There’s Lead in Your Protein Powder?!

Every few months, a headline pops up that sends the internet spiralling:
“Protein powders found to contain lead!”

Cue panic.

But here’s what almost never makes it into those headlines: lead isn’t something companies add (I hope). It’s something the planet puts there.

Why trace metals show up in food

Lead, cadmium, arsenic, and mercury aren’t mysterious industrial additives…they’re naturally occurring elements in the earth’s crust. Plants absorb them through soil, air, and water in the same way they absorb calcium, potassium, and magnesium.

So, any food that started life as a plant…spinach, peas, rice, cocoa, even strawberries…will contain trace amounts.

Now, take something like pea or rice protein powder. It’s not a new ingredient…it’s just the plant in concentrated form.

When you dry and isolate the protein from thousands of peas, everything inside those peas such as amino acids, minerals, and yes, trace elements…gets concentrated too.

That’s why lab tests on plant-based protein powders sometimes show slightly higher readings than whole foods. It’s not contamination but simply concentration.

How much are we actually talking about?

To give this some context, a 2021 paper in Scientific Reports (Nature) analysed hundreds of fruits and vegetables.
Here’s what they found for natural lead levels:

• One medium tomato ~2.3 µg
  

• One medium carrot ~2.3 µg
  

• Two celery sticks ~2.3 µg
  

• 1½ apples ~2.3 µg
  

• A handful of raspberries ~2.1 µg
  

That’s the same ballpark as what’s found in many plant protein powders.
In other words…if you’ve ever eaten a salad, you’ve already consumed similar levels.

What regulators actually care about

Both the FDA (US) and EFSA (Europe) recognise that it’s impossible to remove every trace of heavy metals from the food chain. Their focus is on total exposure over time rather than zero detection.

For a 70 kg adult, EFSA’s benchmark dose for cardiovascular risk from lead is around 105 µg per day…roughly 200 times higher than California’s famously strict Prop 65 “warning” threshold.

So, if your protein powder clocks in at 1–3 µg per serving, you’re well within the margin of safety.

Should companies test for heavy metals?

Absolutely. Every responsible manufacturer should provide independent Certificates of Analysis showing that levels are safely below regulatory thresholds.

But trace metals in the single-digit microgram range aren’t evidence of negligence but rather evidence of nature.

So before you bin your protein tub, remember: you’ve been consuming micrograms of naturally-occurring minerals your entire life. The human body…and your gut…are designed to handle trace exposure.

P.S. At LOAM Science, our upcoming prebiotic fiber blend goes through the same gold-standard quality testing…heavy-metal screening, purity verification, microbial safety, and solubility analysis…at a CGMP-certified facility (the same type of facilities pharmaceuticals would use for high grade testing!) 

Launching in 9 days.
Join the waitlist for early access and a few exclusive surprises for our community!

You can join here:

Menopause & Microbes: What Your Gut Has to Do with Hot Flushes, Sleep & Mood

When most people think about menopause, they picture hormonal madness…hot flushes, night sweats, mood swings.

What’s less talked about is that your gut feels it too.

Your microbiome (the trillions of microbes lining your digestive tract) is woven into almost every system in the body: immunity, metabolism, mood, and yes, hormones.

So when oestrogen and progesterone start to fluctuate, your gut picks up the shockwaves.

Microbiome diversity

As oestrogen falls, bacterial diversity in the gut tends to decline.
A 2022 population study of more than 2,000 people found post-menopausal women had significantly fewer anti-inflammatory species compared with pre-menopausal women.
Men didn’t show the same drop…meaning this is about menopause, not ageing alone.

Lower diversity often equals higher inflammation, bloating, sluggish digestion, and tougher weight management. Think of it as losing an orchestra of microbial instruments that normally play in harmony.

The gut barrier: when estrogen drops, the walls thin

Your gut lining contains oestrogen receptors…tiny molecular “switches” that help maintain integrity.
When oestrogen dips, the lining can become more permeable (“leakier”), allowing unwanted particles to sneak through and trigger low-grade inflammation.
Clinically, that can look like reflux, bloating, or new food sensitivities that never used to bother you.

Immunity: when the gut’s firewall weakens

About 70 percent of your immune cells live in your gut.
Before menopause, oestrogen helps modulate immune strength…partly why women often fend off infections better than men.
Afterwards, that edge softens. Result: more colds, slower recovery, sometimes even recurrent thrush or UTIs.

Gut motility: why constipation creeps in

Progesterone controls the pace of digestion. With less of it, your “gut rhythm” slows.
Transit time lengthens, microbes feast on leftovers, gas builds up…the perfect storm for bloating and constipation.

Meet the estrobolome 

Once oestrogen has done its job around the body, it travels to the gut for processing.
Here, a specific microbial network called the estrobolome can reactivate some of that oestrogen via an enzyme called β-glucuronidase.
This “recycling system” sends small amounts back into circulation, acting like a hormonal buffer.

