A Consumer Reports investigation has found what it calls “concerning” levels of lead in nearly two dozen popular protein powder brands, though the nonprofit group says most consumers don’t need to panic or throw their products away.
The organization tested 23 protein powders and ready-to-drink shakes purchased from major retailers and online stores over a three-month period beginning in November 2024.
The results, released Tuesday, show that more than two-thirds of the products contained more lead in a single serving than Consumer Reports experts consider safe for an entire day.
“Some of the products had more than 10 times the level that our experts say is safe,” Consumer Reports journalist Paris Martineau told NPR.
Plant-Based Powders Showed Higher Lead Levels
Consumer Reports said lead levels were especially high in plant-based protein powders, averaging nine times higher than those made from dairy proteins and twice as high as beef-based powders.
“When it came to the protein powders and shakes made with whey or dairy-based proteins, those generally had the lowest amounts of lead,” Martineau said. “But still, half the products we tested had high enough levels of contamination that our experts advise against taking them daily.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services said the Food and Drug Administration is reviewing the report along with other heavy-metal data “to better inform where to focus our testing efforts and enforcement activities.”
Industry Pushes Back on Findings
The Council for Responsible Nutrition, which represents the dietary supplement industry, urged caution in interpreting the results. It noted that modern testing methods can detect trace amounts of metals that occur naturally in soil and water.
“A finding that a product exceeds Consumer Reports’ self-imposed threshold is not the same as exceeding a government safety limit, nor is it evidence of any safety risk to consumers,” the trade group said in a statement.
Two Powders Flagged as Highest Concern
Consumer Reports rated the 23 products using its own “level of concern” metric, based on California Proposition 65 standards, which set a maximum daily exposure of 0.5 micrograms of lead.
Seven products were labeled as “better choices for daily consumption,” while 12 were deemed “okay occasionally.” Two products were advised for once-a-week use, and two were listed as “avoid.”
Those were Naked Nutrition’s Mass Gainer, which contained 7.7 micrograms of lead per serving, and Huel’s Black Edition, which contained 6.3 micrograms.
Naked Nutrition Chief Marketing Officer James Clark said in an email that the company’s larger serving size skews the results. “When considered on a per-gram basis, our product is consistent with other plant-based protein products,” he said.
Huel, a British company that sells plant-based meal replacements, published an FAQ disputing the findings. The company said Prop 65 sets “an exceptionally conservative threshold” and insisted its mineral levels “are safe for daily consumption.”
No Federal Limits on Heavy Metals in Supplements
Currently, there are no federal limits on heavy metals in dietary supplements, leaving groups like Consumer Reports to set their own benchmarks.
Martineau said the goal of the investigation was to raise awareness rather than cause alarm. “The real risk with lead is that even low-level exposure over time can build up in the body,” she said. “So the advice is to scrutinize your protein shakes and make an informed decision rather than immediately freak out.”
Consumer Reports’ study follows similar findings by the Clean Label Project, which earlier this year reported that nearly half of 160 protein powder products tested exceeded California’s safety limits for toxic metals.
Health experts say there is no safe level of lead exposure, and long-term intake can cause reproductive issues, kidney damage and cognitive impairment. Still, Martineau said even the most contaminated powders tested “were far below the concentration needed to cause immediate harm.”
