Not only are dairy foods -- like milk, cheese, and yogurt -- excellent sources of protein but they also contain valuable calcium. Choose skim or low fat dairy to keep bones and teeth strong, prevent osteoporosis, and enhance weight loss.
Eggs
Eggs are one of the least expensive forms of protein. The American Heart Association says normal healthy adults can safely enjoy an egg a day.
Beans
One-half cup of beans contains as much protein as three ounces of broiled steak. Plus, these nutritious nuggets are loaded with fiber to keep you feeling full for hours.
Pork Tenderloin
This great and versatile white meat is 31% leaner than 20 years ago.
Soy
Twenty five grams of soy protein daily can help lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease. Combine soy protein foods like tofu with a healthy low fat diet.
Lean Beef
Lean beef has only one more gram of saturated fat than a skinless chicken breast. Lean beef is also an excellent source of zinc, iron, and vitamin B12.
Protein on the Go
Grab a meal replacement drink, cereal bar, or energy bar. Check the label to be sure the product contains at least six grams of protein, and is low in sugar and fat.
You probably know you need to eat protein, but what is it? Many foods contain protein (say: pro-teen), but the best sources are beef, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy products, nuts, seeds, and legumes like black beans and lentils. Protein builds up, maintains, and replaces the tissues in your body. (Not the tissues you blow your nose in! We mean the stuff your body's made up of.) Your muscles, your organs, and your immune system are made up mostly of protein.
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Your body uses the protein you eat to make lots of specialized protein molecules that have specific jobs. For instance, your body uses protein to make hemoglobin (say: hee-muh-glow-bin), the part of red blood cells that carries oxygen to every part of your body. Other proteins are used to build cardiac muscle. What's that? Your heart! In fact, whether you're running or just hanging out, protein is doing important work like moving your legs, moving your lungs, and protecting you from disease.
All About Amino Acids
When you eat foods that contain protein, the digestive juices in your stomach and intestine go to work. They break down the protein in food into basic units, called amino acids (say uh-mee-no a-sids). The amino acids then can be reused to make the proteins your body needs to maintain muscles, bones, blood, and body organs.
Proteins are sometimes described as long necklaces with differently shaped beads. Each bead is a small amino acid. These amino acids can join together to make thousands of different proteins. Scientists have found many different amino acids in protein, but 22 of them are very important to human health.
Of those 22 amino acids, your body can make 13 of them without you ever thinking about it. Your body can't make the other nine amino acids, but you can get them by eating protein-rich foods. They are called essential amino acids because it's essential that you get them from the foods you eat.
Different Kinds of Protein
Protein from animal sources, such as meat and milk, is called complete, because it contains all nine of the essential amino acids. Most vegetable protein is considered incomplete because it lacks one or more of the essential amino acids. This can be a concern for someone who doesn't eat meat or milk products. But people who eat a vegetarian diet can still get all their essential amino acids by eating a wide variety of protein-rich vegetable foods.
For instance, you can't get all the amino acids you need from peanuts alone, but if you have peanut butter on whole-grain bread you're set. Likewise, red beans won't give you everything you need, but red beans and rice will do the trick. The good news is that you don't have to eat all the essential amino acids in every meal. As long as you have a variety of protein sources throughout the day, your body will grab what it needs from each meal.
How Much Is Enough?
You can figure out how much protein you need if you know how much you weigh. Each day, kids need to eat about 0.5 grams of protein for every pound (0.5 kilograms) they weigh. That's a gram for every 2 pounds (1 kilogram) you weigh. Your protein needs will grow as you get bigger, but then they will level off when you reach adult size. Adults, for instance, need about 60 grams per day.
To figure out your protein needs, multiply your weight in pounds times 0.5 or you can just take your weight and divide by 2. For instance, a 70-pound (or 32-kilogram) kid should have about 35 grams of protein every day. If you only know your weight in kilograms, you need about 1 gram of protein each day for every kilogram you weigh.
You can look at a food label to find out how many protein grams are in a serving. But if you're eating a balanced diet, you don't need to keep track of it. It's pretty easy to get enough protein. Here's an example of how a kid might get about 35 grams of protein in a day:
* 2 tablespoons (15 milliliters) peanut butter (7 grams protein)
* 1 cup (240 milliliters) low-fat milk (8 grams protein)
* 1 ounce (30 grams) or two domino-size pieces of cheddar cheese (7 grams protein)
* 1.5 ounces (90 grams) chicken breast (10.5 grams protein)
* ½ cup (80 grams) broccoli (2 grams protein)
Of course, you can choose your own favorite combination of protein-rich foods — now that you're a pro at protein!
Protein
What do you think about when you hear the word protein? Maybe it's an ad for some protein shake that promises massive muscles? Or is it the last high-protein diet craze you read about? With all this talk about protein, you might think Americans were at risk for not eating enough. In fact, most of us eat more protein than we need. Protein is in many foods that we eat on a regular basis.
This section will help you learn more about protein. You'll find information about what foods have protein and what happens when we eat more protein than we need.
