Which protein powder is right for me?

Three protein powders walk into a bar (well technically four, but I tried egg albumen protein powder a while ago, and I would never do that to anyone**).

I get asked a lot about which protein powder people should use. The answer really depends on you – what your goals are and what you can tolerate.

Different sources of protein have different amino acid profiles, amino acids being what protein is broken down to and used throughout the body. I should probably point out, amino acids (a.k.a. protein) do a whole lot more than just make our muscle: every enzyme, neurotransmitter, immune system messenger, hormone, connective tissue and even our DNA is made up of protein.

But each of these proteins use different amino acids in different amounts to make them. So it’s crucial to get the full spectrum of amino acids (or at the very least, the nine essential amino acids, essential referring to the fact these must be consumed in the diet). I see this pop up in clinic fairly regularly, with patients taking excessive amounts of collagen-based proteins to support their hair, skin and nails and not really getting enough of other proteins. Collagen is definitely a great addition, but it has a pretty narrow amino acid profile, so it’s not meating (zing) all your protein needs. In experiments they’ve actually used collagen-heavy diets to induce depression in mice, because it lacks the essential amino acid tryptophan our bodies are completely reliant on to produce serotonin.  

So what are some of the pro’s and con’s of the different types of protein? Let’s look at them each individually.

Head’s up: this is a long post. Perhaps make yourself a cuppa and a protein ball (chortle) and set aside some time to read.

**Sad side-fact: eggs have a pretty much textbook perfect amino acid profile, so much so that other proteins get measured against them in terms of their amino acid content. But truly, the egg protein powder I tried was inedible, and it went straight to my +1’s smoothie stash. Just eat the damn eggs if you want their benefits (is what I wish I’d told my click-happy self when throwing my money at the protein supplies website).

Collagen

In terms of amino acids, collagen is particularly rich in proline and hydroxyproline, which our body then uses to make… collagen. Shock.

But what is collagen used for? It’s actually the body’s most abundant protein because it’s the base of our connective tissue, which includes joints, bones and hair, skin and nails. So collagen is a great supporting-

-          bone health (all the osteo’s: -porosis, -paenia and -malacia)

-          joint conditions (osteoarthritis) 

-          weak/brittle hair and nails and skin elasticity (hello 40s my old friend…)

You can buy different forms of collagen that are more specific to a certain type of tissue, which allows you to target each of these 3 areas therapeutically.

Collagen also contains extremely high levels of glycine, which is needed to make the key antioxidant glutathione and supports healthy sleep patterns.

Because collagen is used to build connective tissue it technically assists muscle growth, which will support athletic performance indirectly. And while it can definitely play a direct role in athletic performance because of the relatively high levels of glycine and arginine (which our body uses to make creatine to release quick bursts of energy under conditions of high energy demand like sprints), I wouldn’t be relying on it for solely training purposes. Of note, it contains minimal amounts of the branched chain amino acids (BCAAs), which the muscles use to create energy in the first place (vs. creatine which just regenerates it).

Collagen pops up in some commercially-available gut healing powders, and while the lining of your gut is a form of connective tissue, if you need therapeutic support for this I’d suggest isolated amino acids glutamine, serine and threonine (alongside the proline in collagen) instead of relying on collagen alone.

The supplemental collagen you buy is hydrolysed, which means it’s been partially broken down for you. This enhances absorption from the gut, so it’s no surprise hydrolysed forms yield better results in clinical trials.

But I have a suspicion this also impacts collagen’s ability to stabilise post-prandial blood sugar: the reason protein prevents spikes and drops in blood glucose when you eat it as part of a meal is that it’s harder to digest than carbohydrates (which quickly get broken down into glucose and rapidly absorbed). Consuming carbs alongside protein slows down the digestion and absorption of said glucose, which means there’s no rapid rise in blood sugar, thus attenuating massive insulin spikes which cause blood glucose to plummet. Stable blood glucose = stable energy, steady appetite, no cravings or hypoglycaemic symptoms like shaking and sweating.

