EndurElite Chief Endurance Officer Matt Mosman discusses the top 3 protein powder scams in the supplement industry, and how some companies are making a greater profit at your expense.
Video Transcription:
Good morning, endurance friends. Matt Mosman, your friendly neighborhood supplement nutrition guru, coming at you today to talk about Whey protein powder scams. Scandalous. Now, if you're like me, nothing makes you more dumb and mad than people who try to rip you off, and this is no different with some supplement companies out there today. And there are three common scams that a lot of companies will use specifically in protein powders to basically make an extra buck in their pocket, and then wasting your money, basically. I mean, I don't know anybody that likes flushing money down the toilet unless you like bajillionaire and that's something you do for your kicks. But in general, nobody likes wasting money on something that doesn't work.
Now, I'm going to talk about these three protein scams today. And these are nitrogen spiking, using an inferior form of Whey protein concentrate, and using a proprietary blend on the label to base of the sky is how much of a certain protein you're getting.
Nitrogen Spiking
So, let's just jump right into this, and start with the first protein scam. And this one is called nitrogen spiking and here is what you need to look out for. If you pick up a protein bottle and you turn it around, you should never ever, ever see amino acids like, creatine, glycine, and taurine in the other ingredients section on a protein bottle. And why this is, is when companies add those specific amino acids or other different ones that can artificially inflate how much protein you're actually getting.
So, you could have a protein that says, you know, 25 grams of protein on the label, but you may only be actually getting 15 grams of protein because of those amino acids in the other ingredients. And here's why amino acids are nitrogen bearing molecules, and when a protein goes to testing to test the total quality of protein in a product, it test it on nitrogen. So, when you shove those amino acids in there, they test out for the nitrogen, and again, they can artificially inflate that protein value. So, and there's one exception to this rule, if these amino acids are listed separately, and the bottle makes up perfectly, clear, and it separate from the total amount of protein, that might be okay. But if you see those amino acids in the other ingredients section, avoid that kind of protein powder at all costs. Don't do it. You won't be happy. So, that's protein scam number one.
Using Inferior Whey Protein Concentrate
Let's move onto protein scam number two. And this is using an inferior form of Whey protein concentrate. And this is probably one of the most common tricks that some makers of protein powders will use. So, Whey protein concentrate by definition, can be anywhere from 25% to 89% pure protein. So, you can probably see where this is going with how they basically take your money and rip you off here. A lot of companies will use the inferior form of weight protein concentrate. We're talking the 30% pure protein. So, not only are you getting an inferior form of that Whey protein concentrate, but you're also getting the lactose, the fat, and other things in there that you don't necessarily want. So, here's how you're going to avoid this one. If you buy a Whey protein concentrate, which is by far and away, the most popular protein powder on the shelf. You want to make absolutely sure that on the label it says that this whey protein concentrate is at least 80% pure protein. If it does not say that on the label, you are more than likely getting ripped off and they're probably using an inferior form of Whey protein concentrate in that product. So, that's protein scam number two, using an inferior form of Whey protein concentrate.
The Use Of Proprietary Blends
The last one we're going to talk about is when protein has a proprietary blend on the label. So, with Whey proteins, it might look like something like this. The first ingredient might be Whey protein concentrate, the second one might be Whey protein isolate, and the third one might be hydrolyzed way or some other, like, another malt protein or something like that. But a lot of what companies will do is, again, they'll put the cheapest ingredient first. So, Whey protein concentrate, and again, this could be an inferior form of Whey protein concentrate. So, they'll put a bunch of that in, and then they'll basically fairy dust the whey isolate and the hydrolyzed way in there. So, if you see a protein that has 25 grams of protein in it, and you have that Whey protein concentrate isolate, and hydroxide in that order, that company can legitimately, and this is allowed, they can put 24.99999 grams of a shitty Whey protein concentrate in there, and then put, you know, just fairy dust the Whey isolate and Whey hydroxide in there, just so it looks good. This is called window dressing in the stuff from the industry.
So, there you have it. Those are your three Whey protein scams. I hope by watching this, you become a more informed consumer especially when it comes to picking out protein powders. If you want more information like this on everything endurance related, training, supplementation, nutrition, etc., etc., etc., I encourage you to spend five-ten minutes on your blog. And more than likely, you're going to walk away with something that is gonna benefit your endurance performance. All right, my endurance friends, until next time. Stay fueled, stay focused, and stay fast.
