Over the past few years, whey protein supplements have become increasingly popular with anyone who wants to lose fat and build muscle. Unfortunately, the confusing blend of ingredients in many supplements makes it very difficult for most people to make an educated decision about what to buy.

You Can't Go Wrong With The Best Whey Protein Supplements

Many studies show that protein needs are greater for people who exercise. Of course, while it's possible to get more protein from food, it's certainly not easy or convenient. As a result, many people rely on whey protein supplements to meet their protein needs....

One of the reasons for the popularity of whey protein supplements is their high biological value. Biological value is used to measure the quality of protein. Foods with a high biological value are considered to be higher in quality, as they contain all nine essential amino acids. Foods with a low biological value don't contain all of the essential amino acids.

You might be aware that a difference exists between protein derived from animal sources and protein derived from plant sources. Because protein from most plants lacks certain amino acids, it has a lower biological value than protein from animal sources. In fact, a recent study shows that men consuming a diet containing meat gained slightly more muscle and strength than those following a meat-free diet.

In much the same way, companies that sell whey protein supplements maintain that there are major differences between the various types of whey you can buy. But how much of this is based on fact, and how much is simply advertising hype?

Should you buy a whey protein concentrate, a whey protein isolate or a combination of the two? Is hydrolyzed whey protein any better? Do the benefits of whey protein supplements that contain added ingredients — such as 5-methyl-7-methoxy-isoflavone — really justify the extra cost? What about NITRO-Tech®? Is it really "24 times" better than regular whey? Maybe you should ditch the whey protein supplements altogether, and choose a supplement that contains a so-called "slow" protein, such as micellar casein?

The search for answers isn't made easy by magazines and websites that rely heavily on advertising revenue from companies selling whey protein supplements. A single page advert in a glossy magazine costs a lot of money. Many websites will publish anything in an attempt to attract advertising revenue.

Given the choice between running an advert for a protein supplement or a factual article, most magazines will run the advert. Either that, or they'll use a heavily edited article that won't discourage potential advertisers. What's more, many magazines and websites are owned by the same people who sell whey protein supplements. Their content is often little more than adverts disguised as articles designed to convey an impartial image.

To make a more informed decision about the benefits (and downsides) of whey protein supplements, it helps to be armed with a little more knowledge about how they're made...


Whey is one of the proteins found in milk (the other is casein). Whey protein accounts for only about 20% of the total protein found in milk, while casein makes up about 80% or milk protein. Long considered a useless by-product of dairy (cheese) manufacturing, whey protein is enjoying an increased interest as a protein supplement. Whey has a long history of use as a cheap protein source for low-cost protein powders and used to be viewed as a "disposal problem" for the dairy industry. Recent claims of the high biological activity of whey protein, and the profits to be made by selling something that used to be thrown away, have encouraged dairy processing plants to begin processing and spray-drying in various ways to enhance its benefits in commercial protein powders.

Claims

Enhanced immune function
Increased protein synthesis.
More “biologically active” than other proteins
Associated with greater nitrogen retention

Whey protein is rich in certain amino acids and low in fat. The key amino acids, the branched chain amino acids (BCAAs = leucine, valine and isoleucine) may help delay fatigue during endurance exercise. Another amino acid, cysteine, can be found in relatively high amounts in whey protein - compared to other protein sources such as soy or gelatin in which cysteine is lacking. Various protein groups found in whey protein have been cited as "immune stimulators"

Scientific Support

Whey proteins can differ dramatically from one another depending on the processing method and the total protein content. For example, whey protein can exist as simple whey powder (30% or less total protein content), whey protein concentrate (30-85% protein) or whey protein isolate (90% or higher protein content). In the case of whey protein isolates (the most expensive type), two key processing methods, ion exchange filtration and cross-flow micro-filtration can remove different components of the total whey protein, resulting in end products with different taste, texture and functional properties. Whey proteins processed using the ion exchange methodology appear to retain the majority of the functional benefits associated with immune system maintenance. Enhanced resistance to infection and elevated glutathione levels (an antioxidant enzyme containing cysteine) have been noted in subjects consuming concentrated whey protein. Whey protein also contains lactoferrin, a protein that has been shown to possess bacteriostatic and bactericidal activity against microorganisms that can cause gastroenteric infections and food poisoning

Whey protein has been used in a number of animal and human feeding studies, where it has shown benefits in promoting weight gain, elevating glutathione levels (an antioxidant), and preventing metabolic acidosis (although the same can be claimed for virtually any high-quality protein source). Whether or not the minor content differences between various whey proteins actually result in any appreciable differences in muscle gain in humans (their primary claim) has never been demonstrated.

Safety

There are no adverse side effects associated with whey protein.

Value

Whey protein can be used as a general source of high quality, low fat protein in any diet. Those individuals who also want the supposed immune system benefits of whey protein, may want to consider the more expensive whey isolates produced by ion exchange filtration – be aware, however, that these claims are largely speculative and have not yet been adequately proven in human subjects. Individuals in this category may include athletes at risk for infection (during intense training or recovery) or anybody recovering from injury or illness. Those individuals simply looking for a high quality protein source to supplement their diet may want to consider one of the less expensive protein concentrates currently available, such as casein, egg, or soy.