Does your protein drink contain unhealthy ingredients? Consumer Reports cautions that some popular protein drinks harbor unhealthy ingredients like heavy metal contaminants.

Regular consumption of these popular protein drinks can cause chronic exposure to these heavy metal contaminants. People who are particularly at risk would be those under 18 years of age, women who are pregnant, and people who already have a chronic health condition.

According to an investigation by Consumer Reports, when taken three times a day, EAS Myoplex Original Rich Dark Chocolate Shake has an unhealthy amount of arsenic, Muscle Milk chocolate powder contains unhealthy amounts of arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury, and Muscle Milk vanilla crème contains unhealthy amounts of cadmium and lead, with arsenic close to the daily U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP) limit.

"Protein is important in the diet, but you don’t need the protein drinks to get enough, says Jeannie Gazzaniga-Moloo, PhD, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association."

http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/news/20100603/report-protein-drinks-have-unhealthy-metals?ecd=wnl_day_060410