There’s no shortage of whey products on the market, but unfortunately most of them will NOT give you the health benefits associated with high-quality whey.Most whey proteins are processed from ultra pasteurized milk and many are exposed to acid processing. Heat and acid damages the protein and makes it insoluble in water. Many cheap whey protein products are produced from acid cheese; they’re byproducts of acid processing, which is a cheap way to separate whey from the curd. Most of these whey products are rated below pet foods because of the inferior quality of the protein, which is actually more of a nitrogen waste product than one that will produce health benefits that are associated with whey.
In order to make these powders soluble in water they must add chemical flavors and detergents to restore flavor and solubility.
Overheated whey protein is a clearly an inferior form of whey that also changes its molecular shape. If you have taken biochemistry you will be familiar with optical isomers. Proteins in foods and in your body are in the L form, but processing used to produce some whey products produces damaging D optical isomers, which are not designed to be in your body. Depositing this D protein in your bone, brain and muscle is associated with accelerated aging. Accumulation of D proteins in the brain has been linked to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson.
If you are looking for a high quality whey and a good value stick with trusted brands like Optimum Health’s Pro Complete 40 or Intek Evolution Protein.
Dominick Walsh is a blogger for Performance Nutrition and TMRzoo.com and covers all men’s health topics and exercise issues including protein powders, diets, weight loss, weight lifting supplements, fat burners and supplement reviews. Dominick’s columns cover everything you need to know about your pre, during and post workout nutrition.
