Protein supplementation has been widely shown to be an effective strategy for increasing muscle mass and strength when combined with physical exercise. However, the effectiveness of proteins in promoting this anabolic stimulus partly depends on various individual factors such as nutritional status, as well as other external factors such as the type or amount of protein consumed. Currently, there is a large variety of protein sources, ranging from the popular whey protein (known as Whey) to less commonly consumed proteins such as soy, rice, or egg protein. Not all of these protein sources provide the same benefits, with Whey protein being the most effective at increasing protein synthesis due to its higher leucine content. Therefore, this protein is currently the most consumed among athletes.
In recent years, beef protein (marketed under the name “All Beef” by the company Crown Nutrition) has gained great popularity. In previous posts, we have seen some of the benefits that supplementation with beef protein alone or combined with whey protein contributes to body composition or performance. However, until now there was no meta-analytic evidence to support its consumption. Meta-analysis, that is, the statistical treatment of data provided by different studies on the same topic to calculate the overall effect, is considered the highest level of evidence at the scientific level. By combining the results of different studies, the value generated is a priori free from possible biases created by isolated studies (for example, due to a low number of participants, or simply by chance in the results). Therefore, although all studies can provide interesting and truthful information, it is the result of a meta-analysis that can dispel more doubts about the real effectiveness or not of a treatment (or supplement, in this case).
Taking all of the above into account, a meta-analysis has recently been published in the prestigious journal Nutrients in which the effects of supplementation with beef protein in combination with physical exercise on body composition and performance have been analyzed (Valenzuela et al., 2019). For this, the results of different studies (all those available in the scientific literature) that have compared beef protein with Whey protein or with a control group that did not take any protein supplements have been combined.
A total of seven studies were included that analyzed 270 participants, who exercised between 2 and 6 times per week and supplemented with beef protein for between 8 and 16 weeks (three of them with All Beef protein from Crown Nutrition). The results showed that supplementation with beef protein is an effective strategy to significantly increase daily protein intake compared to not consuming any supplement, with no differences compared to Whey protein. In addition, supplementation with beef protein was effective in increasing muscle mass without increasing fat mass, as well as improving lower body strength – although there was not enough evidence regarding upper body strength. It is important to emphasize that the benefits found were similar to those produced with another much more popular protein such as Whey, and although these benefits were not very pronounced, this could be partly due to the high protein intake that participants were already consuming in their regular diet (>1.1 g/kg per day, when the recommended dose according to international guidelines is 0.8 g/kg per day). Finally, some benefits were observed in daily iron intake as well as in hematological variables (e.g., ferritin and hematocrit levels) with beef protein compared to the consumption of Whey or the group that did not take any supplement, although these results need to be confirmed in more studies to support them with meta-analytic evidence.
In summary, the existing evidence so far shows that supplementation with beef protein in combination with exercise is an effective strategy to improve body composition (increase muscle mass) and improve lower body strength, producing benefits similar to those obtained with Whey protein.
Reference
- Valenzuela PL, Mata F, Morales JS, Castillo-García A, Lucia, A (2019) Does Beef Protein Supplementation Improve Body Composition and Exercise Performance? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Nutrients. 11, 1429; doi:10.3390/nu11061429.
AUTHOR
Pedro Valenzuela
Researcher in the Physiology Unit of the University of Alcalá and in the Performance Control Unit at the Center for Sports Medicine (AEPSAD, CAR of Madrid).
Web: www.fissac.com
