Whey versus Soy Protein

Whey and Soy based protein powders have become a staple in almost anyone's diet in the pursuit of wellness, weight loss and body building. Understanding the benefits of them both will help you determine which primary ingredient in your daily diet is most important to your overall health and wellbeing.

Antioxidants and free radical production:

*Soy has a higher amount of antioxidants than Whey and therefore helps to reduce free radical production during a workout.

Amino acids:

*Both Whey and Soy provide amino acids that the body cannot reproduce alone.

Lipid oxidation levels:

*Soy helps to reduce lipid peroxide levels (the process of free radicals stealing/destroying electrons from our lipids in our cell membranes) almost immediately after a workout versus Whey's effect taking almost 24 hours later. Lipid helps regulate hunger and is referred to as the "starvation hormone". When our "lipid" levels are low, our desire to eat is increased.

So what does all this mean? Simply this: If you want to choose between increasing/decreasing your intake of whey and/or soy consider the bottom line effects of both. Also read the label on any protein powder you purchase to determine which product is predominate (whey versus soy) in the content.

As Maya Angelou says so clearly, "When you know better - you do better." Knowing what your body needs will help you make the better choice for what will benefit you the most.