QUESTION:
Protein powders confuse me. Some guys at my gym say that all whey protein is pretty much the same. They I could spend $15 at a discount store or $50 for the same thing at some fancy nutrition store. At first, I believed this. But after 3 months of no results, I’m beginning to question whether or not I get more out of a more expensive brand of protein? Plus, I get daily stomach aches. What’s your take on this?
Brandon
ANSWER:
Bandon, if there was ever a supplement that truly lives up to the statement,“You Get What You Pay For” — it’s protein!
Here’s a brief crash course for you on the benefits of whey protein. Undenatured whey protein offers many amazing health advantages, including: enhancing the immune system with immunoglobulins and lactoferrin to ward off disease and infection, synthesizing glutathione (a powerful antioxidant that works to detoxify the liver and body), and providing high concentrations of branched chain amino acids to increase protein synthesis to potentiate the muscle-building process.
Processing Matters
Whey protein offers these benefits because of the unique structure of their protein fractions. While these benefits sound remarkable, you won’t get them from cheap whey proteins thanks to their processing. To keep costs down (and the end price ‘cheap’), some protein manufacturers will use certain types of filtration processes, acid treatments, and other methods that involve heating the protein. These manufacturing processes actually alter the fractions in the whey protein. This changes their shape or they become ‘denatured’.
As I mentioned, whey protein offers many benefits due to the fact these protein fractions retain a particular shape. However, heat and acids alter their protein fractions. Consequently, this reduces the possible benefits you get from consuming whey protein.
With that being said, I suspect the cheap protein you’re currently using isn’t offering you all the benefits a quality protein SHOULD offer. I’m also guessing your cheap whey protein is causing stomach distress due to poor bioavailability that is consistent with significantly denatured, cheap proteins.
I personally use EFX Sports Training Ground proteins. They offer superior quality and have not been degraded by heat, acid, or even radiation the way cheaper brands might have been.
Lawsuits Abound
Oh, by the way. In case you missed it, multiple brands are in lawsuits for “spiking” their protein products with amino acids to make them appear to meet label claims. As you might imagine, the aminos used are much cheaper than the cost of quality whey protein, so it’s an easy way to increase margins. Unfortunately, consumers still pay the same price for less overall whey protein… and get an inferior product!
Jeff Golini, the formulator behind many of the products in the EFX Sports line, was interviewed as an industry expert for this expose featured on Forbes. In fact, the article makes the case for buying only high-quality protein products much better than I ever could.
Prove ‘Em Wrong,
Chad Shaw
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