Support the estrobolome, and you may ease hot flushes, mood shifts, and energy dips…naturally.

Beyond hot flushes: weight, mood & sleep

Weight:
As metabolism slows, the gut can become an ally.
Fermenting fibre releases short-chain fatty acids that stimulate GLP-1…the same appetite-regulating hormone targeted by weight-loss drugs like Ozempic.
Translation: more fibre → better satiety → steadier weight.

Mood:
The famous SMILES trial showed that a Mediterranean-style, gut-friendly diet significantly reduced depression scores.
Your gut literally makes neurotransmitters…including 90 % of your body’s serotonin.

Sleep:
Research transferring the microbiome of sleep-deprived humans into mice caused cognitive slowdown…proof that gut imbalance can mess with circadian rhythm.
In real life, women who support gut health often notice calmer nights and sharper mornings.

Gut-targeted strategies for menopause

1. Hit 30 g of fibre daily; veggies, fruits, legumes, wholegrains, nuts, seeds. Fibre feeds microbes that make SCFAs, lowering hunger hormones and inflammation.

2. Maximise plant diversity. Different fibres feed different microbes. Aim for as much variety as you can = resilience.

3. Add fermented foods. Yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi…one serving daily can boost microbial diversity within weeks.

4. Train your gut with routine. Regular meal and sleep times strengthen circadian rhythm and motility.

5. Move. Strength training supports muscle, glucose control, and gut transit.

6. Manage stress and sleep. Both heavily influence the gut-brain axis.

7. Choose smart supplementation. Not all probiotics or prebiotics are created equal. Look for blends with clinical validation or better, formulas like LOAM designed for microbial diversity.

When to see your doctor

Persistent bloating, unexplained weight loss, blood in stool, or chronic fatigue always warrant medical review. Menopause can explain a lot…but not everything.

Menopause isn’t a decline; it’s a recalibration.
Your hormones change…so your inputs must change too. Feed your microbes, and they’ll help balance the very hormones that influence them.

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How Loneliness Was Killing Me

I didn’t realise how lonely I was until I wasn’t anymore.

As an only child, I grew up with my own company…books, imagination, the occasional argument with myself. I was never unhappy. I learned to be independent, self-reliant, productive. But looking back now, there was always a low hum of something I couldn’t name.

It wasn’t sadness. It was…emptiness with good posture.

The first fix

My first real antidote to loneliness came with four legs and a heartbeat…my dog. He didn’t speak, but he saw me. The simple rhythm of feeding, walking, and caring for another living being rewired something primal: that deep need to belong, to be needed.

Then came partnership

When I got married, that’s when the full weight of it hit me…not marriage itself, but the retrospective clarity it gave me. I could finally see how alone I had been.

There’s a unique kind of loneliness in high-functioning people. You fill your calendar, chase goals, answer every message, and still feel that quiet ache at night when the house falls silent. I had convinced myself I was fine…that solitude was strength. But in truth, it was actually a slow erosion.

The Harvard Study of Adult Development…one of the longest studies on human happiness…found that relationship satisfaction was the single strongest predictor of long-term health and wellbeing. Not your diet, not income, not fame…just love, connection, and being known.

Loneliness isn’t just an emotion…it’s a real physiological stressor. Chronic isolation raises cortisol, weakens immunity, and increases inflammation.

You don’t need to get married, or even be in a romantic relationship, to cure loneliness. But you do need connection…real, regular, intentional connection.

Humans are social mammals. We evolved not just to survive together, but to regulate one another’s nervous systems. When someone hugs you, listens to you, or even just remembers your name…your heart rate literally slows. Oxytocin rises. Your body knows it’s safe.

That’s the irony: the cure for loneliness isn’t more independence rather…interdependence.

Looking back, I can see my life as chapters of connection…my parents, my dog, my partner, my friends, my work. Each added colour to the grayscale.

So if you’re reading this and recognising that same quiet ache, here’s what I’d tell you:

• Start small. Call someone you miss.
  

• Find a shared purpose. Join a group, a class, a cause.
  

• Build something. A family, a community, even a project that brings people together.
  

• Or adopt something. A pet, a plant…a reason to care.

The opposite of loneliness isn’t company but meaning.

👋 Who are you again? I’m Karan Rajan - a doctor and curious explorer of all things health and wellness. I host the Dr Karan Explores Podcast and have written two books "This Book May Save Your Life" and "This Is Vital Information" (you can pre-order it now!) and have just founded a microbiome company, LOAM Science  to create the best fiber product in the world!

Every Sunday, I share 3 interesting things about health, life and science to make your life easier, healthier and happier. (Disclaimer: I’m more your friend with health benefits. None of this is medical advice.) 

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