Proteins are part of every cell, tissue, and organ in our bodies. These body proteins are constantly being broken down and replaced. The protein in the foods we eat is digested into amino acids that are later used to replace these proteins in our bodies.
Protein is found in the following foods:
* meats, poultry, and fish
* legumes (dry beans and peas)
* tofu
* eggs
* nuts and seeds
* milk and milk products
* grains, some vegetables, and some fruits (provide only small amounts of protein relative to other sources)
As we mentioned, most adults in the United States get more than enough protein to meet their needs. It's rare for someone who is healthy and eating a varied diet to not get enough protein.
What are the types of protein?
Proteins are made up of amino acids. Think of amino acids as the building blocks. There are 20 different amino acids that join together to make all types of protein. Some of these amino acids can't be made by our bodies, so these are known as essential amino acids. It's essential that our diet provide these.
In the diet, protein sources are labeled according to how many of the essential amino acids they provide:
* A complete protein source is one that provides all of the essential amino acids. You may also hear these sources called high quality proteins. Animal-based foods; for example, meat, poultry, fish, milk, eggs, and cheese are considered complete protein sources.
photo of various foods
* An incomplete protein source is one that is low in one or more of the essential amino acids. Complementary proteins are two or more incomplete protein sources that together provide adequate amounts of all the essential amino acids.
photo of various foods
For example, rice contains low amounts of certain essential amino acids; however, these same essential amino acids are found in greater amounts in dry beans. Similarly, dry beans contain lower amounts of other essential amino acids that can be found in larger amounts in rice. Together, these two foods can provide adequate amounts of all the essential amino acids the body needs.
Plant versus animal proteins
In terms of healthy eating, you should aim to eat a diet with a higher proportion of plant proteins than animal ones.
Processed foods
Sausages and burgers may be the obvious culprits, but so are smoked foods which are also high in salt.
Try to keep foods such as smoked bacon and salmon to occasional treats.
* Many animal proteins are high in saturated fat or cooked with a lot of fat (oil, lard, dripping).
* Studies have linked eating a lot of red and processed meat to an increased risk of bowel and stomach cancer.
* Cooking meat, poultry and fish at high temperatures creates chemicals called heterocyclic amines (HAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). It's thought HAs and PAHs may increase our risk of cancer, but more research is needed. PAHs are also found in the exhaust fumes and tobacco smoke.
* Plant-based proteins are low in fat and high in fibre, vitamins and minerals.
* Plant proteins contain phytochemicals that contribute towards health and disease prevention. For example, isoflavones found in soya beans have antioxidant properties, thought to be important in the prevention of cancer.
How much do I need?
Energy and protein
* 1g carbohydrate: 3.75 calories.
* 1g protein: 4 calories.
* 1g fat: 9 calories.
* 1g alcohol: 7 calories.
Current advice says protein only has to make up 10 to 15 per cent of your daily diet to meet your body's needs. That's around 55g for men and 45g for women.
Most of us eat more than this, and the British Nutrition Foundation puts the average adult intake at 88g for men and 64g for women.
* Around two thirds of the protein we eat is from animal sources.
* We get a quarter of our protein from cereal products (wheat, bread, oats).
* Nuts and pulses make up most of the final twelfth.
How much protein do foods contain?
Below are some examples of foods, so you can compare protein content. You can also check nutrition labels to find out how much protein something contains.
* One skinless chicken breast (130g): 41g protein.
* One small fillet steak (200g): 52g protein.
* One beef burger or pork sausage: 8g protein.
* One portion of poached skinless cod fillet (150g): 32g protein.
* Half a can of tuna: 19g protein.
* One portion of cheese (50g): 12g protein.
* One medium egg: 6g protein.
* 150ml glass of milk: 5g protein.
* One tablespoon of boiled red lentils (40g): 3g protein.
* One portion of tofu (125g): 15g protein.
* One slice medium wholemeal bread: 4g protein.
* One slice medium white bread: 3g protein.
Tips for healthy living
* Include oily fish in your diet at least twice a week.
* Try using soya products such as veggie mince and tofu. They will take up the flavour of the dish if you add them to stews and sauces.
* Snack on seeds and unsalted nuts. Try sunflower, pumpkin or sesame seeds and brazils, cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts or almonds.
* Look at using pulses as an alternative source of protein. They include chickpeas, a wide range of lentils, split peas and a vast range of beans from the black-eyed to the broad, butter and kidney.
* Have one vegetarian meal each week.
You don't need to banish meat from your diet altogether.
1. Use lean cuts of meat and poultry.
2. Trim off any fat, eg the skin on chicken breasts and the rind on bacon.
3. Choose smaller portions.
4. Reduce the frequency of meat-based meals.
5. Pay particular attention to how you cook meat.
Temperature is the most important factor in the production of heterocyclic amines (HAs).
* Frying, chargrilling, and barbequing produce the largest amounts of HAs when the cooking temperature is increased from 200°C to 250°C.
