Overview
Horváth and colleagues analyzed 22 commercial protein powders bought online in Hungary by ICP-MS and laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy. Arsenic, cadmium, mercury and lead, along with beryllium, chromium, cobalt, nickel, antimony and cesium, were below the detection limit in every product. Aluminum, manganese, copper, selenium, rubidium and barium were quantified per product, with higher aluminum and manganese in the plant-based powders.
Key numbers
- Arsenic, cadmium, mercury and lead: below the detection limit in all 22 powders, including the casein-based product (Results; Table 3 note).
- Aluminum in plant-based powders: “40,14 (2,323)” mg/kg (product 10, pea and rice) and “23,04 (1,866)” mg/kg (product 18), dry powder basis (Table 3).
- Aluminum in most whey powders: ND; “6,419 (2,493)” mg/kg in product 12 (Table 3).
- Manganese in plant-based powders: 5.413 to 20.875 mg/kg (Table 3, decimal comma as printed).
Methods (brief)
Three 100 mg aliquots per powder were digested with nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide at 180 °C and measured on an Agilent 7700X ICP-MS with internal standards, using helium collision mode for arsenic, lead and some other isotopes. LIBS spectra were taken on pressed pastilles. Detection limits are not printed, and no reference material or recovery data are reported.
Evidence Fitness
A small online-market snapshot without stated detection limits, so non-detects for the four toxic metals cannot be bounded. Only one product is casein-based. Results are on the powder as sold. The plant powders are direct evidence for non-soy plant protein sources, but the study is only a proxy for meal-replacement drinks and veggie burgers, which it does not measure.