Diet Whey Powder

Diet Whey Powder is a supplement produced by UK based manufacturer, PhD Supplements. This supplement states that it can help people to lose weight when following a weight management nutritional plan. This review will aim to understand how this supplement can achieve this by looking at the ingredients within the product.

Whey/ Milk / Soya Protein Concentrate

Whey, soy and milk protein helps aid muscle protein synthesis when combined with resistance training (1, 2). Other key features include increasing muscle mass (3), an increase in lean body mass (4) and greater recovery from exercise (5). Longer periods of supplementation have shown greater gains in fat free mass (6).

Muscle protein synthesis is increased due to high concentration of Leucine (BCAA) which is a signalling molecule needed to increase muscle protein synthesis (7). Consumption of whey protein helps increase muscle mass due to a greater amount of peripheral nitrogen retention whereas soy protein has been found to have a greater effect on splanchnic protein synthesis (8).

The reason for greater recovery of exercise can be due to a post exercise insulin response (9, 10) which means glycogen resynthesis occurs rapidly so exercise can be prolonged, with greater training volume increased hypertrophy and decreased muscle damage.

Fat Reduced Cocoa Powder

Cocoa powder has been found to include flavonoids which are antioxidants, they can aid in the oxidation of LDL, (11,12) and augments the antioxidant defence system (13). Cocoa powder has also been found to stimulate nitric oxide production which can reduce oxidative stress and reduce the risk of heart attack (14).

Waxy Barley Flour

Waxy Barley Flour has numerous health benefits. Among them includes lowering cholesterol (15), blood pressure (16) and heart disease (17). Due to barley consisting of mainly fiber both soluble and insoluble it can slow stomach emptying which can give the feeling of being fuller for longer (18). This in turn can help balance blood sugar levels and aid in weight loss.

Golden Brown Flaxseed Powder

Flaxseed has several health properties including being an antioxidant (19), the ability to lower blood pressure (20) and consists of Omega 3 fatty acids which include numerous health benefits such as lowering cholesterol (21) and also plays a role in reducing oxidative stress which leads to reducing cardiovascular disease (22).

Acacia / Xanthan Gum

Acacia gum and Xanthan Gum are water soluble dietary fibres, which have been reported to reduce total cholesterol; however there seems to be insufficient evidence to confirm this theory. (23)

CLA Powder

Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) has been shown to have weight loss properties (24); there are several reasons for this which includes an increase in energy metabolism (25), insulin resistance (26), stimulation of lipolysis, which is due to an impaired signalling which reduces triglyceride synthesis and releases free fatty acid which normally occurs when energy demand rises (27). Other mechanisms include a suppression of appetite (28), induced adipocyte apoptosis which decreases body fat mass and increased energy expenditure (29).

Green Tea Extract

Green tea supplementation has been shown to have several health properties including an increase in plasma antioxidant which will lead to a lowering of oxidative damage (30,31), decreased blood pressure (32,33) and it can protect against coronary atherosclerosis (34). Other health effects that green tea can have includes a lowering of cholesterol, an increase of insulin activity (35) and a regulation of blood glucose levels which can help reduce body fat.

Sodium Chloride

Sodium chloride is otherwise known as salt. It is theorised that sodium chloride can help prevent cramps as the key mechanism in muscle contraction is the flooding of the action potential in the muscle membrane, and so if there is a sodium deficiency it may cause the muscle to cramp (36).

Sucralose

Sucralose is a sweetener that is calorie free. This ingredient is used in many products and is used to make the product taste sweeter and does not have any nutritional benefit.

The description of this supplement stated that it can help aid weight loss with someone who is on a weight management nutritional plan. This supplement can achieve the claims with the ingredients within this supplement including the waxy barley flour which can keep satiety high and CLA powder which can increase metabolism.

This supplement can also help reduce cholesterol with cholesterol lowering properties in several ingredients and may aid in muscle gain with the inclusion of milk, whey and soya protein.

This supplement is recommended to be taken once a day, pre-exercise. This product has no banned substances when referring to the WADA prohibited list when observing the label/ingredients posted on the website.

*NOTE – This product has not been tested in a laboratory and may contain other substances that may not appear on the label

1 – Coker, R. H., Miller, S., Schutzler, S., Deutz, N., & Wolfe, R. R. (2012). Whey protein and essential amino acids promote the reduction of adipose tissue and increased muscle protein synthesis during caloric restriction-induced weight loss in elderly, obese individuals. Nutr J, 11(1), 105.

