Misleading Protein Powder Claims (Amino Spiking)

tedrickp

I have been seeing a lot of messages recently about protein powder on the forums and I wanted to bring something up. A lot of brands (big name brands too) may not be fully honest about their protein content.

In general - The total protein for labelling purposes is based on the nitrogen content (based on testing).

The problem is - complete whey protein isn't the only thing that will register as nitrogen. Single amino acids will also increase the nitrogen count.

So why is this a problem?

The single amino acids aren't a complete protein and your body can't use them as such.

So why do some manufacturers add it?

Well they may disingenuously try to spin it as "added recovery" or other marketing gimmicks. They may include Creatine (another nitrogenous acid) and spout the benefits of it on the label.

The real reason though - is because that **** is way cheaper than whey isolate. Creatine is probably half the cost. Other single amino acids like Glycene and Taurine are EVEN cheaper.

So they can toss this (useless IMO) crap in, save money AND boost their protein claims on the label.

So What Can I Do About it?

Well first off some companies will say straight up on their label that their protein testing doesn't include the amino acids (or so I have heard, Ive never seen it). Secondly - read the ingredient list. Below is an image I whipped up and posted before...



On the left is a well trusted brand...in fact I will name names in that case - Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard. Note the simple ingredient list. Beside that are labels from two very well known brands that i will not name (I may crosspost this on my blog if I ever set it up and I don't want to get sued by lying crybabies). I used these labels though because many people on the forums listed these powders as their favorites.

Look at how high in the ingredient list things like Glycene, Taurine and Creatine show up. (Side note - while I believe Creatine has been proven to be a useful supplement for creatine responders - if you want to use it - just buy it on it's own. Even creapure monohydrate is cheap as heck).

For me - I would be highly suspicious of any labels that include single amino acids (especially cheap *kitten* taurine and glycene) so high in the list. It is quite likely the reported protein levels on the label, don't translate to full protein that your body can use.

You can do a google search on "Protein Spiking" or "Amino Spiking" and learn more.

The first time I had heard of this was recently.

Full Disclosure:

1. The first person I heard mention it was Marc Lobliner. As some of you may know he has his own Whey Protein (MTS) so there is a potential conflict of interest. Here is the video though: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntSyz018rxw Off top of my head I am going to say it is NSFW - can't remember if it is, but judging from Lobliner's body of work - its safe to say it is. Believe/trust him or not - his channel is totally entertaining LOL

2. I guess some companies could simply not list the aminos on their ingredient list. In this case there is really nothing you can do

3. For the average person, if they are getting a couple grams less protein per scoop is it a big deal? Counting macros in general is inexact science, but if I am paying my hard earned money for something, I want the listed 26g of protein...not 22g (yes I pulled those numbers out of my *kitten*).

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Would love to hear from some of the significantly smarter people on the forums to see if my fear is off base for some reason or to correct any thing that I mentioned.

blazergrad

Just now stumbled across this post and I realize it's 3 months old, but I've recently started reading up on protein spiking as well after seeing this article:

http://www.jimstoppani.com/home/articles/protein-spiking?preview

Now Dr. Stoppani is launching his own brand of products, so some people may be skeptical, but I for one trust him and believe what he states about his own products. I use his pre-workout formula and for me personally, it works great.... and I plan on trying his protein powder when it's released.