Although body builders and exercise enthusiast have been using protein powder for years, it hasn’t been a product that I’ve tried until recently.
However, since took the Dean Ornish heart health program two years ago, which is a low-fat vegan meal plan, I’ve been trying protein powers. But, I’m having problems finding ones without harmful additives.
An article on protein powder by the Environmental Working Group, or EWG, an environmental organization, gives helpful information on what you should know about this popular product, now a $24.6 billion industry.
More protein isn’t always better, writes JR Culpepper, author of the article, adding excess protein doesn’t necessarily give you more muscle, and an overly narrow focus on protein could lead you to consume significant amounts of extra calories. In addition, it could lead to eating more protein-heavy animal products, which have been linked to cardiovascular and other health issues.
Culpepper points out protein powders are classified as dietary supplements, which means they aren’t regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration like food and drinks are. The companies are responsible for verifying the safety of their products and their health claims.
Potentially harmful additives
That’s the problem I’m having. Many brands of protein powder contain artificial food dyes, sweeteners, and other potentially harmful chemicals. I rejected one brand that had stevia, but I’ve had problems with two other choices, too.
To mimic popular foods, such as cold cereals, protein powder brands use artificial dyes to add eye-catching colors and artificial sweeteners to improve their flavor without using sugar, the EWG article says. Petroleum-based artificial dyes have been associated with health problems, including behavioral and developmental issues in children and the potential for increased risk of cancer, according to a report by California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and others.
Protein powder is known for giving some people stomach problems, including stomach aches, bloating, and diarrhea, the EWG article says. Artificial sweeteners such as sucralose, erythritol, and aspartame are known to worsen these issues.
And some sweeteners may contribute to increased risk of certain heart diseases or other health harms, a study in the BMJ, a medical journal, reports.
Heavy metals
This is the problem I’m having now. I ordered Better Body Foods’ organic plant protein made from pea protein and quinoa powder. On the Amazon website, the company didn’t show that the package has a California Proposition 65 warning on hazardous substances. I didn’t notice it on the package. It came to my attention when an Amazon customer asked a question about it, and I received an email to respond to his question.
I got a refund for the protein powder from Amazon.
Then, I ordered what I thought was another stripped down protein powder, Sprout Living’s simple sunflower seed protein. Same problem. Another California Proposition 65 warning that wasn’t on the website, but on the package.
Culpepper said the Clean Label Project, a food transparency nonprofit, recently tested 160 products from 70 of the top-selling protein powder brands. The results showed that 47 percent of these products exceeded California’s Proposition 65 exposure safety guidelines for toxic metals, such as lead and cadmium.
Cadmium has been linked to kidney toxicity, bone damage, and cancer, and lead is widely known to cause irreversible brain damage and behavior and learning problems, according to the EWG.
Whey-based protein powder tended to have lower levels of metals, the Clean Label Project test results showed. However, 28 percent of whey products tested above California’s Proposition 65 safety threshold for lead.
Selection
Culpepper recommends using these tips if you decide to use protein supplements:
- Read the label to avoid products with artificial dyes and sweeteners. Try to stick with simpler flavors, which usually contain fewer ingredients and possibly fewer artificial dyes and sweeteners. They may have fewer ingredients and rely on artificial dyes and sweeteners less.
- Don’t use a protein shake to replace a meal. A meal with whole foods has more added nutrients, such as fiber, and provides support throughout the day better than a shake can.
- Look for third-party verification to ensure that a product has been tested for safety and that claims about its ingredients and absence of harmful additives have been verified.
For now, I’m skipping the protein powder smoothies.