2 – Hulmi, J. J., Lockwood, C. M., & Stout, J. R. (2010). Review Effect of protein/essential amino acids and resistance training on skeletal muscle hypertrophy: A case for whey protein.

3 – Pasiakos, S. M., McLellan, T. M., & Lieberman, H. R. (2015). The effects of protein supplements on muscle mass, strength, and aerobic and anaerobic power in healthy adults: a systematic review. Sports Medicine, 45(1), 111-131.

4 – Volek, J. S., Volk, B. M., Gómez, A. L., Kunces, L. J., Kupchak, B. R., Freidenreich, D. J., … & Kraemer, W. J. (2013). Whey protein supplementation during resistance training augments lean body mass. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 32(2), 122-135.

5 – Hansen, M., Bangsbo, J., Jensen, J., Bibby, B. M., & Madsen, K. (2014). Effect of Whey Protein Hydrolysate on Performance and Recovery of Top-Class Orienteering Runners. International journal of sport nutrition and exercise metabolism.

6 – Hartman, J. W., Tang, J. E., Wilkinson, S. B., Tarnopolsky, M. A., Lawrence, R. L., Fullerton, A. V., & Phillips, S. M. (2007). Consumption of fat-free fluid milk after resistance exercise promotes greater lean mass accretion than does consumption of soy or carbohydrate in young, novice, male weightlifters. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 86(2), 373-381.

7- Atherton, P. J., Smith, K., Etheridge, T., Rankin, D., & Rennie, M. J. (2010). Distinct anabolic signalling responses to amino acids in C2C12 skeletal muscle cells. Amino acids, 38(5), 1533-1539.

8 – Fouillet, H., Mariotti, F., Gaudichon, C., Bos, C., & Tomé, D. (2002). Peripheral and splanchnic metabolism of dietary nitrogen are differently affected by the protein source in humans as assessed by compartmental modeling. The Journal of nutrition, 132(1), 125-133.

9- Hulmi, J. J., Volek, J. S., Selänne, H. A. R. R. I., & Mero, A. A. (2005). Protein ingestion prior to strength exercise affects blood hormones and metabolism. Medicine and science in sports and exercise, 37(11), 1990-1997.

10 – Power, O., Hallihan, A., & Jakeman, P. (2009). Human insulinotropic response to oral ingestion of native and hydrolysed whey protein. Amino acids, 37(2), 333-339.

11 – Bearden MM, Pearson DA, Rein D, et al. Potential cardiovascular health benefits of procyanidins present in chocolate and cocoa. In: Parliment TH, Ho C-T, Schieberle P, eds. Caffeinated beverages: health benefits, physiological effects, and chemistry. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society, 2000:177–186

12 – Pearson DA, Schmitz HH, Lazarus SA, Keen CL. Inhibition of in vitro low-density lipoprotein oxidation by oligomeric procyanidins present in chocolate and cocoas. In: Packer L, ed. Methods in enzymology. Vol. 335. New York: Academic Press, 2001:350–60.

13 – Keen, C. L., Holt, R. R., Oteiza, P. I., Fraga, C. G., & Schmitz, H. H. (2005). Cocoa antioxidants and cardiovascular health. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 81(1), 298S-303S.

14 – Osakabe N, Sanbongi C, Yamagishi M, Takizawa T, Osawa T. Effects of polyphenol substances derived from Theobroma cacao on gastric mucosal lesion induced by ethanol. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 1998;62:1535–8.

15 – Åman, P. (2006). Cholesterol-lowering effects of barley dietary fibre in humans: scientific support for a generic health claim. Food & Nutrition Research, 50(4), 173-176.

16 – Sacks, F. M., Svetkey, L. P., Vollmer, W. M., Appel, L. J., Bray, G. A., Harsha, D., … & Cutler, J. A. (2001). Effects on blood pressure of reduced dietary sodium and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet.New England journal of medicine, 344(1), 3-10.

17 – Truswell, A. S. (2002). Cereal grains and coronary heart disease. European journal of clinical nutrition, 56(1), 1-14.

18 – Liljeberg, H. G., Granfeldt, Y. E., & Bjorck, I. M. (1996). Products based on a high fiber barley genotype, but not on common barley or oats, lower postprandial glucose and insulin responses in healthy humans. The Journal of nutrition, 126(2), 458.

