We all know Little Miss Muffet.  She sat on a tuffet, eating her curds and whey. As kids, we might have memorized the entire nursery rhyme because our pre-school teacher had repeatedly said these lines over and over again. But as adults, remembering the lines would not only stir up memories of childhood, but it would also evoke a sense of curiosity.

What is a tuffet? What are curds and whey?

By now, you would have known that a tuffet is a low-seat furniture – somewhat like a footstool.  The question remains:  what are curds and whey? More importantly, if Little Miss Muffet decided to eat the two, are they healthy?

What is Whey?

Whey is obtained when milk is being turned into cheese, which is done by adding rennet to it.  This causes the milk to curdle.  Those little lumps that you see are called curds, and the liquid part is whey.  Cheese is made using the curds, and long ago, the liquid – or the whey – was discarded.  However, people have since discovered the uses, and the health benefits, of whey. On one hand, whey protein is formed when the water in whey is removed.

For people who want to add milk properties to a product, minus the high cost of milk, they use whey as a food additive. Some people who are concerned with their sugar consumption have benefitted from whey.  Food manufacturers who do not want to list sugar as a part of their products’ ingredients used whey to add a sweet flavour to their product offering.

The Effects of Whey Supplements on Blood Pressure

A research study from Washington State University, and which was led by Susan Fluegel, a nutritional biochemist, discovered that everyday doses of the easily accessible whey led to a reduced average blood pressure levels by over six points.  This was seen in women and men who were diagnosed with high systolic and diastolic blood pressure.  Although the study only involved 71 students whose ages ranged from 18 to 26, Fluegel said that older people who have the same problems with their blood pressure would most likely experience the same benefits.  The result of the study was published in the International Dairy Journal.

The study, done by Fluegel for her nutritional biochemistry doctorate, remarked that a 2007 research study did not find any changes in blood pressure in people whose drinks were supplemented with whey.  Fluegel said that she did not find consistent improvement initially.  But then, she decided to divide her subjects into different groupings, and then she began to notice significant improvements in people who exhibited diverse types of increased blood pressure.  The said improvements were seen during the study’s first week, which lasted until the completion of the study’s six-week period.

The whey supplements were given together with fruit-flavoured beverages developed at the Washington State University’s Creamery.  Results revealed that, for subjects whose blood pressure was normal, whey intake did not lower their blood pressure levels.  This is actually good, according to Fluegel, since very low blood pressure levels could also pose a health problem. Previously conducted studies revealed that a reduction in blood pressure levels in people diagnosed with hypertension brings about a reduced risk of cardiovascular diseases.  In fact, it reduces fatal stroke occurrence by up to 35 to 40 percent.

A co-author of the study, Terry Schultz, expressed fascination and interest regarding the findings especially that this discovery is the first of its kind.  He said that the findings could provide useful implications for a person’s health and for the dairy industry as well. Shultz is also an emeritus professor in the former Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition.

In addition to its health benefits presented in the study, Fluegel also highlights the economic effect of using whey – it is essentially low-cost.  Furthermore, the use of whey protein has not been associated with harmful effects in any way and is thus deemed safe to use.

The Health Benefits of Whey

More and more studies have been conducted to establish the health benefits that a person may get from whey supplementation. If only the uses, and health benefits, of whey have been discovered a long, long time ago (since 5000 BC when people started making cheese), people who used to discard the liquid part of the curdled milk would have not done so.  Here are some of the benefits that one may get with whey supplementation:

• Research studies discovered that whey supplementation can increase a person’s lean body mass and improve musculoskeletal performance.  Whey protein contains amino acids which are directly broken down into muscle tissues.  These are also the first ones to be utilized during resistance and exercise training.
• Because whey helps stimulates the building of muscle tissues, a person’s metabolic rate is increased.  This characteristic of whey has helped people achieve weight loss.  Supplementing one’s beverage, or snack, with whey provides one with much-needed energy and it also helps control the intake of food.
• Whey is an exceptional source of bio-available calcium.  This specific property of whey helps provide strong bones, reduces the incidence of stress fractures which may be obtained during exercise, and may also prevent the loss of bones, most especially in female athletes with low levels of the hormone oestrogen.
• Cancer patients, especially those who have problems with digestion, can easily benefit from whey since it is easily digestible.
• A study has also looked into the cancer-protecting benefits of whey.  It has found out that whey protein may reduce a person’s risk from the development of prostate cancer because of its cysteine content.  Cysteine is one of the important building blocks of glutathione, an antioxidant which helps fight free radicals that may cause prostate cancer to form.
• Whey helps lower bad cholesterol levels, or the LDL.  As mentioned in the recent study, it helps keep blood pressure at bay.
• With its antioxidant properties, whey helps boost a person’s immune system which contributes to good overall health.

Sources
healthmad.com
nowhey.org
eurekalert.org