Click Here to Sign Up for Your Free Fitness and Health Magazine Subscription
The Benefits Of Whey Protein
Protein forms the building blocks of all muscles. Adequate protein is crucial not only for maintaining muscle but also for building many immune complexes and chemical messengers in the body. There are many high-protein foods available today. And you may be consuming plenty of high-protein foods. But, are you actually assimilating the protein you need? After the age of 35 your digestive enzyme secretions start diminishing.
Without adequate enzymes, your body simply cannot digest a big chunk of protein very well. That partially digested protein begins to putrefy in the intestines, causing discomfort and leaching toxins into the system. Therefore, little of its valuable proteins can be assimilated by your body! This means that even if you're eating a protein-rich diet, you may actually be protein starved! Needless to say, this ineffective digestion doesn't do much for your health!
Among those few family-operated cheese making plants still in existence, stories occasionally circulate on how grandma drank a glass of whey a day to stay strong and healthy. Her energy level and physical well-being provided testimonial to the benefits of whey. Through the years, whey's negative disposition as a sub-component or by-product of cheese making overwhelmed its positive attributes, making it virtually impossible for whey-drinking grandmas to convince their offspring to drink this.
Whey proteins are complete proteins, supplying the body with essential amino acids required for good health. This is why whey proteins provide excellent nutrition for active teens, healthy adults and the elderly. Whey protein, once thought to be a useless by-product of cheese production, has recently become one of the most popular protein supplements. This is due, in part, to the development of several methods for distilling whey into a high-quality powder that is practically fat and lactose-free. Although it's the most expensive of the three protein powders (whey, casein and soy), whey has a number of advantages over other protein supplements.
It is reported that whey Proteins are digested much faster than less advanced proteins. Increased rate of digestion has been shown to result in increased plasma amino acid and protein synthesis attributes, which makes it particularly attractive in the field of clinical nutrition. Whey proteins are comprised of high-biological-value proteins and proteins that have different functions. A wealth of scientific research has proven that whey protein has the highest biological value (BV) of any protein. Biological value measures protein power and efficiency with which your body uses protein. The Whey Protein Institute's website gives a biological value of 100 to whey protein, 80 to casein and 74 to soy protein concentrate.
The main whey proteins are beta-lactoglobulin and alpha-lactoglobulin, two small globular proteins that account for about 70 to 80% of total whey protein. Proteins present in lesser amounts include the immunoglobulins IgG, IgA and IgM, but especially IgG, glycomacropeptides, bovine serum albumin, lactoferrin, lactoperoxidase and lysozyme. Whey proteins also contain smaller peptides derived from various proteins which are called biopeptides. Whey Proteins have been studied by various nutritionists and whey proteins have been shown to be useful in post operative care.
It is highly recommended in body cell repairing & growth as well as provides all essential Amino Acids in sufficient amount to provide the best possible solution for formulation of clinical foods. Whey Proteins consist of various minor proteins like L-lactoalbumin, Lactoferrin, immunoglobulins, serum albumin, Lactoperxidase etc. Having high therapeutic values. These constituents have special medical application in products to treat & prevent a large number of problems such as:
- Special formulation for diabetic patients
- For cardiac ailments
- For high cholesterol patients
- For liver, arthritis patients
- For burn patients
- To deal with situations like renal failure, gout, trauma etc.
Processing method (i.e., filtration, hydrolysis, ion-exchange, microfiltration, etc.) influences the availability and concentration of the variety of biologically active amino acids, peptides and fractions (i.e., alpha-lactalbumin, beta-lactoglobulin, glycomacropeptides, immunoglobulins and lactoferrin) within whey proteins. These differences may influence the physiological function of whey proteins.
Click Here to Sign Up for Your Free Fitness and Health Magazine Subscription
Home | Articles | Resources
All information presented throughout this web site is for educational purposes only; statements about products and health conditions have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration.