Two emerging nutritional approaches are increasingly being adopted by athletes to optimize health, performance and recovery according to Dr. Jeff Volek, PhD, RD. Unique qualities of whey protein make it an ideal protein source to consume for athletes, especially around workouts. This nicely compliments a low-carbohydrate diet which is found to accelerate use of fat or fuel well beyond what can be achieved with training.

People look for protein in the foods they buy and use in meals, snacks and after workouts. In fact, 23 percent of adults say they are increasing the amount of protein in their eating plans. Today, we have a better understanding of the importance of eating an adequate amount of protein, and maybe more relevant, eating an adequate amount of high-quality protein - for not all proteins are created equal. Yesterday, at the 2015 Institute of Food Technology (IFT) Annual Meeting, I moderated a symposium sponsored by National Dairy Council that featured new insights on the importance of protein. I wanted to share key details with those of you working with patients and clients.

Stunting affects more than 20 million newborns annually, particularly in Africa and regions of Asia. A growing body of evidence-built in part by more than five years of progressively more focused clinical and scientific research collaboratively developed between USDEC, Dairy Management Inc. and other partners internationally-supports dairy as a key part of the nutritional solution to stunting, demonstrates dairy's superiority over alternative sources of proteins, and outlines how dairy functions to prevent the condition.

Dr. Jeff Volek, PhD, RD, published a study in 2013 in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition that demonstrated whey protein consumption is more effective than soy protein in enhancing lean body mass as part of a resistance exercise training program. This study was welcome news for health-minded consumers trying to improve their overall wellness with whey protein, a complete, high-quality dairy protein. The positive results were achieved at levels that food and beverage manufacturers can readily incorporate into new products that would be convenient to meet consumers' desires.

According to the study's senior author, Stuart Phillips, "the greatest metabolic health benefits resulting from weight loss are achieved with retention of muscle and loss of fat." Although higher protein diets promote muscle retention, some proteins, like whey protein, affect MPS better than others, Phillips noted. He surmised that the amino acid leucine in whey might be the difference maker, but said more research was necessary to pinpoint the ultimate cause.