* Oven roasting and baking use lower temperatures, and so produce lower levels of HAs.
* Stewing, boiling and poaching all use temperatures below 100°C and so produce very few HAs.
* Avoid gravy made from dripping because it contains substantial amounts of HAs.
* Microwaving meat for two minutes before cooking reduces the HA content by about 90 per cent.
* Cooking meat for a long time (ie well done or very well done) produces more of these chemicals.
* Protein from milk, eggs, tofu and organ meats such as liver have very little or no HA content, even when cooked.
Jennifer, a middle-aged single mother with one six-year-old daughter, has been skipping sweets for a few weeks now. She’s also become a stickler for portion control. She feels as if she’s eating less than ever, and she’s been diligently exercising for an hour at a time at least four days a week. Yet, she hasn’t lost a single pound. The question is, “Why?”
This is a dilemma which affects dieters the world over. They think they are taking the steps necessary to lose weight, but nothing seems to be happening. In essence, they are trapped in a dieting rut and they don’t know how to free themselves. As a result, they become frustrated and depressed and may then engage in binge eating.
One of the problems with diets is that they are often standardized. As a result, they don’t take into consideration your individual physiology and metabolism. They provide a cookie-cutter approach to weight loss—an approach which may not work in your individual case. As a result, an increasing number of people are turning to dieticians to formulate a person weight loss strategy for them. This process has been made easier through the Internet, where you can correspond with a dietician any time of the day or night via e-mail. The dietician can also act as your personal coach, helping you through your dieting dilemmas.
Another reason that you may be failing at your diet is because of a lack of support. You may have family members who can eat whatever they want and seemingly not gain a pound. As a result, they may fill your refrigerator with junk food, leading you into temptation. Also, you may feel as if you have no one to turn to in order to discuss your weight problems. In order to solve this problem, many individuals look to psychotherapists to help them with their food-related issues. This can be particularly important if an individual has turned to purging in an effort to combat their weight problems. Bulimia is a serious disease which must be treated in order to ensure the good health of the patient. Thankfully, there are a number of treatment programs throughout the U.S. specifically focusing on bulimia.
Yet another reason for diet failure is hidden calories. You may literally be consuming calories and not even realize it. For instance, the frappucinos that are so popular today are loaded with calories—as many as 600 in a single serving! You may also be indulging in sugary sodas—another source of extra calories. By taking a few simple steps, such as eliminating the exotic coffee drinks from your diet and substituting skim milk for whole milk, you may be able to eliminate the hidden calories that are denying you dieting success.
Lack of consistency can also be a diet-killer. You might go on a diet for a while, then quit before you’ve made any measurable progress. It’s only natural to want to see quick results. The problem is that healthy weight loss involves losing only a couple of pounds a week. That means you’ll have to stay on your diet for months before you see appreciable weight loss. Discouraging? It can be, but if you keep a positive attitude you can achieve your ideal weight.
You may also be more successful in your dieting if you consider it to be a lifestyle change. Therefore, your diet becomes a meal plan for life. This means that you must change the way you look at food. It is designed to be fuel for your body, and nothing more. As a result, you should not turn to food to make you feel better or to provide you with a sense of comfort. A lifestyle change implies commitment; it means that you are prepared to follow the plan for the long haul. If you feel as if you cannot be on your diet for any appreciable length of time, perhaps it’s time to consider a different diet. Your aim ultimately should be not simply to lose weight, but to become healthier. A fad diet will not allow you to reach that milestone. Therefore, you must choose your diet carefully.
Protein
Protein is vital for the healthy growth, development and repair of virtually all cells in the human body; from nails and hair to skin, organs, tissues and ligaments. In fact, protein accounts for around 17% of your total body weight!
Amino Acids
All proteins are made up of different combinations of around 20 amino acids, which are often referred to as 'the building blocks of life'.
Amino acids are categorised into 2 groups: 11 non-essential amino acids produced naturally by the body, and 9 essential amino acids which the body is unable to manufacture directly and must be consumed regularly as part of a healthy diet.
Sources of Protein
Protein can be found in both plant and animal matter, making it possible for non-meat eaters to get all they need from a meat-free diet.
Protein from plants
No one plant contains all the essential amino acids needed by the body. This means that non-meat eaters should aim to consume a combination of different plant sources within their diet on a daily basis.
Good sources of plant protein include: soya products, nuts, seeds, beans, legumes and grains such as rice.
Protein from meat
Meat contains all the essential amino acids needed by the body. Good sources include oily fish such as fresh tuna, sardines and trout, as well as poultry, meat and animal produce such as eggs.
Protein Supplements
Due to the role of protein in building muscle tissue, it is often taken as a supplement for those looking to support and maximise the effects of their workouts. Holland & Barrett stocks a huge variety of protein supplements including:
Whey protein
Whey protein has one of the highest biological values of any protein supplement and is very kind on the digestive system.
Hemp Natural Protein Powder
Free from additives, preservatives and pesticides, Hemp Natural Protein Powder is a natural way to support your protein intake.