Nobody who buys a top-rated protein energy expects they’re additionally sipping lead, BPA, and mercury. However a latest unbiased examine confirmed that protein powder aficionados are getting far more endocrine disruption than they signed up for1. The Clear Label Venture lately tasked an unbiased lab with testing 160 of the main protein powders from 70 top-selling manufacturers (over 80 % of the market providing) for 130 totally different toxins. The findings have been stunning, to say the least.
Most protein powders on the American market contained hazardous contaminants like mercury, BPA, and even arsenic. To prime all of it off, the worst offenders have been plant-based and natural protein powders, greater than 75 % of which had measurable ranges of heavy metals like lead.
“It’s horrifying,” mentioned Jackie Bowen, MPH, MS, Clear Label Venture govt director, “to suppose people who find themselves attempting to eat more healthy by incorporating a dietary protein powder complement into their food plan may very well be ingesting lead and BPA.”
Practically Half of the Examined Protein Powders Contained Unsafe Ranges of Heavy Metals
Forty-seven % of the protein powders included within the take a look at exceeded a minimum of one state or federal regulatory security threshold for poisonous metals. Over a fifth of them contained ranges greater than twice as excessive as these allowed beneath California Proposition 65, a 1986 regulation requiring companies to offer warnings about potential publicity to harmful chemical compounds.
In response to Dr. Joseph Mercola, Board Licensed Household Medication Osteopathic Doctor (DO) and Writer of Your Guide to Mobile Well being, it is a main well being threat.
“Even low ranges of heavy metals like lead, cadmium, arsenic, and mercury can accumulate in your physique over time, resulting in extreme well being points akin to neurological impairment, organ failure, and an elevated threat of most cancers,” he mentioned. ”The absence of federal laws governing heavy metals in dietary dietary supplements solely exacerbates this downside, leaving customers weak to potential long-term well being penalties.”
Three-Quarters of Plant-Based mostly Powders Contained A great deal of Lead
The protein in protein powder has to return from someplace. In lots of circumstances, it comes from an animal supply: whey and casein come from dairy; collagen is usually sourced from cattle, or egg. Plant-based options could also be made with all forms of naturally wealthy sources of protein like soy, pea, or rice.
However whereas plant-based diets have been confirmed to be more healthy for each folks and the planet, the identical can’t be mentioned of plant-based protein powders, which have been a number of the worst contenders on the subject of lead contamination. A whopping 77 % of plant-based powders within the take a look at exceeded Prop 65 ranges for the heavy steel — thrice greater than whey- or collagen-based options.
The consequences of lead publicity are nothing to fiddle with — even low ranges of lead publicity can have devastating well being results. In response to the Nationwide Institute of Environmental Well being Providers, blood ranges under 10 µg/dl are related to hypertension and will increase in blood strain2. Even half that quantity could result in decreased kidney perform.
Along with lead in protein powders, plant-based protein powders have been discovered to comprise mercury, cadmium, and arsenic. Sean Callan, PhD, director of operations and high quality at Ellipse Analytics, the lab that carried out the testing, says this, could also be the results of contaminated soil on the supply.
“That is very true in america,” he mentioned, “the place there could also be a better incidence of heavy metals within the soil of some areas.”
Natural Protein Powders Had been Extra Contaminated than Standard
If customers of natural protein powders thought they have been within the clear, these outcomes provide a impolite awakening. Natural protein powders have been even extra contaminated than typical options, with 79 % of natural protein powders exceeding Prop 65 acceptable ranges for heavy metals.
Forty-one % of natural protein powders examined over twice the Prop 65 beneficial restrict for lead, with thrice as a lot as the traditional powders. In addition they contained twice the quantity of cadmium, a cumulative nephrotoxicant. Even low ranges of cadmium have been proven to contribute to kidney dysfunction and reduces in bone mineral density3.
2020 analysis within the Worldwide Journal of Environmental Analysis and Public Well being confirmed that low ranges of cadmium publicity may additionally injury the liver and cardiovascular system and result in opposed results on each feminine and male replica4. Ladies naturally have a better cadmium physique burden than males, the examine authors defined. Compounded with the substance’s impact on the skeletal system and hormones, this might enhance the chance of growing osteoporosis.
Mercola discovered the upper presence of contaminants in natural powders “curious,” seeing as biosludge, artificial fertilizers, and pesticides usually are not permitted in natural agriculture. He posited that this might stem from a variety of things, together with soil that had already been contaminated previous to its conversion to natural farming.
“Moreover, the worldwide ingredient provide chain usually lacks stringent qc, permitting contaminants to slide by means of unnoticed,” he added. “Natural requirements additionally range from nation to nation, and natural fraud is large enterprise. Put fraud and lack of qc collectively, and it turns into simpler to see how this seeming paradox can happen.”
