A comprehensive overview of different protein powders and protein sources
A comprehensive overview of different protein powders and protein sources
The biggest advantage of protein supplements is not that you can build more muscle with their help than with meat, fish, egg white or other complete protein foods. The biggest advantage is convenience and practicality. Drinking a protein drink or eating a protein bar is much more convenient than preparing a meal, cooking and then cleaning up and washing up after cooking.
Protein supplements can be especially valuable for busy bodybuilders when traveling or at work. They can also be extremely important when trying to eat an extra protein meal or two to keep blood amino acid levels steady.
However, you should be careful when choosing your protein supplements, as not all protein supplements are created equal. For example, some less-than-optimal meal replacement products on the market today contain fairly low-quality protein sources, some of which have been denatured during the manufacturing process, while other products contain large amounts of sugar for a better taste.
There are also products that try to ride the low carb wave and contain large amounts of hydrogenated oils instead of carbohydrates. Several studies have shown that hydrogenated or hydrogenated fats and oils can impair important metabolic processes in the body. These studies have shown that hydrogenated oils can cause weakness and low energy levels, impair detoxification of the body by the liver and insulin function, lower testosterone levels and increase the risk of heart disease. These are, of course, all effects that are far from desirable for bodybuilders and athletes.
Another benefit of protein sources in the form of protein supplements is that they are usually manufactured to be digested faster than protein sources in the form of whole foods. In addition to faster digestibility, a very high percentage of a good protein powder will be fully digested and absorbed by the body due to the supplement's amino acid profile and low levels of lactose and fat. Many protein supplements available on the market are also partially hydrolyzed, i.e. broken down into individual amino acids and short-chain peptides, which means that they are digested and absorbed by the body even faster.
Protein supplements can also have other significant advantages over protein in the form of whole foods. Good protein supplements can provide the body with the amino acids needed for muscle mass gain and recovery without adding unneeded calories in the form of fat or carbohydrates. Some of the better meal replacement products offer an optimized nutritional profile that is difficult to achieve with whole foods.
After this introduction, the following sections of this article will first provide the reader with an overview of the most common protein sources and types of protein supplements available on the market in supplement form and then go into more detail about the manufacturing processes of different protein supplements.
The most common protein sources available in supplement form:
Egg Albumin Supplements:
Egg protein - and egg white in particular - has long been considered the best source of protein for bodybuilders due to its very high ratio of essential to non-essential amino acids. At the same time, egg protein has a bad reputation due to the high cholesterol content of egg yolk, which could slightly worsen blood cholesterol levels.
However, recent research shows that a moderate consumption of eggs - equivalent to one egg a day - does not increase the risk of cardiovascular disease in healthy people and can even improve well-being, as eggs contain numerous nutrients such as protein, vitamin B12, vitamin D, riboflavin and folic acid, which can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. When it comes to protein supplements that contain egg protein as a protein source, the cholesterol issue is usually irrelevant as most of these products only contain protein from the egg white.
However, even though egg protein is a very good source of protein, egg protein also has some disadvantages that speak against using egg protein as the sole source of protein to cover protein requirements. The first is that egg protein has only a modest content of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), which is lower than the BCAA content of most other common protein sources used by bodybuilders. Whey protein, for example, contains almost twice the amount of the branched-chain amino acid leucine, which is so important for stimulating protein synthesis. A further disadvantage, which only affects products that contain only egg white, is that egg white on its own has a lower biological value than protein from whole eggs. In addition to this, many people can only tolerate limited amounts of egg protein and react to larger amounts with bloating and a distended stomach.
You can find good egg protein supplements here.
Complete milk protein
Milk protein is rich in calcium, phosphorus, sodium, potassium, vitamin A, thiamine, riboflavin, nicotinic acid and vitamin B12. Complete milk protein" is the protein in milk that has been separated from other components of cow's milk, such as lactose and fat, by membrane separation.
Since neither a change in pH nor high temperatures are used during processing, most of the biologically active protein fractions of cow's milk, which only occur in limited quantities in other protein sources, are retained in significantly higher quantities. Scientific studies have shown that bioactive proteins found in whey protein and casein could reduce two of the primary risk factors that increase the risk of cardiovascular disease: Hypertension and dyslipidemia.
Milk protein is the ideal blend of whey protein and casein, providing the benefits of both protein sources. This combination provides the important bioactive protein fractions mentioned above in conjunction with a rapid onset and long-lasting amino acid supply that both increases the rate of protein synthesis and minimizes catabolic actions. This is one of the reasons that complete milk protein is used as the basis of the protein blend in many meal replacement products (MRPs).
