A few years ago, supplements and sports nutrition were mainly used by top-level athletes. Today, amateur athletes are also taking various nutritional supplements, including whey protein, a protein-rich powder. Although whey supplementation has become commonplace, professionals preparing for a competition need to be extremely careful in their choice of protein powder or other dietary supplements.
Consuming poor-quality dietary supplements can have very harmful consequences for athletes. They may gain weight unexpectedly, test positive in anti-doping tests, or expose their health to various disorders. Here are our tips to help high-level athletes choose their whey protein.
High-level sport and whey protein: why?
For the past ten years, protein supplementation has been a matter of course for top-level athletes. But beforeintroducing a protein powder into one's diet, it's important to understand the objectives of this practice. We won't go into the different types of whey here, for which you can read our article on the difference between whey protein, whey isolate and vegetable protein.
Firstly, the level of the athlete and the type of sport play an important role in the choice of a particular supplement. Choosing a whey when you're a beginner doesn't involve the same considerations as when you're competing at a high level.
For people who practice endurance sports, the main focus is on accelerating and improving muscle recovery. As a general rule, 20-25 g of fast-absorbing protein, taken after exercise, is sufficient to repair muscle damage sustained during training and promote muscle reconstruction. We provide more details on this topic in our article entitled What to take for muscle recovery.
For those who enjoy strength training and weightlifting, consuming protein powder is essential for gaining muscle mass. The amino acids, particularly BCAAs, provided by whey help the body synthesize more muscle fibers. The recommended dose will vary from one individual to another depending on their diet and goals. However, the aim is to achieve a protein intake of between 1.6 and 2 g/kg/day.
Note that the competition period sometimes involves increased weight monitoring, so choosing a whey suitable for dry training is a point not to be overlooked for optimum results. To find out more, read our article on the differences between whey and casein.
Sportsmen and women have a choice of protein supplements. However, whey seems to be the most suitable product for sports supplementation. Obtained by mechanical filtration, without solvents, it is very rich in essential amino acids, especially BCAA, leucine, isoleucine and valine, the amino acids most involved in muscle metabolism. What's more, this substance is easily and rapidly assimilated by the body. To find out more: Why take whey?
Can athletes trust the quality of whey sold on the market?
Yes and no! Choosing the right whey for your goals and metabolism is not always easy without the help of a nutritionist. Legislation governing whey and protein powder production varies from country to country. Within the European Community, the dairy industry is fairly regulated.
For protein powder from outside the European Union, the situation is a little more worrying, with loopholes that encourage various forms of contamination. Today, most whey sold is made up of numerous ingredients and additives from different production sites.
Beyond the marketing that describes each whey as THE best on the market, qualities seem to be very heterogeneous. One study1 points to a worrying contamination with anabolic steroids. In short, choosing a cheap, poorly controlled whey is not the right choice for high-level athletes.
But aside from potential contamination with anabolic steroids, is whey a performance-enhancing drug? To reduce the risk of exposure to doping, high-level athletes would be well advised to opt for high-quality protein powders and whey, without additives and certified doping-free. There is a French anti-doping standard, AFNOR NF V 94-001, which certifies non-doping dietary supplements. You can still find products with this certification, which will gradually disappear and be replaced in May 2021 by a European standard , NF EN 17444. The presence of these anti-doping certifications is essential for high-level athletes.
Before choosing any whey, it's important to check for the presence of this label, even for whey made in France. Similar initiatives have been launched in other countries. So, for example, if athletes wish to buy American or Canadian wheys, they must recognize the anti-doping labels in force on the other side of the Atlantic.
Finally, beware of organic whey because the milk is often of Austrian origin. If the ecological impact of your diet is important, always check the country of origin of products. On the subject of health, see also these articles:
- Is whey dangerous for the heart?
- What are the real dangers of whey protein?
- What are the side effects of protein powder?
Beware of products containing additives
Contamination with steroids and other doping substances is often linked to the addition of additives, which increase the risk of undesirable compounds ending up in whey. Endurance athletes and bodybuilders should therefore choose their whey protein based on whether or not it contains additives. This detail can be considered an indicator of quality.
Apart from the correlation between contamination and additives, the latter could be directly harmful to consumer health. Many researchers point the finger at sweeteners, particularly sucralose. This highly sweetening compound can alter the perception of sweet flavors and encourage athletes to seek out ever more sugar in their diet, lowering their sensitivity to sweet taste. This ultimately exposes them to weight gain and/or various disorders such as diabetes.
Specialists encourage athletes to be particularly careful with additives. Remember that taking whey or protein powder is a long-term process. In this sense, the risks are those of long-term exposure. Even a very low dosage of a substance could ultimately wreak havoc. Hence the need to choose a whey without additives.
In conclusion
Both top-level and amateur athletes need to choose their whey carefully. Consumers should look for the anti-doping label on the product's packaging.
They should also consult the list of ingredients. It's not just a question of looking at the amino acid and BCAA content. Choose a product with no additives or synthetic sweeteners. A whey from a local, high-quality milk source is also a plus for top-level athletes.
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