The Side Effects Of Protein Powders :

What Are The Side Effects?

In having so many positive benefits people always expect there to be a catch. People often speculate that long term protein powder supplementation would be linked with cancer and various other diseases but the scientific research in this field will show you that it simply isn't true.

However to be fair there are certainly potential side effects of long term excessive protein powder intake. The main side effects that have been found are causing blood to become more acidic which is neutralised by the body by releasing calcium into your blood stream which can then in the long term ruin the good health of your bones.

If you are thinking that doesn't sound too bad and that you can just supplement calcium to ensure your bones remain healthy, think again. All the calcium that has built up in your blood stream will have to be removed. It will build up in your kidneys and develop what is known as kidney stones.

Also there are potential side effects when people go on a carb-less, fat-less protein shake diet and cut out all foods. Short term this will have the desired effect of losing body weight. However in the long term it can ruin your body's ability to properly digest carbs and fats. Shake diets can work but be sure to include a reasonable portion of carbs and fats in your shakes. Also pure protein shakes are an acceptable way to diet but if these protein shakes include only minimal carbs and fats be sure not to substitute more than one meal per day.

Okay, moving along now to the question you really want answered, what is excessive protein powder intake? The answer to this question will depend primarily on your level of exercise and muscle mass. As a general rule, you are not going to need to take more than 50g of protein at one time unless you are a mature bodybuilder or athlete. Typically your body's muscle mass will determine your body's ability to digest and absorb protein.

•     An average regularly exercising male 70-90kg can safely and beneficially consume about three 30-40g protein shakes per day.
•     An average regularly exercising female 45-70kg can safely and beneficially consume about two 20-30g protein shakes per day.
•     An average person who does not regularly exercise but is seeking the health benefits can safely and beneficially consume one or two 20-30g protein shakes every day.

If you have a muscular build and weigh over 90kg chance are you probably won't be reading this article, but for the interest sake of our other readers let's look at how much a professional body builder will consume. Professional body builders will consume as many as five 60-100g protein shakes every day, not to mention 8-10 food meals in portions we dare not attempt to eat in one sitting.

But let's face it you're not a pro body build and couldn't consume that much no matter how badly you wanted to. Don't be the 50kg guy that thinks he is going to get huge just by drinking five or six 50g protein shakes a day, you don't need it. As long as you follow the basic guidelines you will be able to enjoy the muscular and bodily health benefits for the long term with no side effects.