One thing I know for sure, when it comes to protein powders and such products, is my desire to avoid anything with SOY in it. The majority of soy grown in the United States is genetically-modified, so, unless it is labeled organic (and is therefore non-GMO), I consider it an unknown risk to my health and my baby. There are plenty of other mysterious substances in our food supply these days that I don't need to add purposeful genetic modification to it. What really makes my skin crawl is the fact that lab workers have to INJECT the target plant's cells with a VIRUS in order to get a new strain of DNA to bind to the target cell's DNA – the new strain of which could come from practically ANYTHING of a different species.
But I'm getting off topic. In a nutshell, by my personal standards, soy is off the list. Even organic, I'd just rather not go there. It frankly doesn't taste that great, and I'd much prefer eating the actual soy beans themselves than some highly-processed soy “product.”
So what other choices are there, then? Whey protein, an abundant byproduct of the cheese industry, is a very common protein powder, and one I would be a bit less fearful of. (Of course I would do my research on finding out all I could about where it came from, etc). Other sources of processed protein would include egg, rice, pea, hemp, and other legumes, etc.
Were I to start using these products, I would not allow them to be any more than a snack in my daily diet. They would be a SUPPLEMENT to my protein intake, like an iron pill is a SUPPLEMENT to the iron I am already getting in my diet. I might add protein powder into my daily smoothie, or use a protein bar as a snack. Given how deeply I have been influenced by the whole-foods focus of my school, I confess that I wince as I consider this possibility, but I wonder if the compromise on whole-foods-only is worth it for the sake of my body's – and my growing baby's – protein needs.
Probably a question that has very individual and personal answers!
Really valid concerns! Still, I would be willing to bet that you're still getting plenty of protein, especially if you're a carnivore. You could take yourself on as a patient and do a 3-day diet diary, then do an analysis. If you do, let us know what you found!
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