19 – Kitts, D. D., Yuan, Y. V., Wijewickreme, A. N., & Thompson, L. U. (1999). Antioxidant activity of the flaxseed lignan secoisolariciresinol diglycoside and its mammalian lignan metabolites enterodiol and enterolactone. Molecular and cellular biochemistry, 202(1-2), 91-100.

20 – Paschos, G. K., Magkos, F., Panagiotakos, D. B., Votteas, V., & Zampelas, A. (2007). Dietary supplementation with flaxseed oil lowers blood pressure in dyslipidaemic patients. European journal of clinical nutrition, 61(10), 1201-1206.

21 – Savinova, O. V., Fillaus, K., Harris, W. S., & Shearer, G. C. (2015). Effects of niacin and omega-3 fatty acids on the apolipoproteins in overweight patients with elevated triglycerides and reduced HDL cholesterol. Atherosclerosis,240(2), 520-525.

22 –  Rangel-Huerta, O. D., Aguilera, C. M., Mesa, M. D., & Gil, A. (2012). Omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation on inflammatory biomakers: a systematic review of randomised clinical trials. British Journal of Nutrition, 107(S2), S159-S170.

23 – Jensen, C. D., Spiller, G. A., Gates, J. E., Miller, A. F., & Whittam, J. H. (1993). The effect of acacia gum and a water-soluble dietary fiber mixture on blood lipids in humans. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 12(2), 147-154.

24 – Blankson, H., Stakkestad, J. A., Fagertun, H., Thom, E., Wadstein, J., & Gudmundsen, O. (2000). Conjugated linoleic acid reduces body fat mass in overweight and obese humans. The Journal of nutrition, 130(12), 2943-2948.

25 – House, R. L., Cassady, J. P., Eisen, E. J., McIntosh, M. K., & Odle, J. (2005). Conjugated linoleic acid evokes de‐lipidation through the regulation of genes controlling lipid metabolism in adipose and liver tissue. obesity reviews, 6(3), 247-258.

26 – Chung, S., Brown, J. M., Provo, J. N., Hopkins, R., & McIntosh, M. K. (2005). Conjugated linoleic acid promotes human adipocyte insulin resistance through NFκB-dependent cytokine production. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 280(46), 38445-38456.

27 – Evans, M., Lin, X., Odle, J., & McIntosh, M. (2002). Trans-10, cis-12 conjugated linoleic acid increases fatty acid oxidation in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. The Journal of nutrition, 132(3), 450-455.

28 – Medina, E. A., Horn, W. F., Keim, N. L., Havel, P. J., Benito, P., Kelley, D. S., … & Erickson, K. L. (2000). Conjugated linoleic acid supplementation in humans: effects on circulating leptin concentrations and appetite. Lipids, 35(7), 783-788.

29 – Zambell, K. L., Keim, N. L., Van Loan, M. D., Gale, B., Benito, P., Kelley, D. S., & Nelson, G. J. (2000). Conjugated linoleic acid supplementation in humans: effects on body composition and energy expenditure. Lipids, 35(7), 777-782.

30 – Rietveld, A., & Wiseman, S. (2003). Antioxidant effects of tea: evidence from human clinical trials. The Journal of nutrition, 133(10), 3285S-3292S.

31 – McKay, D. L., & Blumberg, J. B. (2002). The role of tea in human health: an update. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 21(1), 1-13.

32 – Yang, Y. C., Lu, F. H., Wu, J. S., Wu, C. H., & Chang, C. J. (2004). The protective effect of habitual tea consumption on hypertension. Archives of internal medicine, 164(14), 1534-1540.

33 – Hodgson, J. M., Devine, A., Puddey, I. B., Chan, S. Y., Beilin, L. J., & Prince, R. L. (2003). Tea intake is inversely related to blood pressure in older women. The Journal of nutrition, 133(9), 2883-2886.

34 – Sasazuki, S., Kodama, H., Yoshimasu, K., Liu, Y., Washio, M., Tanaka, K., … & Takeshita, A. (2000). Relation between green tea consumption and the severity of coronary atherosclerosis among Japanese men and women. Annals of epidemiology, 10(6), 401-408.

35 – Anderson, R. A., & Polansky, M. M. (2002). Tea enhances insulin activity. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 50(24), 7182-7186.

36 – McCance, R. A. (1936). Experimental sodium chloride deficiency in man.Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences,119(814), 245-268.