But if the protein has already been partially digested for you (i.e. hydrolysed), you lose this ability to slow the absorption of glucose, and hence protein’s blood sugar-stabilising effects. I’ve seen this on countless continual glucose monitor (CGM) readings, where a protein shake made with collagen failed to match the blood glucose control as the same protein shake made with whey.

If you’re going to consume significant amounts of collagen you should opt for a product produced from cattle fed organic, glyphosate-free feed, as bones and connective tissue have been shown to be big repositories of this very toxic herbicide.

Pro’s-

-          Tastes like nothing and dissolves into practically everything, so this is easy to pop into smoothies, hot drinks, sauces, overnight oats, baking…  

Con’s-

-          Not a complete protein source so you can’t rely solely on it for all your protein needs and won’t fill you up and control your blood glucose as well as other forms of protein.

Vegan:

Most vegan protein powders come from brown rice, pea, soy and hemp. While it’s easy to find these protein powders individually, it’s super important to use a good quality blend here, as plant foods unfortunately tend to be limited in their amino acid profile (only soy protein is considered “complete”, containing all nine essential amino acids).

The best option is a pea and rice blend (or even better one that also uses pumpkin protein to round out the amino acid profile). When the profile is complete and the serving size provides adequate protein there’s no reason a plant-based protein can’t support your muscle growth and weight loss needs; studies have shown plant-based protein powders are as effective as whey as long as there’s the same amount of total protein and BCAAs (these are the amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine which are reserved solely for our muscles to provide energy).

Pro’s-

-          The only option that’s both vegan and dairy free.

Con’s-

-          The texture can be a little tough to work with, and it definitely doesn’t dissolve as easily as collagen, so it really works best in a smoothie where it can be spun into oblivion.

-          You do need significantly more in each serve to get the same amount of protein as non-plant-based options, especially ones like hemp. This can make it a little more expensive and the taste/texture of your smoothie can start to change too (think less creamy and more chalky. Yum).

-          Some plant-based protein powders — especially those containing pea protein — can cause bloating and cramping if you have IBS or are sensitive to FODMAPs.

Tip: make sure your vegan protein is delivering 20-30g of protein per serve, and if your goal is muscle growth make sure you pick a blend that contains 5-12g of BCAAs (at least 3 grams of which needs to be leucine).

Whey:

This one probably gets a lot less love in the wellness circles because it is derived from cow’s milk. But it should be noted there is a plethora of evidence that whey is the protein super star when it comes to athletic performance and muscle recovery, and, most importantly for metabolic health, lean muscle synthesis, due to its high content of BCAAs. It’s also been shown to boost the function of the immune system and improve overall health.

Whey protein is separated from the other protein in milk (casein) enzymatically, which turns the casein into curds (Little Miss Muffet-style). The whey is then filtered to remove most of the fat and carbohydrates (lactose). What you’re left with is Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC), which is around 80% protein. If that WPC undergoes an additional step of filtration, it becomes Whey Protein Isolate (WPI), which is around 90% protein. If muscle synthesis is your goal, WPI (as opposed to WPC) is your go-to, as it’s the fastest absorbed and contains more protein per serve.

Pro’s-

-          As a complete protein, whey contains all nine essential amino acids and the highest amount of BCAAs.

-          Blend-ability lies somewhere between collagen and vegan proteins: I’ve tried blending it through oats to mixed results (I think the trick is to keep the dose relatively low, which is possible with whey because of the higher protein content compared to a vegan protein powder).

-          The higher protein content also means it ends up being quite cost effective per serve.

Con’s-

-          It is dairy-based, so if you are vegan, like collagen, it’s a no.

-          It also contains minute traces of lactose, which means if you have issues with this sugar it could cause gut problems. WPI contains less lactose than whey protein concentrate, but you’d have to be severely lactose intolerant to get a reaction from either, as it’s mostly removed during processing.

-          Similarly, if you have a whey intolerance (which is not uncommon) this isn’t an option for you. But if it’s casein you react to (the other protein in milk), whey isn’t a problem.