What Is Milk Protein? | Myprotein Us

Dairy products such as cheese are often packed full of protein (and fat), but what exactly is milk protein? Most protein shakes on the market are milk protein based, so it is important to understand all about this important protein source, which makes up a high percentage of the protein in most Americans daily diet.

What Are The Main Proteins in Milk?

The mains proteins in milk are Whey Protein and Casein.

Whey Protein is the main ingredient in most protein powders on the market today. Whey is a fast absorbing protein, making it ideal to consume post workout to help aid muscle recovery and subsequently growth.

Casein has different advantages to Whey. Casein is known for its slow absorption rate. This means that consuming casein supply's the body with a slow release protein source for an extended period of time. This makes it a great source of protein to consume if you know you're going to be unable to eat for a long time.

Casein is known as the 'bedtime protein' because it is best to consume casein around 20-30 minutes before going to bed. When sleeping you won't be eating and this starves your body from the resources it needs to help your muscles recover. Consuming a casein shake before bed means that your body will be fueled by a slow release protein source as your sleep, helping to aid recovery and muscle growth.

Milk Protein & Fat

If you're working out and training hard then you will be breaking down muscle fibers, and these muscle fibers need protein to repair and grow.

Milk products are a great source of protein, but they are also normally high in fat. For example, cheese, yogurt and milk all contain high percentages of fat, and this can be damaging for anyone looking to lose fat and gain lean muscle.

This is where milk protein supplements come in. In the manufacturing of Whey Protein and Casein the high percentage of fat is removed from the product. This means that the protein content remains high and the fat content low.

Let's take a look at the nutritional information of Impact Whey Protein. This protein powder contains 80% protein per serving. In a 25 g serving this means protein content is 20 g and fat is only 1.5 g.

If you ate 25 g of cheese, then the average amount of fat you'd be consuming would be 8 g, and protein content would only be 6 g. When you look at the stats it becomes obvious that milk based proteins are extremely advantageous when it comes to putting on lean muscle.

Low fat content becomes even more important if you want to consume a protein source before bed. So let's consider the nutritional information of Micellar Casein. One 30 g serving of this product delivers 24 g of protein and again only 1.5 g of fat. This provides the body with a great source of slow release protein to recover as you sleep.

Milk protein supplements can be a great way to consume enough protein to aid muscle recovery and growth, without consuming high amounts of fat.