The Real Truth Behind Whey Protein Powders and Its Market

Many people become confused when choosing protein powders. There are so many brands and advertising claims that make really difficult for consumers to choose the right product for their needs. The promotion of confusion seems to be intentional. Manufacturers may not want consumers to find the truth on their products. The real truth is not necessarily ugly, but certainly it is not what consumers want. Many brands do not disclaim the content of their products. Of course, there are a few brands that clearly state the protein weight a dose, but this is not so enough.

The confusion starts whether to choose between whey protein isolate or whey protein concentrate. Some people think concentrate is better, or that it contains more protein than isolate. This is not the case.

Whey isolate is higher in protein content, usually 90%, minimum fat and virtually no lactose. Whey concentrate has from 34% to 80% protein. Based on the Department of Food Science & Technology, the whey protein isolate can raise the glutathione levels in the prostate, which in turns may provide improve defense against prostate cancer.

There is nothing wrong whether a whey product uses protein isolate or concentrate. The issue comes when the true content is not, or is improperly revealed. The purpose of this article is to investigate the several claims on the protein content and call the consumer’s attention the point.

No doubt whey protein isolate cost more and has the highest content of protein a dose. What makes it more expensive is the filtration process to extract all other ingredients, like lactose and fat, from the milk and leave most protein. Whey protein isolate is recommended for people lactose intolerant, for preparing the body to bodybuilding competition, for those wanting to losing weight while keeping muscle mass, or for those who had the body depleted of protein by surgeries or intense medical treatments like radiology or chemotherapy.

The whey protein concentrate on the other hand, is obtained from whey in more than one concentration. Depending on the stage of filtration the protein was extracted, the concentration of protein can be 34%, 50% or 80%. All these whey protein products have applicability. Most are used for baking, food preparation, animal food, and for preparing drinks like protein shakes. Of course, for the purpose of bodybuilding, fitness or for a good protein shake we would like to have a better product.

Let’s look further at some products. Some advertise “protein blends” like the Optimum Gold Standard. In the label, Protein Blend is defined as Whey Protein Isolate, Whey Protein Concentrate, and Whey Peptides. We could not find the weight of each ingredient in the blend. We cannot tell if this is the case, but one could speculate there is only 10% of protein isolate, which contains 90% of protein, with 90% of protein concentrate at 34%, which contains 34% of protein. Therefore, the final mix would contain just 39.6% of protein a dose.

Some other products, like the Zero-Carb Isopure, claims whey isolate, which is supposed to have 90% of protein, but the product contains fillers, like Soy Lecithin, Xanthan Gum, and other ingredients. The final weight of protein a dose is diluted to 50 grams in 65 grams. This is nearly 76.9%.

It is also noticed that some brands shows more weight of protein a dose. In this case, you will find that the dose recommended is higher than most other products.

Finally, I found a few manufacturers that do not add fillers or use “protein blends” as expedient to cover to real content of protein in the product. The whey protein used to make the protein powder is what it is as originally obtained by filtration. In other words, if the product claims it is made of whey protein isolate, it has 90% of protein. If it is claimed to be made of whey concentrate, it has 80% of protein. The price per jug may be higher, but the price of protein a dose is lower. Therefore there is a clear advantage by buying these products not to mention higher quality and better absorption of the protein by the body.