You can find good milk protein products here.
Soy protein
Soy protein is a high quality protein that is both low in saturated fat and rich in healthy compounds. Compared to other protein sources, however, soy protein has no particular advantages for bodybuilders. Unlike casein, soy protein is a relatively fast digesting protein, but it is not digested as quickly as whey protein. In addition, the amino acid profile of soy protein is inferior to that of milk protein in terms of promoting muscle growth. On its own, soy protein therefore offers no real benefits for bodybuilders, but as an addition to an already broad protein spectrum, it can provide some important benefits.
Soy protein isolate:
Soy protein isolate has a higher biological value compared to plain soy protein. In addition, soy protein isolate has been shown to increase the release of thyroid hormones, which can increase the metabolic rate to promote fat loss.
However, the isolation process can reduce the amounts of high quality protein, isoflavones, essential fatty acids, fiber, lecithin and other beneficial nutrients, which also makes soy protein isolate less suitable for bodybuilders as a primary protein source to promote muscle building.
You can find good soy protein isolate products here.
Casein:
Casein is a protein that is isolated from milk, just like whey protein. One of the components of casein called K-casein or kappa-casein stabilizes the casein micelles. Casein is associated with cations - primarily calcium. These casein micelles form a calcium-caseinate-phosphate complex. Casein consists of 92% protein. On the market, casein is primarily available as calcium caseinate, sodium caseinate and micellar casein.
One of the primary benefits of proteins made from casein is that they are used more directly in the muscle building process than whey protein, which is readily used by the body as an alternative energy source. The less likely a protein is to be used for energy, the more carbohydrates will be used as an energy source. The more carbohydrates you use, the less carbohydrates are stored in the form of fat. Casein could therefore help to prevent you from building up fat too quickly, which is one of the reasons why casein could be the preferred choice for those trying to optimize their lean body mass.
Casein also contains high amounts of a natural peptide form of glutamine. This peptide form has the advantage of being better absorbed by the body due to the peptide transport system in the digestive tract. For this reason, glutamine peptides are also considered to be the most bioavailable form of glutamine and it is estimated that their absorption rate is about twice that of L-glutamine.
Glutamine is a conditionally essential amino acid that makes up about 60% of the free amino acids in skeletal muscle. Glutamine is known among athletes for its positive effects on growth hormone levels, testosterone levels, cell volumization, immune system function and protein synthesis in the muscles.
A further advantage of casein is that it has a delayed release of amino acids, which means that the amino acids released during the digestion of casein are released slowly and evenly into the bloodstream over a longer period of time. This delayed effect is due to casein forming a gel in the stomach, which slows down the rate of digestion and the breakdown of the protein into amino acids and peptides.
Due to the consistently increased plasma levels of amino acids over a longer period of time, the consumption of casein can lead to a more positive net protein balance in the body compared to whey protein, which is why casein is often referred to as an anti-catabolic protein. Preventing catabolism can create an optimal environment for muscle growth. The slow, time-released effect of casein can significantly inhibit catabolic protein breakdown in the body, making casein the optimal choice for the last meal before going to bed to provide a steady supply of amino acids until the morning.
Casein may not be cheap and is generally more expensive than whey protein concentrate, but it is also a high quality protein source with no nutritional drawbacks.
You can find good casein products here.
Whey protein:
Whey protein is a milk protein that comes in the form of whey as a by-product of cheese production, which used to be considered a waste product of the dairy industry. Whey protein is one of the proteins with the highest biological value, rich in the branched-chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine, which play a key role in the muscle-building process. With up to 25% BCAAs, whey protein contains the highest BCAA content of all protein types.
Whey protein is considered a fast-acting protein as its short protein chains and peptides can be quickly digested and absorbed by the body, making them available within 20 to 30 minutes of consumption. This is extremely fast compared to whole foods and even more so compared to casein. This property makes whey protein an excellent source of protein for consumption directly after training when rapid recovery is required.
Whey protein also has a number of other benefits. Studies have shown that it contains a variety of bioactive peptides and protein subfractions that can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, among other things. These compounds have ACE-inhibiting, opioid-like, antithrombotic, cholesterol-lowering and antioxidant properties.
However, whey protein also has some disadvantages compared to other types of protein. Whey protein contains less glutamine and arginine than other protein variants and is also less satiating than more slowly digestible proteins such as casein due to its rapid digestion.
You can find good whey protein products here.
Casein whey protein blends:
Both whey protein and casein have positive and beneficial properties. They are absorbed by the body at different rates and cause different metabolic reactions. If you look at the properties of casein and whey protein, you quickly realize that these two proteins complement each other perfectly.
