Suplemento alimentar de whey protein: propriedades químicas e físicas do produto com vistas à identificação de fraudes

Abstract

The commercialization of dietary supplements has grown significantly in recent years. This demand is due to the increase in gym goers, who aim for a better quality of life and physical improvement, in addition to a more balanced diet. Due to these factors, dietary supplements, including whey protein, are targets of frequent adulteration and may present problems in their composition, affecting their technological properties. Given the wide variety of these products on the market, this work aims to evaluate the chemical and physical characteristics (moisture, ash, proteins, carbohydrates, viscosity, granulometry, water absorption capacity, expansion and foam stability) of ten brands different from this supplement. Furthermore, when quantifying the protein and carbohydrate contents, compare them with the value declared on the label, and identify possible fraud due to the presence of starch. The ten different brands (two independent lots of each) were coded from A to J, and acquired randomly in the city of Francisco Beltrão - PR. There were variations in the protein (-12.53 to -2.71) and carbohydrate (-3.82 to +5.64%) contents, in relation to the information provided on the labels in the ten samples. The presence of starch was detected in samples D, H and J, which may negatively affect the quality of the product. Color analysis revealed visual differences between the samples, even though they were products made from the same raw material and with the same production method. The water absorption capacity ranged from 1.09 to 3.29%. Foam formation and stability also showed variations between samples, with some samples exhibiting greater foam stability (I and J). These differences may be related to the characteristics of the proteins present in the samples and the whey protein production methods. Despite variations in the analyzed values of proteins and carbohydrates in relation to the information declared on the labels for all brands evaluated, all samples are in compliance with current legislation, as no sample was shown to exceed the established limit of 20% variation. by regulation.