I'd recently dropped whey protein isolate, because I suspected something in my shake mix was giving me trouble. It turned out to be everything except the whey protein powder.

PDF link:
https://www.jssm.org/vol3/n3/2/v3n3-2pdf.pdf

It's an interesting article, like this information:



I regard whey protein powder as the same as non-fat dry milk, which I drank plenty of as a child, with no lack of nutrition that I'm aware of. But now I'm alert to processed food and their different levels.

I still try to pick the least processed, but I'm supposed to start my day with lots of protein, and my custom whey smoothie is easier to digest. I love steak and eggs, but I can no longer eat the whole plate until my energy is back up again.

More protein, the better I feel.

I read the article which seemed to show that the best proteins came from animal sources, but I wondered if they get some funding from the Soy industry and plant-based activists that made them come to the Conclusion - "However, the potential health concerns associated with a diet of protein consumed primarily from animal sources should be acknowledged. With a proper combination of sources, vegetable proteins may provide similar benefits as protein from animal sources." ???

That's an oldie from 2004, height of anti-Atkins. Bet they were unhappy when the results weren’t what they wanted. Ted Naiman has talked about other studies in his interviews. There are vegan bodybuilders but young and have to carefully supplement. Animal protein is complete, bioavailable, etc.

Marty Kendall blog post: Plant Protein vs Animal Protein. Are All Proteins Created Equal?
https://optimisingnutrition.com/pla...ein/#more-20446

Just found on DietDoctor while looking for something else, long answer about Whey Protein, including some nutritional info for five types of whey.

But before the list:
We recommend eating high-protein dairy foods rather than whey protein most of the time.

https://www.dietdoctor.com/high-pro...ry#whey-protein

I'm staying away from all five types he lists there: those are highly processed.

I loved this from the comparison of plant vs animal protein:



Which is also about the processing. I seem to remember previous advice from Diet Doctor about having to eat 30% more of plant-based protein sources to make up for the bioavailability.

It's sometimes very difficult to find out what should be very basic things. Like I stumbled on this article and wanted to share because there's so many different kinds of protein I wasn't aware of.

It seems like it would be cheaper to just eat junkfood instead of "Weight-gainer protein powder"
Protein percentage: 17%
13 grams of protein and 63 grams of carbs per serving (2.7 ounces/80 grams)

Horrible. But convenient.

Which is a great way to repeat JEY's point about eating real food. It doesn't have nutritional facts on the label, it needs some processing at home, and it needs minimal cooking skills. Grocery stores kept trying to get me to watch TV while I stood on line, but we all said, "I want to stare at the scandal sheets at my own pace, thank you. This is the news I'm interested in while standing next to candy as someone writes a check at the last minute."

But what I think people could watch are prep and cooking videos in produce, meat, and dairy aisles. Everything else has instructions on the box.

Sure, they could look it up at home. But they aren't going to purchase this weirdly shaped and colored THING first. And they aren't going to be produce-curious in our commercial world.

I've been doing diminishing cycles of what I can and can't eat. This holiday season made it clear that I will get maximum benefits from whole foods only. At this point, the whey powder is my only processed food, and I know it doesn't trigger me. An easily digestible source of protein when my appetite is low is golden for someone too sick -- which means too clumsy -- to do much cooking during lows. But I can electric kettle safely at such times. My only other palatable alternative is salmon, which I love, but not every meal. But I can easily alternate between the two until I get better.

I didn't think there was MUCH processed content in some of my other choices, but my body could tell. And the more I eat nothing but food that doesn't fight with me, the easier maintaining my remissions becomes.

But it's like we've always said, right here. There is no way to "cheat."