An excellent example of a mixture of casein and whey protein is milk protein isolate or the natural protein spectrum of milk. Casein whey protein blends are very beneficial because the casein slows down the rate of digestion of the whey protein, allowing for a delayed release of an amino acid spectrum into the bloodstream that includes the best of both whey protein and casein. Of course, casein does not delay the digestion of whey protein to the extent that it fully matches the slow digestion rate of casein.
This combination of faster and slower acting proteins is very well suited for maximizing the muscle growth process, as this blend has all the benefits of a high quality whey protein - such as bioactive peptides that can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, immunoglobulins that support immune function, one of the highest concentrations of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), high biological value, high amounts of valuable protein fractions such as glycomacropeptides, proteose peptones, lactoferrin, etc. - with the advantages of casein - such as biologically active peptides, a high glutamine content, bioactive ACE-inhibiting casokinins, etc. - combined.
You can find good milk protein products here.
Protein production and processing methods
In addition to choosing a good protein source, it is at least as important to take a closer look at the manufacturing and processing methods. Processing can completely change the components of the protein that were present in the unprocessed raw material. The manufacturing process also determines whether important protein microfractions, which are responsible for the functional benefits of whey protein, for example, are still intact in the end product and have not been denatured, destroyed or removed.
The processing of soy protein:
The process of making soy protein isolate from soybeans involves defatting the ground up germ of the soybeans with hexanes, solubilizing the defatted protein with an alkaline buffer to remove insoluble complex carbohydrates, and removing the starch and other soluble components from the protein in an alkaline solution.
However, this last step also removes some important protein fractions. In addition, the alkaline treatment of the protein can lead to hydrolysis in sensitive regions of the protein. The result is a protein profile that differs more or less significantly from the protein profile of the whole soybean.
As a result, soy protein may not have all the positive health benefits attributed to soy products and soy protein in its natural form.
The processing of milk protein:
Micellar Casein:
Micellar casein is a very high quality protein that is produced without the use of chemicals and is therefore in its natural form.
Micellar casein is sometimes also referred to as milk protein isolate or concentrate. These terms refer to exactly the same product, as both consist largely of micellar casein and a small amount of whey protein. Caseinates, on the other hand, are produced using a chemical reaction. Even though caseinates are very pure protein products, they are denatured and therefore of inferior quality.
Compared to whey protein, casein is quite stable against denaturation caused by a change in pH or heat. Many people confuse casein with caseinate, which is produced by changing the acidic pH of casein to a more neutral value through the use of alkaline substances. The resulting caseinate is more soluble in water than casein and is perceived as having a more pleasant taste. Casein, on the other hand, forms a stable suspension in water in its native micellar structure and contains a number of biologically active peptide sequences that can be of great value to athletes.
Whey protein concentrates:
Whey protein concentrates are made from sweet whey, from which most of the fat and lactose and other undesirable components are removed. Whey protein concentrates are processed at low temperatures and slightly acidic conditions. The low processing temperature and filtration process in a slightly acidic environment ensures that over 90% of the protein contained remains intact, allowing the final product to retain most of the active peptides in whey that are important for growth.
Whey protein concentrates typically consist of 70 to 80% protein, around 3 to 5% fat and 5 to 10% carbohydrates, although these values vary depending on the quality and manufacturer. In contrast to whey protein isolates, some of which contain only 1% lactose or less, whey protein concentrates contain 5 to 10% lactose.
One reason why whey protein concentrates are so popular in the supplement industry is the relatively low cost of production. Manufacturers may label their product as 100% whey protein, but this does not necessarily say anything about the true quality of the product.
Compared to whey protein concentrate, a good whey protein isolate is probably the better choice, with higher bioavailability. Of course, this in no way means that whey protein concentrates are bad. In combination with other good protein sources and hard training sessions, they can help the user to make good gains, although some experts believe that whey protein isolates result in better gains and should therefore be preferred.
Whey protein isolate:
High quality whey protein isolate provides key microfractions such as alpha-lactalbimun and glycomacropeptides, both of which can positively influence immune system function, as well as a very high concentration of branched-chain amino acids BCAAs, which can positively influence lean muscle mass and reduce muscle breakdown. Furthermore, high-quality whey protein isolate increases the body's glutathione levels, which is the body's most effective natural antioxidant and a key compound of the immune system. In addition, whey protein isolate is characterized by very good digestibility and a very high absorption rate and contains only traces of lactose and fat.
You can find good whey protein isolate products here.
