Protein World Weight Gainer Protein

Weight gainer Protein is a product from UK based company Protein World. The product claims that it can aid muscle growth. This review will aim to examine these ingredients to see if it can achieve these claims.

Ground Oats

Ground Oats have been suggested to be key to lowering cholesterol (1). Other beneficial effects that ground oats have include a reduction in blood sugar levels, heart disease and type 2 diabetes, more research is needed however to elucidate these effects.

Whey & Milk Protein Concentrate

Whey and milk protein helps aid muscle protein synthesis when combined with resistance training (2,3). Other key features include increasing muscle mass (4), an increase in lean body mass (5) and greater recovery from exercise (6). Longer periods of supplementation have shown greater gains in fat free mass (7).

Muscle protein synthesis is increased due to high concentration of Leucine (BCAA) which is a signalling molecule needed to increase muscle protein synthesis (8). 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 (9).

The reason for greater recovery of exercise can be due to a post exercise insulin response (10,11) which means glycogen resynthesis occurs rapidly so exercise can be prolonged, with greater training volume increased hypertrophy and decreased muscle damage.

Creatine Monohydrate

Creatine monohydrate, (CM) is defined as a nitrogenous organic acid that occurs naturally in humans and aids in the supply of energy to cells in the body, (12). The majority of CM, 95%, can be located in the skeletal muscle with the rest distributed to the brain, heart and smooth muscles.

Creatine has been found to increase the replenishment of ATP stores in the skeletal muscles (13). It is attributed to a greater rate of phosphocreatine resynthesis during the rest periods. Higher sprint speeds reported (14). There have been numerous theories proposed as to why creatine is a benefit to short term high intensity exercise (15). One theory is that the increased amount of phosphocreatine, (PCr), can be used as an immediate buffer to ATP which reduces the dependence of glycolysis which delays the production of lactate and hydrogen ions during exercise thus prolonging the activity by delaying the onset of fatigue, (16).

Coconut oil powder

Coconut oil Powder can be used in many diets, one of the main uses of this product is that it can raise LDL cholesterol and lower HDL cholesterol and lipoproteins (17).

Xanthan Gum

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. (18)

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 ingredients in this product can help aid muscle growth as well as provide energy for increased recovery, in addition to this it contains ingredients that help aid weight loss and lower cholesterol. This product should be consumed post workout. 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 – Lia, A., Hallmans, G., Sandberg, A. S., Sundberg, B., Aman, P., & Andersson, H. (1995). Oat beta-glucan increases bile acid excretion and a fiber-rich barley fraction increases cholesterol excretion in ileostomy subjects. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 62(6), 1245-1251.

2 – 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.

3 – 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.

4 – 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.

5 – 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.

6 – 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.

7 – 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.

8- 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.

9 – 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.

10- 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.

11 – 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.

12 – Harada, S. I., & Rodan, G. A. (2003). Control of osteoblast function and regulation of bone mass. Nature, 423(6937), 349-355.

13 – Balsom, P. D., Soderlund, K., & Ekblom, B. (1994). Creatine in humans with special reference to creatine supplementation. Sports Medicine. 18(4), 260 – 280.

14 – Greenhaff, P.L., Bodin, K., Soderlund, K., Hultrnan, E. (1994). The influence  of  oral  creatine supplementation  on  muscle phosphocreatine  resynthesis  following  intense  contraction in man. American Journal of Physiology, 266(5), 725-730.

15 – Jones, A. M., Atter, T., & Georg, K. P. (1999). Oral creatine supplementation improves multiple sprint performance in elite ice-hockey players. Journal of sports medicine and physical fitness, 39, 189-196.

16 – Hultman, E., Soderland, K., Timmons, J. A., Cederblad, G. & Greenhaff, P. L. (1996). Muscle creatine loading in men. Journal of Apllied Physiology. 81(1), 232-237.

17 – Harris, W. S., Connor, W. E., & McMurry, M. P. (1983). The comparative reductions of the plasma lipids and lipoproteins by dietary polyunsaturated fats: salmon oil versus vegetable oils. Metabolism, 32(2), 179-184.

18- 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.