High Fructose Corn Syrup

AlphaMale 3OO

I was going to put this in nutrition and diet but considering most people here drink protein shakes I think it's more relevant to here so I might get a more probing answer. We all know HFCS is bad and without getting into the science of it, makes you fat and causes many diseases (cardiovascular, cancer etc.). In spite of this, most of us drink protein shakes on a regular basis containing this substance (Optimum Nutrition etc.) This has bothered me for some time and I wonder am I doing myself more damage by consuming them. No protein shakes labels actually indicate the content of HFCS, just simply that it contains it. Does anyone know how much HFCS is contained in your average serving of whey? Do you envision yourself experiencing future problems and what protein shakes do you know that do not contain High Fructose Corn Syrup. This is a boring subject but I feel it should be addressed.

amazingemmet

I don't know what sort of protein you're getting but the one I have is pure whey concentrate, maybe you should switch brand. Try myprotein.co.uk as they have lab results of what exactly is in their stuff on the site.

AlphaMale 3OO

Optimum Nutrition has it.

rubadub

What ON product in particular are you talking about. On many sites I see ingredients lists, ON do a 100% whey.

Ingredients:
Protein blend (whey protein concentrate, whey protein isolate, whey peptides), cocoa (processed with alkali), artificial flavor, lecithin, acesulfame potassium.

I am not sure if they labels say they have trace amounts or something. HFCS is a form of sugar and most labels will have carbs (of which sugar) now most of this is probably lactose in pure whey powders.

Colm_OReilly

Really, I think a great question you should ask is can I get natural sources of protein. Meat contains other good stuff for you (EPA for example) than just protein

hardtrainer

AlphaMale 3OO wrote: »

We all know HFCS is bad and without getting into the science of it, makes you fat and causes many diseases (cardiovascular, cancer etc.). In spite of this, most of us drink protein shakes on a regular basis containing this substance (Optimum Nutrition etc.) ........

I'm not sure what information you have been privy too, but there is no causal link with cancer from HFCS consumption. Yes, it is a contributory factor for obesity and obesity related diseases, but thats more because of the volume consumed rather than anything particularly sinister about about HFCS.
Also, what ON product are you taking that contains it? ON 100% whey does not contain any HFCS.

If the protein shake you're taking contains HFCS it's not that hard to figure out the approx. quantities. Ingredients are listed according to descending amounts, so if whey is the first ingredient in the list, thats the most abundant ingredient. If the carbohydrate listed in the nutritional info is just 3g per serving, then obviously the absoulte maximum amount of HFCS contained is 3g (if HFCS is the only carb source in the blend).

However, I'd be less worried about the HFCS content in my shake and more concerned with places where HFCS or indeed any simple sugar is hidden in other foods and masked by the addition of excess salt.

AlphaMale 3OO

hardtrainer wrote: »

I'm not sure what information you have been privy too, but there is no causal link with cancer from HFCS consumption. Yes, it is a contributory factor for obesity and obesity related diseases, but thats more because of the volume consumed rather than anything particularly sinister about about HFCS.
Also, what ON product are you taking that contains it? ON 100% whey does not contain any HFCS.

If the protein shake you're taking contains HFCS it's not that hard to figure out the approx. quantities. Ingredients are listed according to descending amounts, so if whey is the first ingredient in the list, thats the most abundant ingredient. If the carbohydrate listed in the nutritional info is just 3g per serving, then obviously the absoulte maximum amount of HFCS contained is 3g (if HFCS is the only carb source in the blend).

However, I'd be less worried about the HFCS content in my shake and more concerned with places where HFCS or indeed any simple sugar is hidden in other foods and masked by the addition of excess salt.

Ok this is the answer I was looking for. And the product I was using was Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey (Cookies and Cream). To Colm, I'm well aware of the nutritional charachteristics of meat but we all drink protein shakes and I certainly wont be stopping them any time soon. I gain my protein from a lot more sources than just whey powder.

rubadub

You just have to learn how to read nutritional info on the packs, and use a calculator. I expect all the info is clearly on the tub already.
They should really teach this stuff in school.

AlphaMale 3OO

Personally I've been reading labels years but never knew the descending order thing.

rubadub

AlphaMale 3OO wrote: »

Personally I've been reading labels years but never knew the descending order thing.

The other thing to watch for is different words for the same thing. e.g. you could have

Whey, sucrose, glucose, dextrose, honey, glucose syrup, malt extract, fructose, maltose, lactose.....

The list goes on and on! millions of different words for sugar, There are 10 ingredients there, Whey could be 11%, and all the rest ~9.9% each. So really the bulk of the product is sugar.

Also I do not think they always have to list water as an ingredient. Many "low fat" or "healthy" meals are simply watered down.