Very unpleasant. The first time it happened I chalked it up to something else I ate, but then it happened again last night, and this Vega product is the only variable across both experiences that makes sense. And to have the same exact experience both times, I am convinced it is the Vega product because I have almost never gotten food poisoning. In fact I can’t even remember the last time I vomited until now.

  Beware of this product!

• Vega Protein shakes have also made me violently ill. I tried it for the first time a couple of weeks ago, and thought it might have been a stomach flu, or some off milk, I really didn’t think it was the shakes. Within an hour of ingesting, I had violent projectile vomiting, and my body wouldn’t stop until I was throwing up the bitter ends of stomach acid. Then came the diarrhea, ugh. It lasted about 6 hours. I wasn’t convinced that it was the powder, so I just tried a tiny bit yesterday, just a teaspoon of the powder to see. I got really drowsy, fell asleep, less than an hour later, exact same symptoms, and no less severe because I ingested less product. I’ve never been poisoned, but I can imagine it felt a lot like that.
  It might not cause a reaction like this is all people, but these comments have convinced me that it is enough to take it off the market. Also, this powder was not expired, it was a brand new package.

• I ordered a bunch of individual packets, but unfortunately am returning them all. I tried half of the protein powder packet added to a bottle of water. I got 1/4 of the way through and started not feeling well. I knew people who swore by Vega so I didn’t think twice before I tried. After reading reviews I immediately stopped drinking, poured it out, and started the return process to send everything else back. No way am I risking getting horribly sick. I’m guessing while some people might be having detox reactions, there are also others who are likely sensitive to something in the product. I eat a mostly vegetarian/vegan diet that is fairly high-fiber, and I’ve taken a vegan probiotic before in a decently high dose. I’ve also had detox symptoms before, but these are *not* them.

  Again, I didn’t get horribly ill from it like some people, but I also didn’t give it much of a chance to get me there. The way I felt was enough to stop me in my tracks after just a little bit!

• My husband and I used Vega One French Vanilla Protein Powder. He had no reaction, but 3 hours after my smoothie I had major Nasuea, cramping and vomiting. It has now been 5 hours and still sick. The Diarreah has not started, yet! I used almost a full scoop. No reaction for hubby and sick as a dog for me?? I will give it another try with a small amount. Just really bummed, because I thought I’d found an awesome product.

• I have been wondering how everyone has been doing with this. I purchased the 15 oz Chai flavor. Like some of the others, 1.5 hours later I got violently ill, so much so that I was rushed by ambulance to the hospital because it presented like a possible female heart attack. $9k and several hours later I was sent home with suppositories for the vomiting. Thinking it may have been a fluke or possibly the two hands full of spinach I put in it I tried it once more at half serving. Same 1.5 hours, same outcome. This time I still had more prescription suppositories so took one, laid down for three hours and shakily went back to work. I haven’t opened the 30oz French Vanilla but I would like to try it again. I dunno

• As an addition to the above – I had tried mini single serving and 5 serving packets of it before – no issues at all.

• why do you have stevia in it? it tastes disgusting. It also said NO SUGAR added. Only reason I bought it. Now I don’t know what to do with such a big box of it. Please skip Stevia.

• Used Vega One, lot 1534101B, twice. Both times I experienced severe nausea and diarhhea. I consumed more the first time, my reaction was violent and included marked vomiting. Both times the drink was made with a cup of product but I only drank about a 1/4 of it. For me, the adverse reaction started within 2-3 hours of the first sip. My wife has been using this same product and lot number with no negative responses. Vega One needs to get to the bottom of this. My reaction was severe enough to take the product off the market. Nausea lasted 6-9 hours for me. It was severe enough that if I had not recovered I wound have sought medical help. I am concerned about someone else taking the full standard dose with my level of sensitivity.

• My wife tried Vega proteins and greens. The principle of it sounded great but much like the rest of you she became violently ill about an hour and a half after taking it. I’ve never seen her so miserable. I wish we had come across these comments before trying it!

• Useful info. Fortunate me I discdovered your website accidentally, and I’m shocked why this coincidence did nnot came about earlier!
  I bookmarked it.

• I Have a thought!!
  Does the product still contain INULIN???????
  about 40% of the population can NOT digest INULIN (otherwise known as Chicory Root extract, and a few other names).
  It’s supposedly a PRE-biotic (vs. ProBiotic). But many people cannot digest it and get VERY bad GAS (and I imagine cramping and diarrhea as well). Vomiting I am not sure about.
  Myself I get severe intestinal gas and pain if I eat above a certain amount.
  and this stuff is added to many products these days to “boost” fiber content – it’s a soluble finer.
  Even ice cream!!!
  If you ever see an ice cream (particularly the ‘healthy’ ones) with a high fiber content – scan the ingredient list for inulin or chicory root/extract, etc.
  That might the culprit!
  :)

• My husband is violently ill right now. I had to pick him up from work after he texted me and said he was “chain-puking”, and he threw up the whole way home, and it continues. The new Vega Protein & Greens Vanilla Flavor he bought (702504 04:4BD BB: 25/JA/2019) is the only thing he consumed that the rest of us in the family did now. He also was vomiting last week after consuming this shake, though at the time we wondered if he was having a reaction to the chia he added (though this seemed odd as he’d not reacted to chia on salads, etc, and I and others in our family had the same chia that morning and we were fine). It’s not the chia. IT’S THE VEGA. VEGA-RECALL THIS PRODUCT ASAP. I will be seeking a refund via the grocery store.

• Thanks Michelle and Sara for your comments. I just contact the company and passed along your comments. If/when they write back with a comment, I’ll pass it along.

  Sara, I hope your husband gets better real soon.

  Lane

• Hello Sara and all other readers,

  I just heard back from Vega regarding the product issues. They mentioned that they over the years, they have reformulated both Vega One and Vega Sport Protein, twice.

  They indicated that, “… we take every experience and concern with our products seriously and would be happy to investigate any issues that may arise. If your readers are interested in discussing their experience further please have them send us an email askvega@myvega.com with the product information (including lot code and expiration date)…”

• I use to use Vega Essentials two years ago and stopped. I decided to start again for more nutrition. I have been using vega essentials now for a week and about ten minutes after I drink it I experience a pouding and fast heart rate, red face and neck, and elevated bp. I am not sure if it is the algea or the spirulina or a mineral … but something is most definately causing this. It lasts for 2-3 hours.

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