Whey protein and its role in supporting muscle mass
What it found
Whey protein strongly stimulates muscle building, more so than casein or soy.
Higher protein diets help build and preserve muscle during training, weight loss, and aging.
What they found
Studies in people
Higher protein diets
Diets higher in protein promote muscle gains, especially with resistance training. They also help spare muscle during calorie cutting and slow natural muscle loss with aging.
Studies in people and animals
Building muscle protein
Eating whey protein strongly triggers the body to build muscle protein. In studies, it did this to a greater degree than casein or soy proteins.
Other findings
Protein quality of whey
Whey is considered a very high quality protein. It digests quickly and is rich in essential amino acids, branched chain amino acids, and leucine.
What the authors conclude
- They highlight that whey protein is one of the highest quality proteins available for supporting muscle mass.
- Their examination points to strong evidence that whey helps regulate body composition during training, weight loss, and aging.
How it was done
Keeping muscle is important for athletes, for people losing weight, and as we age. The authors wanted to look at the evidence for protein, especially whey, in supporting muscle.
The authors examined existing data on how eating protein affects muscle and body composition. They focused on whey protein during resistance training, calorie cutting, and aging. No new trials were run.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This work looks back at existing research rather than running a new controlled trial.
- It cannot measure exactly how much muscle any single person will gain from taking whey powder.
The paper
- Title
- Supplemental protein in support of muscle mass and health: advantage whey
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Studies in people · animals · lab
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Devries MC, Phillips SM (2015). Supplemental protein in support of muscle mass and health: advantage whey. Journal of food science. doi:10.1111/1750-3841.12802PubMed 25757896DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error