Whey has many health benefits including beneficial cultures that aid in digestion by providing "good" bacteria to the gut. Whey is also an excellent source of protein, vitamins, and minerals. It is an important nutrient for those of us wishing to build or repair muscle tissue and also contributes to the prevention of atrophy of muscular cells.
1) Line a large strainer over a bowl with a clean cotton towel.
2) Pour in the kefir, buttermilk, and yogurt or separated milk. The whey will run into the bowl and the milk solids will stay in the strainer.Be sure the bowl is large enough to allow the strainer to hang over the bowl so that the curds don’t end up standing in the whey. Cover with a plate and let stand at room temperature for several hours (longer for yoghurt) until all the whey has drained.
3) The whey will end up in the bowl and you’ll have a soft cheese left in the cloth. Don’t throw this away! Most of us are familiar with the old nursery rhyme, "Little Miss Muffet"…eating her curds and whey. Well this is what she was eating! Use the cheese as a spread. To give it some flavor, add garlic, chives, onion, and spices, along with a bit of salt and pepper. Pour the whey into a glass jar and cover tightly. Refrigerated, the cream cheese keeps for approximately one month and the whey for about six months.
Tips: You can use homemade yogurt or good quality organic plain yogurt. If using raw milk, simply place it in a clean glass container and allow to stand covered with a lid at room temperature for 1-4 days until it separates (the amount of time will depend on how warm your kitchen is). The naturally occurring bacteria will turn it into cheese and whey on its own. If using yogurt, no advance preparation is necessary. Always keep whey on hand as it is an excellent starter culture for lacto-fermented veggies and fruits, soaking grains, and as a starter for beverages. Make whey from yogurt or fresh raw milk. If you have access to fresh raw milk, this is best.
"How To Make Homemade Whey." WikiHow. Wikihow, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2016. http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Homemade-Whey.
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Since Whey Protein is quickly digested, the only time you would want to take whey protein alone is within 30 to 60 minutes after a strength-training based workout. At any other time, you would want to slow down the digestion of the protein by eating it with other foods. For example, if you want extra protein for breakfast, but don’t want eggs, you can add the whey protein powder to some oats, in various pancake recipes.
If on the other hand, you’re looking for a quick snack at work, you can have a shake with some nuts or fish oil to slow down the digestion of the protein. The combination of the fat will help slow down the digestion of the protein, thereby allowing insulin levels to stay level, while also stimulating CCK, which is a hormone that helps tell your body that you’re full.
If you’ve ever gone to purchase a whey protein supplement, you may have felt a little confused by the different types out there and wonder why one brand may be so expensive and the other so “affordable.” This section will help filter through some of the main types of Whey protein.
There are three main types of whey protein: (1) Whey Protein Concentrate, (2) Whey Protein Isolate and (3) Whey Protein Hydrolysate. The differences between these three come down to how processed the protein is and hence the amount of protein present without any of the other qualities of dairy products such as fat, lactose (milk sugar), and various immunoglobulins.
Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC) is generally the cheapest of the three and has the lowest amount of protein per 100 grams of the three types. Despite having the lowest protein content, it still has a very high percentage typically ranging from 55-89%. The other 11-45% is made up of fat, lactose and contains higher amounts of various immune-enhancing peptides such as alpha-lactalbumin and immunoglobulins.
Whey Protein Isolate (WPI) has on average 95% of its weight coming from protein, with minimal lactose and fat. This is more expensive than concentrate and there are varying methods of filtration that can keep many of the beneficial qualities of the concentrate, although this generally costs more.
Whey Protein Hydrolysate (WPH) is a further degraded protein that digests very quickly in the body and has about 99% of its weight coming from protein. This is the most expensive of the three and generally the worst tasting
Generally, most of the complications associated with whey protein intake have to do with digestive issues, such as gas, bloating, headaches, cramps and fatigue. None of these are generally considered life-threatening, more so than annoying complications.
Most of the literature has shown that if you’re experiencing any of have these symptoms, they are most likely due to either the lactose (found more in Whey Protein Concentrate) or sweeteners used more so than the whey protein itself. With that said, there are different methods of whey production, such as ion-exchanged that can influence how well your body can utilize the protein, leading to improper digestion of the whey itself.
