Sensory evaluation and quantitative analysis of mineral and heavy metal content of protein supplement incorporated with herbal extract

Calories-dense products promote weight gain through its healthy ingredients. The incorporation of herbs increased the product’s benefit with antioxidant, anti-cancer and anti-aging properties. In this study, the comparison between herbal and non-herbal (commercial products) protein supplements were determined. The sensory evaluation of the protein supplements were done via 9-point hedonic scale. The mineral contents and undesirable toxic metals in the the product were also analysed using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). The score of hedonic scale indicated that the sweetness and bitterness of the herbal protein supplement were significantly different compared to the commercial products. All samples showed differences in the mineral contents where the herbal protein supplement contributed the highest content of magnesium (Mg) 3643.7 μg/kg, sodium (Na) 8192.3μg/kg and ferum (Fe) 180.7 μg/kg. The ICP-MS analysis result showed traces of heavy metals (cadmium, arsenic, plumbum, mercury) were 1.10 μg/kg, 0.03 μg/kg, 3.00 μg/kg and 5.07 μg/kg, respectively. These results confirmed that the concentrations of heavy metals in the product has not exceeded the maximum standard limit of regulation in Malaysia for Cd (0.3 mg/kg), As (5 mg/kg), Pb (10 mg/kg), and Hg (0.5 mg/kg). Hence, the results might be useful to define the new formulations of these highly consumed protein supplement with health benefits for atheletes.