Do premier protein shakes go bad?

In this article, we will address the query “Do premier protein shakes go bad?” Additionally, we will briefly review the factors affecting the spoilage of protein shakes, as well as some tips to extend the shelf life of your protein shake.

Do premier protein shakes go bad?

Yes, all food products have a certain shelf-life; because protein powders are dry, the protein powder (without mixing) can last for as much as two years. A prepared shake will last for a couple of days (2-3 days) in refrigeration temperature (4 °C) (1,2).

What are the Factors Affecting the Freshness and Quality of Premier Protein Shakes?

The factors affecting the freshness and quality of premier protein shakes, and almost all foods, are the following (3):

  • Available water and nutrients for the microorganisms; similar to humans, microorganisms need nutrients like carbohydrates, proteins, and minerals to grow. Therefore, they use your food to obtain nutrients to grow.
  • Temperature: all microorganisms require optimal temperatures to grow, most of them are very comfortable in room and warm temperatures (25 – 37 °C); cool temperatures (< 6 °C) are not good for them, and they grow slower in these conditions.
  • Initial microorganism load: this factor refers to the initial number of microorganisms; bacteria, for example, can divide approximately each 20 minutes, so it will be very different if your shake has 1 bacterium than 1000 bacteria cells.
  • The pH is another critical factor, most microorganisms like a neutral pH. Acid and alkaline pH can be harmful for them, inhibiting or delaying their division.

What are Proper Storage Techniques to Extend the Shelf Life of Premier Protein Shakes?

The best practices or techniques that you can do for extending the shelf life of your premier protein shake are (3):

  • Always use a clean recipient.
  • Make sure that the container is sealed or tightly closed.
  • Store it sealed in the refrigerator (at 4 – 6 °C) as soon as possible after its preparation.
  • Try not to drink small and frequent portions of the shake, this will increase the microbial load and could speed up its spoilage.

For a protein powder, keep it tightly closed and stored in a dry place. Powders are resistant at room temperature, but keeping it in a dry place will prevent it from absorbing moisture.

What are Signs of Spoiled Premier Protein Shakes to Watch Out For?

There are visual signs of spoilage like presence of mold, but most pathogenic bacteria do not cause visual changes in foods. If you notice bad odors or bad taste, you should discard your shake (3).

Anyway, if your shake has more than 3 days in the fridge, or it was at room temperature for a long time, you should not drink it (2).

What are the Risks of Consuming Spoiled Protein Shakes?

If you drink a prepared protein shake that is already spoiled, you can be at risk of having a foodborne disease. A foodborne disease is commonly a gastrointestinal infection or intoxication caused by pathogenic bacteria or their toxins (4,5).

The normal symptoms of a foodborne disease are (4,5):

  • Abdominal pain
  • Fever
  • Diarrhea
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting

All symptoms related to pathogenic bacteria can cause dehydration (which is potentially lethal for children and elderly). Usually, foodborne disease can pass in a few days, but when you have an infection by pathogenic bacteria, you must go to a physician for exact medical indications (4,5).

It is common to find potentially harmful bacteria in protein shakes just like the one found in meats, such as Escherichia Coli and Salmonella (4). If you want further information on what to do if you ate spoiled food (especially animal derived foods), please look at this guide.

Conclusion

In this article, we addressed the query “Do premier protein shakes go bad?” Additionally, we briefly reviewed the factors affecting the spoilage of protein shakes, as well as some tips to extend the shelf life of your protein shake.

References

  1. Dattatreya A, Etzel MR, Rankin SA. Kinetics of browning during accelerated storage of sweet whey powder and prediction of its shelf life. Int Dairy J, 2007;17(2):177–82.
  1. Rysstad G, Kolstad J. Extended shelf life milk-advances in technology. Int J Dairy Technol, 2006;59(2):85–96.
  1. Hammond ST, Brown JH, Burger JR, Flanagan TP, Fristoe TS, Mercado-Silva N, et al. Food spoilage, storage, and transport: Implications for a sustainable future. Bioscience, 2015;65(8):758–68.
  1. Lee H, Yoon Y. Etiological agents implicated in foodborne illness world wide. Food Sci Anim Resour,. 2021;41(1):1–7.
  1. People at risk of foodborne illness [Internet]. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA; [cited 09 June 2023]. Available from: https://www.fda.gov/food/consumers/people-risk-foodborne-illness