Healthy shopping: The best junk-free protein powders

Pick your protein powder carefully, says Joanna Evans. Here’s a selection of top-quality whey and plant-based options to try

Protein powders are a convenient way to up your daily protein intake, which is important for boosting your metabolism and building lean muscle, as well as for ensuring healthy bones. They can be especially helpful if you don’t eat meat and struggle to get enough protein from plant foods.

But protein powders are often packed with not-so-healthy ingredients, like sugar, sweeteners, fillers, bulking agents, artificial flavors and additives, so it’s vital to pick your powder carefully. Make sure you check the ingredients label and look for pure, natural ingredients with no nasty extras.

Also check how much protein you’ll be getting per serving and whether the protein is “complete”—in other words, whether it supplies the nine essential amino acids you need from your diet.

To save you the hard work, here’s a handful of all-natural, junk-free protein powders with no added sugar or artificial sweeteners, all supplying complete protein. Bear in mind that whey protein powders are dairy-based, so if you’re looking for a vegan option, go for one of the plant-based products.

Purition

Whey Protein Concentrate, $15/£9 (7 oz/200 g)
US: victoriahealth.com; UK: purition.co.uk

Purition offers a great range of plain protein powders, each containing just one or two ingredients. All are 100 percent natural, provide all nine essential amino acids—as well as branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs)—and are unsweetened, unflavored and completely free of artificial extras.

This Whey Protein Concentrate, produced from grass-fed cows, is twice filtered, provides 21 g of protein per 25 g serving and has a smooth and creamy taste, so it’s ideal for blending with porridge, yogurt or whatever milk you want. If you’re looking for a vegan option, try Purition’s hemp, pea or sunflower protein powders.

The Organic Protein Company

Banana & Lucuma Organic Whey Protein, £26 (21.16 oz/600 g)
theorganicproteincompany.co.uk
International shipping available

An excellent option if you’re looking for a flavored protein powder, this additive-free powder provides 16 g of complete protein per 37.5 g serving and consists of cold-filtered organic whey protein, real dried organic banana and organic lucuma fruit for natural sweetness. It’s certified organic by the Organic Food Federation and tested for nutritional content as well as heavy metals (test certificates are available to view on the brand’s website).

An unflavored version is also available, containing just organic whey protein concentrate. There are two other flavored options as well, although these contain added sugar (albeit unrefined coconut sugar).

Sprout Living

Organic Pumpkin Seed Protein, $32.95/£42.99 (16 oz/456 g)
US: sproutliving.com; UK: healf.com

Supplying 20 g of complete protein per 30 g serving, this pure product contains just pumpkin seed powder, with nothing else added, and is certified USDA Organic. Made by cold-pressing organic, non-GMO pumpkin seeds from Central America, it has a mild, nutty flavor and is packed with essential nutrients including zinc, magnesium and omega-3s.

Sprout Living’s other single-ingredient plant protein powders—Organic Pea Protein and Organic Sunflower Seed Protein—are also good options, and all are certified vegan and free of gluten, grains and soy.

Garden of Life

Raw Organic Protein Powder, Unflavored, $40.79/£35.24 (19.75 oz/560 g)
US: gardenoflife.com; UK: everyhealth.com

This unflavored, unsweetened, plant-based protein powder provides 22 g of complete protein per 28 g serving—along with 4 g of BCAAs—from 14 raw organic sprouts, including amaranth, buckwheat, lentil, garbanzo bean, chia seed, pumpkin seed, sesame seed and sunflower seed sprouts.

It also contains a raw probiotic, prebiotic and enzyme blend for an extra healthy boost. The product is certified organic by the USDA and verified by the Non-GMO Project, and its neutral taste means it blends well with smoothies, porridge and other foods and drinks.

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