Protein powder is huge these days, its crazy that more than 2/3 have lead.
The consumer watchdog recommends that people ingest no more than 0.5 micrograms of lead daily
More than a dozen protein powders tested for toxic metals were found to have unsafe or concerning amounts of lead, the nonprofit watchdog Consumer Reports said Tuesday, adding that the average lead levels in such products appear to be worsening compared to years prior.
Of 23 protein powders tested, more than two-thirds contained more lead in a single serving than is considered safe to ingest in a day, Consumer Reports said, citing its own safety standards.
The consumer watchdog recommends that people ingest no more than 0.5 micrograms of lead daily, while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says that there is no known safe level of exposure to lead.
Unlike food products, the FDA does not regulate and vet supplements, including protein powders, before they are sold to the public.
“Consumers are left at the mercy of the supplement manufacturer,” Pieter Cohen, an internist and associate professor at Harvard Medical School, said in an email. “Each supplement manufacturer can decide for themselves whether or not they wish to test for lead. This leads consumers to be in the dark about how much lead they are consuming.”
The Consumer Reports investigation also found that the average amount of lead in protein powder products has increased compared to similar tests it conducted 15 years prior. Fewer products also had undetectable amounts of lead compared to 15 years ago.
Plant-based products in particular were found to have higher levels of lead, according to their lab tests. Of them, two products – Naked Nutrition’s Vegan Mass Gainer protein powder and Huel’s Black Edition protein powder – had lead content so high that Consumer Reports advised the public not to consume them at all.
“Lead is found in the soil. A bit is in there naturally and a lot more due to human pollution,” Cohen said. “The plants absorb this from the soil and then it can be consumed in supplements made of plants.”
Two other protein powders – Garden of Life’s Sport Organic Plant-Based Protein and Momentous’ 100% Plant Protein – contained enough lead that Consumer Reports safety experts recommended consumers limit themselves to one serving a week.
In a statement emailed Wednesday, Huel said the safety threshold used by Consumer Reports was “exceptionally conservative.” According to Huel’s testing, the company said its Black Edition power contained an average of 1.8 micrograms of lead per 90-gram serving, which is lower than the 6.3 micrograms reported by the consumer watchdog.
“Huel’s results remain well below recognized safety limits,” even when using Consumer Reports’ data, the company added.
In an email, Garden of Life said that all of its products are tested for heavy metals and that “the levels are below established food safety thresholds.”
Naked Nutrition and Momentous did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Earlier this year, the FDA for the first time issued safety guidelines for lead levels in baby food products, though the guidelines are not mandatory for manufacturers to follow.
High-protein foods and supplements have surged in the health and wellness industry in recent years as a powerful fitness fad, in particular because protein is more likely to increase one’s satiety and help prevent people from overeating.
Even so, some health experts have warned that Americans may be consuming too much protein – or, at least, they may not need to add extra grams of it to their diets through expensive powders, shakes and protein-laced processed foods.
“Protein has strong tailwinds these days,” Cohen said. “For the most part, this is hype and people do not need to take protein supplements to be healthy.”
torontosun.com
The consumer watchdog recommends that people ingest no more than 0.5 micrograms of lead daily
More than a dozen protein powders tested for toxic metals were found to have unsafe or concerning amounts of lead, the nonprofit watchdog Consumer Reports said Tuesday, adding that the average lead levels in such products appear to be worsening compared to years prior.
Of 23 protein powders tested, more than two-thirds contained more lead in a single serving than is considered safe to ingest in a day, Consumer Reports said, citing its own safety standards.
The consumer watchdog recommends that people ingest no more than 0.5 micrograms of lead daily, while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says that there is no known safe level of exposure to lead.
Unlike food products, the FDA does not regulate and vet supplements, including protein powders, before they are sold to the public.
“Consumers are left at the mercy of the supplement manufacturer,” Pieter Cohen, an internist and associate professor at Harvard Medical School, said in an email. “Each supplement manufacturer can decide for themselves whether or not they wish to test for lead. This leads consumers to be in the dark about how much lead they are consuming.”
The Consumer Reports investigation also found that the average amount of lead in protein powder products has increased compared to similar tests it conducted 15 years prior. Fewer products also had undetectable amounts of lead compared to 15 years ago.
Plant-based products in particular were found to have higher levels of lead, according to their lab tests. Of them, two products – Naked Nutrition’s Vegan Mass Gainer protein powder and Huel’s Black Edition protein powder – had lead content so high that Consumer Reports advised the public not to consume them at all.
“Lead is found in the soil. A bit is in there naturally and a lot more due to human pollution,” Cohen said. “The plants absorb this from the soil and then it can be consumed in supplements made of plants.”
Two other protein powders – Garden of Life’s Sport Organic Plant-Based Protein and Momentous’ 100% Plant Protein – contained enough lead that Consumer Reports safety experts recommended consumers limit themselves to one serving a week.
In a statement emailed Wednesday, Huel said the safety threshold used by Consumer Reports was “exceptionally conservative.” According to Huel’s testing, the company said its Black Edition power contained an average of 1.8 micrograms of lead per 90-gram serving, which is lower than the 6.3 micrograms reported by the consumer watchdog.
“Huel’s results remain well below recognized safety limits,” even when using Consumer Reports’ data, the company added.
In an email, Garden of Life said that all of its products are tested for heavy metals and that “the levels are below established food safety thresholds.”
Naked Nutrition and Momentous did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Earlier this year, the FDA for the first time issued safety guidelines for lead levels in baby food products, though the guidelines are not mandatory for manufacturers to follow.
High-protein foods and supplements have surged in the health and wellness industry in recent years as a powerful fitness fad, in particular because protein is more likely to increase one’s satiety and help prevent people from overeating.
Even so, some health experts have warned that Americans may be consuming too much protein – or, at least, they may not need to add extra grams of it to their diets through expensive powders, shakes and protein-laced processed foods.
“Protein has strong tailwinds these days,” Cohen said. “For the most part, this is hype and people do not need to take protein supplements to be healthy.”
Unsafe amounts of lead found in some protein powders: Consumer Reports
Of 23 protein powders tested, more than two-thirds contained more lead in a single serving than is considered safe to ingest in a day
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