The biggest fear often expressed about whey protein intake is that too much protein is “bad for the kidneys.” Research though has shown this is not true at all in healthy individuals. For those with known kidney disease, high protein diets can exacerbate pre-existing conditions. Healthy individuals, without any underlying or unknown kidney disease have nothing to worry about with higher intakes of protein.
What does occur with higher protein intakes is your body adapts to the increase in protein by increasing glomerular filtration rates (which means more fluid passes by your kidneys and there’s an increase in urine production).
While no supplement can replace a diet of whole, natural, unprocessed foods, whey protein can be useful for people with a very busy, on-the-go lifestyle as a supplement to their normal diet. The benefits of a high-quality whey protein supplement range from purely aesthetic to health preserving. Here’s a small list of 10 benefits that have been associated with whey protein supplementation:
Weight Loss
Assists in increasing in muscle mass
Assist in cancer treatment
Increase in glutathione levels (your body’s main water-based anti-oxidant)
Decrease in HIV symptoms
Decrease in triglycerides
Decrease in total cholesterol while increasing HDL (good cholesterol)
Increase in immune system function
Increase in power in sports
Decreased recovery time and symptoms of over-training
Specific amino acids are used by your body for specific reasons. For instance, whey protein is high in Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAA’s), which are 3 of the 9 essential amino acids that are of special importance for muscle repair and preservation. In both exercise and in recovery of exercise, your body will break down a small amount of amino acids for fuel (1-5%) and the specific amino acids your body uses are the BCAA’s. Although this is a small percentage overall, your body will break down muscle in order to get those BCAA’s. By providing the body with a high amount of BCAA’s, your body preserves your muscle, while the specific amino acid leucine actually stimulates protein synthesis. This means is that leucine sends a signal to your body to increase its storage of amino acids and the way your body primarily does this is by adding muscle. So if you’re trying to put on muscle, having enough BCAA’s is essential to both help preserve the muscle, while also helping to stimulate additional muscle growth. If you’re in a hypo-caloric state (if you’re trying to lose weight and are cutting calories), preserving muscle becomes even more important and ensuring that you have enough BCAA’s helps to keep your body from losing muscle, while simultaneously helping you to lose fat. Another huge benefit of whey protein is that studies have indicated that glutathione production increases. Although you may have heard of Vitamin C or Vitamin E as being anti-oxidants, what your body mainly uses as an anti-oxidant to scavenge free radicals is glutathione, making it one of the most important substances in your body. Glutathione is made from three main amino acids; cysteine, glutamic acid and glycine. The rate-limiting amino acid (what limits production of glutathione) is usually the amino acid cysteine, and although the exact mechanism with whey protein intake is not known, it is theorized that the relatively high amount of cysteine in whey is what increases glutathione production.
Protein has gone through a number of phases over the years – from being used only by bodybuilders to now being used by athletes and casual exercisers at all levels. Whey protein is a liquid byproduct of cheese production that is sold as a dietary supplement in protein powders and shakes. Whey protein used to be discarded by cheese manufacturers as a waste product. .Whey protein is also a “complete protein” that is fast and easy to digest. Whenever we eat a protein source, our body uses the 20 amino acids (which are the individual components of “protein”) to repair our bones, muscles, organs and virtually every body part and tissue in the human body. When a source of protein has all 9 essential amino acids, which are amino acids your body needs to get from food, that food is said to be a complete protein. Foods like meats, dairy, eggs and rare vegetable proteins such as quinoa are complete proteins. On the other hand, most vegetables, rice and starches are not complete proteins because they are missing one or more of the essential amino acids. Not only do foods have different amino acid profiles, but the rate at which the protein is absorbed by your body can vary. Of the different measures of protein absorption, one of the most popular is Biological Value (BV). Whey protein just so happens to have the highest score possible with a Biological Value of 100. This means that whey protein contains all the amino acids needed to make a complete protein and is very easily digested by your body.
