Product Code Database
Whey is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdling and strained. It is a byproduct of the manufacturing of cheese or casein and has several commercial uses. Sweet whey is a byproduct resulting from the manufacture of rennet types of hard cheese, like Cheddar cheese or Swiss cheese. Acid whey (also known as sour whey) is a byproduct brought out during the making of acid types of dairy products, such as strained yogurt.
consist of β-lactoglobulin (48%–58%), α-lactalbumin (13%–19%), Glycomacropeptide (12%–20%), bovine serum albumin, heavy and light chain immunoglobulins and several minor whey proteins.
Heat denatures whey proteins, causing them to coagulate into a protein gel that may be useful in some foods. Sustained high temperatures above 72 °C can denature whey proteins. Heat-denatured whey can still cause allergies in some people.
Dairy whey remaining from home-made cheesemaking has many uses. It is a dough conditioner and can be substituted for skimmed milk in most baked good recipes that require milk (bread, pancakes, muffins, etc.).
Throughout history, whey was a popular drink in inns and coffee houses. When Joseph Priestley was at college at Daventry Academy, 1752–1755, he records that, on the morning of Wednesday, 22 May 1754, he "went with a large company to drink whey."Tony Rail and Beryl Thomas; Joseph Priestley's Journal while at Daventry Academy, 1754, transcribed from the original shorthand; Enlightenment and Dissent (University of Wales, Aberystwyth), 1994, 13, 49–113. This was probably "sack whey" or "wine whey".
Whey is also one of the main ingredients of Rivella, a carbonated drink in Switzerland.
Another use of whey is to make "cream of tartar whey": "Put a pint of blue milk skim over the fire, when it begins to boil, put in two tea spoonfuls of cream of tartar, then take it off the fire, and let it stand till the curd settles to the bottom of the pan, then put it into a basin to cool, and drink it milk warm." This is known as Curdling.
In areas where cheese is made, excess whey byproduct is sometimes sprayed over hay fields as a fertilizer.
Historically whey, being a byproduct of cheese making, was considered a waste product and was pumped into rivers and streams in the U.S. Since the whey contained protein, this practice led to the growth of large concentrations of algae. These were deemed to be a hazard to the ecosystem because they prevented sunlight and oxygen from reaching the water. The government eventually prohibited this practice which led to a disposal problem for producers of other dairy products. Their first solution was to use it as a cheap filler in the production of ice cream. Whey eventually found its way into innumerable other products as a filler and ultimately into a number of health food products where it remains a popular supplement.
Whey is the primary ingredient in most protein powders, which are used primarily by athletes and bodybuilders to obtain the necessary amounts of protein for muscle building/maintenance on a daily basis. Whey protein has a high level of leucine, one of the three branched-chain amino acids, making it ideal for muscle growth and repair. Whey is pasteurization to assure that no harmful bacteria are breeding in the liquid. It is heated to and is then cooled back down to . Studies have shown that this process of using extreme temperatures eliminates 99.7% of bacteria without coagulating the protein into a solid mass. Next, the whey must be filtered, and so is loaded into a massive web of ceramic filters and stainless steel turbines. These machines work to separate out the lactose as well as the fats, leaving a liquid of 90% whey protein. (2024). 9781118002193, Wiley. ISBN 9781118002193
Hydrolysates are whey proteins that are predigested and partially hydrolysis for the purpose of easier metabolizing, but their cost is generally higher. Highly hydrolysed whey may be less than other forms of whey, due to the fact that the short chain peptides obtained by hydrolysis are less antigenic, because of the elimination of sequential epitopes.
Native whey protein is extracted from skim milk, not obtained as a byproduct of cheese production, and is produced as a concentrate and isolate.
In 2005 researchers at Lund University in Sweden found that whey can help regulate and reduce spikes in blood sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes by increasing insulin secretion.
Dairy products produce higher insulin responses (Insulin index, II, 90–98) than expected from their comparatively low glycemic indices (GI 15–30). Insulinogenic effects from dairy products have been observed in healthy subjects, both when ingested as a single meal, and when included into a mixed meal. The insulin-releasing capacity of dairy products has been attributed to the protein fraction, particularly the whey fraction, and the subsequent release of amino acids during digestion has been proposed to underlie the insulinogenic properties of milk.
As whey contains lactose, it should be avoided by lactose intolerant individuals. When used as a food additive, whey can contribute to quantities of lactose far above the level of tolerance of most lactose-intolerant individuals. Additionally, people can be Allergy to whey or other milk proteins, but as whey proteins are altered by high temperatures, whey-sensitive individuals may be able to tolerate evaporated, boiled, or sterilized milk. Hard cheeses are high in casein, but low in whey proteins, and are the least allergenic for those allergic to whey proteins. However, casein proteins (which are heat-stable) are the most important allergens in cheese, and an individual may be allergic to either or both types of protein.
On the basis of the data presented, the 2010 panel concluded that a cause and effect relationship between the consumption of whey protein and these claims had not been established.
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