Ion-exchanged whey protein:
This manufacturing process was developed over 20 years ago and works by using positive and negative charges on components of the whey protein. Using electrical charges, only the protein can be specifically isolated.
Ion-exchanged whey protein isolate is produced from sweet whey and the ion exchange process delivers an end product that contains more than 90% protein - and therefore significantly more than the 70 to 80% protein in whey protein concentrate. Ion-exchanged whey protein isolate is easily soluble in liquids and has a pleasant taste.
The main disadvantage of ion-exchanged whey protein is that important peptides and microfractions of the whey protein are denatured and therefore rendered useless. This is an important point because even if an ion-exchanged whey protein isolate has a significantly higher protein content than a good whey protein concentrate, it may be less effective than a high quality whey protein concentrate due to the lower amount of intact, undenatured peptides.
Another potential disadvantage of ion-exchanged whey protein isolate is that it may contain high levels of beta-lactalbumin and alpha-lactalbumin, the ratios of which differ significantly from those found in milk.
In addition, ion-exchanged whey protein isolate does not contain significant amounts of biologically active whey protein fractions such as lactoferrin. This is due to the fact that the ion exchange process cannot isolate the smaller biologically active whey protein fractions. This is a significant disadvantage as there are numerous studies showing that biologically active whey protein fractions such as glycomacropeptides, proteose peptones and lactoferrin have important health benefits. Lactoferrin, for example, has a stimulating effect on the immune system and strong antiviral properties.
Microfiltered whey protein:
Microfiltration, which is also known as ultrafiltration, is a process that uses filter membranes to filter out fat and lactose from whey. The resulting whey protein contains up to 85% protein and only 1% fat.
The primary disadvantage of ultrafiltration compared to the ion exchange process is that filtered whey protein is not quite as pure. True ion-exchanged protein can reach a protein content of over 90% pure protein, while filtered whey protein isolates contain an average of 85 to 87% pure protein. Filtered whey protein isolates also contain slightly more fat and lactose than ion-exchanged whey protein isolate, although these differences are not really relevant in practice.
However, filtered whey protein also has decisive advantages that far outweigh its minor disadvantages. The primary advantage is that filtered whey protein isolate contains significantly higher quantities of valuable whey protein fractions such as glycomacropeptides, proteose peptones and lactoferrin.
Cross flow microfiltered whey protein:
Cross flow filtration methods were developed to solve some of the denaturation problems that occur with the ion exchange method. The cross flow filtration method is similar to the microfiltration process.
This process is used to obtain a highly soluble protein that has a higher calcium content. In addition, cross flow microfiltered whey protein contains a good amount of branched-chain amino acids. As the manufacturing process for this whey protein has been patented and license fees are involved, Cross Flow microfiltered whey protein is slightly more expensive, but it is worth the extra cost if you have the budget.
The cross flow microfiltration process produces a whey protein isolate that contains more than 90% protein and no fat or lactose, and unlike the ion exchange process, the cross flow microfiltration process leaves nearly 100% of the protein and important peptides intact.
Protein hydrolysates:
Protein hydrolysates are proteins that have been broken down by enzymes into short amino acid chains, also known as peptides. Protein hydrolysates are easier to digest and generally have a lower potential for allergic reactions compared to non-hydrolyzed proteins.
Hydrolyzed protein contains peptides that can be readily absorbed in the digestive tract due to the peptide transport system. Studies have shown that hydrolyzed protein can be absorbed in half the time required for absorption of intact protein. The benefit of this is that the rapid delivery can provide the body with nutrients when it needs them most, such as immediately after weight training for faster recovery and increased muscle mass gain.
One disadvantage of hydrolyzed proteins, however, is that the thermal effect of the protein is lost. The thermal effect is the energy that the body has to expend in order to digest, absorb and process the protein. This thermal effect is between 20 and 30% of the calories consumed in the form of protein. Another potential disadvantage is that the heat treatment and enzymatic breakdown process can destroy many of the important protein microfractions, including all growth factors and immunoglobulins.
If used correctly and in a targeted manner, hydrolyzed protein can nevertheless be more effective than complete proteins in terms of protein synthesis, as it enters the bloodstream more quickly.
Hydrolyzed whey protein is rich in L-glutamine and anti-catabolic branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs).
You can find good products with hydrolyzed protein here.
Lactalbumin:
Lactalbumin is a protein powder that is made using a process that involves high heat and acid. Due to the heat and acid, most of the protein fractions contained in the whey protein are denatured or broken down. For this reason, lactalbumin is not a good choice.
Source: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/protein5.htm#1
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