Whey Protein 101 – The Ultimate Guide For Beginners

The popularity of whey protein is unparalleled. This ultimate guide for beginners explains the types, usage, and dosage information of the same.

Bodybuilding enthusiasts literally swear by the many benefits of dairy-obtained protein, but are they actually aware of what exactly protein obtained from whey is and how is whey protein made? Let’s try to uncover some truths about the same.

Every time the discussion about bodybuilding supplements takes off, whey protein is the first name that comes to everyone’s mind. Certainly, supplementing your diet with the supplement is great for building muscle, but only adding it will not do any miracle and you must incorporate rigorous workout in your regimen for optimum results.

There has been a lot of confusion about whey products due to deceptive advertising by several protein manufacturers, which indeed makes understanding it a bit complicated.

With this article, we are trying to clean the air for you at once and will also strip away the myths surrounding this extremely popular bodybuilding supplement. By the time you will finish reading this article, you will be at least able to answer simple questions like, what is whey protein? How is it made? What is Ion filtration?

What is Whey Protein?

Whey is a high-quality protein, which is found naturally in milk and milk products. It is often referred to as ‘complete protein’ because it contains all the essential amino acids required by the human body and it is also very easy to digest. It has also often been regarded as the best source of branched amino acids (BCAA’s) like leucine, that has shown to stimulate muscle synthesis.

Various studies have shown that even a small amount of whey can be very beneficial for your body. Only 10 grams of whey protein consumed immediately after exercise can stimulate the rebuilding of muscles.

Why is Taking Whey Protein Important?

Apart from being a staple supplement for bodybuilders and athletes, whey is now also regarded highly for its positive effects on building immunity and its anti-aging properties. Several studies have found that it has the potential to improve immunity, lower cortisol, reduce stress, improve liver function, reduce blood pressure and a lot more pertaining to medical and sports related health conditions.

In addition to its high BCAA content, whey is also known for raising glutathione (GSH) levels in the human body. The importance of GSH for improving immunity cannot be understated as it is inarguably the most important water-soluble antioxidant found in the human body.

Because GSH is essential for immunity, this dairy-based protein can easily make a place for itself in anyone’s nutrition program. In relation to athletes and bodybuilders, it has been proven time and again that whey has a direct effect on performance and muscle mass. Some studies have also suggested that high levels of GSH help in training harder and for longer durations.

How is Whey Protein Made?

Whey is naturally found in cow’s milk, thus almost all of it originates at dairy farms. Cows are brought into a specialised milking parlour two to three times a day, where the milk is collected from them. The collected milk is then transported from the dairy farm to a manufacturing and processing centre where large tankers that can store up to 50,000 gallons of milk are employed.

Once the milk arrives at the processing centre, it is tested thoroughly to ensure that it is safe for consumption. There are two major proteins found in cow’s milk, one is casein protein which constitutes about 80% of protein reserve present in milk. The remaining 20% protein found in cow’s milk is whey.

Raw milk itself is made up of several constituent parts. Some of these parts are found in suspension while some are present in solution. Whey protein, in particular, is produced during the cheese making process, which begins after the addition of certain enzymes in raw milk. Enzymes made milk separate into several constituent parts, one of them being the curd. The curd that forms at this stage is later used to make cheese and during this cheese making process, the whey is left behind in liquid form.

Later on, this liquid whey is pasteurised and dried into a powder form, which is often used for consumption. The most popular processing methods used for making the same are:

• Microfiltration: Fine specialty filters called micro-filters or ultrafilters, because of their microscopic pores, are used to strain protein in this method. This is also called as the physical means of removing contents from the protein.
• Ion Exchange: In this method, the protein is placed in ion exchange towers, which undergoes a chemical purification process. Hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide are the two chemicals used in this process. Though this process is less expensive as compared to microfiltration, it causes damage to some of the amino acids found in whey. Once the protein is concentrated, it is then placed into the drying tower to remove the remaining water. The final step is to take protein for packaging in various sized containers.

Different Types of Whey Protein – Whey Isolate, Whey Concentrate, and Whey Hydrolysate

This type of protein can be further divided into following three types:

1. Whey Concentrate

This is the most commonly available whey supplement as most of the manufacturers use whey protein concentrate as the first ingredient of their protein powder. The amount of protein in whey concentrate can be as low as 25% or as high as 89%. Most of the sports nutrition contains close to 80% whey concentrate content abbreviated as WPC or WPC80, while rest of the product is made from 4 to 8 percent lactose, minerals, fat and moisture content.

2. Whey Isolate

Often abbreviated as WPI or WPI90, whey isolate is the purest form of whey, and consists of almost 90 to 95 percent protein. It is an excellent source of protein for those who are lactose intolerant as it contains little or no lactose and is also very low in fat.

3. Whey Hydrolysate

WPH or whey hydrolysate is made when large protein polypeptides found in whey break down into much shorter chains. This makes it easy to digest and aids faster absorption in the intestine, thus reducing the chances of any potential allergic reaction. This form of protein is the most expensive one and comes with a bitter, acidic taste. It is treated specially to make it soluble in water and other beverages. This kind of protein is mostly used in baby formulas or other specialised medical nutrition products.

Beginner’s Whey Protein Guide – Usage and Dosage

Here is a small but descriptive guide on the usage of different types of this protein by beginners:

Conclusion

This was the guide on whey protein for beginners. Keeping the above discussed points in mind, you can easily choose a product suitable for your requirements. Merely choosing the right product is not enough, make sure you consume the same in a proper way and right quantities as well.