Chocolate-Flavored Choices Had been Extra Contaminated
Chocoholics could wish to select a cleaner chocolate supply than cocoa-flavored protein powders. Chocolate powders contained 4 instances extra lead — and as much as 110 instances extra cadmium — than vanilla options, with 65 % of chocolate protein powders exceeding Prop 65 ranges for the heavy steel and 29 % containing over twice the beneficial restrict.
This, Mercola mentioned, stems from cocoa’s susceptibility to heavy steel accumulation. “Cocoa vegetation have a pure propensity to soak up metals like cadmium from the soil,” he mentioned. This assertion was confirmed by a 2020 examine in Science of the Complete Setting showcasing the presence of cadmium in cocoa5.
“The areas the place cocoa is predominantly grown, akin to components of South America, usually have soils which might be both naturally excessive in these metals or have been contaminated by industrial and/or agricultural actions,” Mercola added. “Furthermore, the processing of cocoa can introduce further contaminants if not managed correctly.”
With all of those threat elements to think about, vanilla is unquestionably the safer selection.
The Silver Lining? BPA Ranges Have Fallen
The risks of BPA are well-established, with research linking the chemical present in plastics and resins to hormone disruption, metabolic illness, and even most cancers6. Consequently, the {industry} has largely shifted away from utilizing it, and BPA-free packaging is pretty widespread.
These industry-wide modifications led to the one silver lining of the examine: BPA was solely current in three of the examined powders. This confirmed a marked enchancment as in comparison with Clear Label Venture’s 2018 examine, the place a whopping 55 % of merchandise contained BPA or BPS, a alternative for BPA that has confirmed much more harmful than BPA7.
Selecting a Wholesome Protein Supply
In case you do wish to complement your food plan with protein, there are completely nonetheless methods to try this with out consuming lead within the course of. So what are wholesome sources of protein you possibly can substitute your traditional powder for?
Protein Powder Manufacturers You Can Belief
The examine talked about a number of manufacturers as cleaner choices:
To those, Dr. Mark Hyman provided his personal ideas, recommending clear, grass-fed whey protein that’s third-party examined. Examples embrace:
- MT. Copra
- Pure Paleo
- Sprout Dwelling
Protein Powders Are Not the Be-All and Finish-All
Whereas protein powder is definitely a fast and simple method so as to add extra protein to your food plan, there are extra pure methods to get the vitamin you want — with out the endocrine-disrupting chemical compounds. “Skip the powders when you possibly can,” Hyman recommended in an Instagram submit. He beneficial that folks select complete meals proteins as options to protein powder, like pasture-raised eggs, wild-caught salmon, grass-fed beef, and nuts and seeds as a substitute.
These complete sources notably don’t comprise components like sugars, synthetic sweeteners and synthetic flavors, which Mercola famous are widespread in protein powders and might have unfavorable repercussions on our well being.
Shift the Dialog Away From Protein
Protein dietary supplements symbolize a large {industry}, with a market measurement of $11.36 billion in 2025 within the U.S. alone — and the protein powders phase held the most important share of the protein dietary supplements market8. This surge represents widespread demand for health merchandise, but in addition a newfound obsession with the macronutrient.
Protein is, after all, an important constructing block of human tissue, contributing to replica, bone and muscle progress, and a wholesome immune system. However nowadays, our protein obsession has gotten the higher of us, main most People to devour far more than we’d like — round twice the quantity beneficial within the federal dietary tips9.
“Clearly, protein is important for well being, however it’s necessary to strike the best stability,” mentioned Mercola, who recommends utilizing the method of .8 grams of protein per pound of your very best physique weight to find out your optimum protein consumption. Solely about 15 % of day by day energy ought to come from protein, he mentioned, and a few third ought to be within the type of collagen, akin to bone broth or fatty fish. “Few People get wherever close to the quantity of collagen required for optimum well being,” he mentioned.
In abstract, whereas it’s admirable to wish to complement our diets with macronutrients, it’s greatest to strive to take action with complete meals. When that’s not potential, do your analysis to discover a clear product that meets your wants (and not using a facet of heavy metals). And don’t get too targeted on any single macronutrient over the larger image — likelihood is, you may be lacking out on different vitamins which might be simply as necessary.
Sources:
- https://www.niehs.nih.gov/well being/matters/brokers/lead
- https://cleanlabelproject.org/wp-content/uploads/CleanLabelProject_ProteinStudyWhitepaper_010625.pdf
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1247384/
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7312803/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969720311566
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7460848/
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7071457/
- https://www.instagram.com/p/DFKmhmEPpDn/
- https://www.precedenceresearch.com/us-protein-supplements-market
- https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/28/effectively/eat/how-much-protein-do-we-need.html
