You’re Vegetarian...how Do You Get Your Protein?

Anytime I mentioned to someone that I’m a vegetarian, the most common question I hear after they gasp out the words “You don’t eat ANY flesh…” is always the inevitable: ”How do you get your protein then?”

Well, being vegetarian does not mean your diet will be lacking in protein. Most plant foods contain protein and in fact it would be very difficult to design a vegetarian diet that is short on protein. Moreover, the irony of the whole protein debate is that being overly concerned about sufficient sources of protein for vegetarians may not even be that necessary as it's been proven that excess dietary protein may lead to health problems. Friends, the necessity for protein for the human body is about a nickel's weight worth, the excess is basically excreted in urine.

Of course we all need a certain amount of protein everyday to remain healthy. However, based on misinformation to this effect, several people view the daily consumption of a high-protein diet as beneficial and this in itself may actually be wrong.

Take a look at these statistics will you:

-According to the French Hygienist, Albert Mosseri, diseases and conditions which can be caused or aggravated by too much protein intake include: Leukemia, Skin Diseases and even Cancer.

-Based on the John Robbins work titled: Diet for a New America, the number of people in the US suffering from diseases caused by protein excess is a mind-boggling 40, 000, 000 compared to a measly 3 people suffering from the deficiency of this substance.

Now for some sufficient sources of protein for vegetarians, here are some recommended items.

1. Green Leaves: Believe or not, these babies have sufficient amounts of protein and of extremely high quality, containing all the essential amino acids. They are highly absorbable and will not ferment in the intestines nor poison the body.

2. Fruits: Some of the fruits containing higher quantities of a protein supply for a vegetarian are –Avocados, Dates, Bananas, Olives

3. Nuts

4. Whole Grains

5. Some root vegetables (such as Sweet Potatoes @ 2% by dry weight.)

6. Legumes (though not necessarily advocated...are a good protein supply for a vegetarian)

So my good friend, there you have it, a list of adequate food items that can be consumed for the necessity of meeting your protein needs as a vegetarian, just remember, it’s really not something that you have to be overly obsessive about…really.

Which Protein Is Best For You?

If you are physically active and taking supplements but still cannot seem to get the energy back in your body and brain, then it’s time to look at how much and what kind of protein you are getting. Even though dieters have been using high-protein diets for years, many are unaware of how much protein they actually need and how critical it is to their overall health. Low-protein diets can be lacking greatly in a lot of essential nutrients such as zinc, iron, manganese, chromium, copper, and others. This deficiency can cause illness and fatigue. Protein deficiency leads to difficult recovery from exercise, feeling tired, frequent colds, poor hair or nails, and a cessation in menstrual period for women, which may sound pleasant but is potentially dangerous. People of all ages are not aware of how much their protein needs change as they increase exercise. As your activity increases, so does your protein needs.

Protein is important in your body because every single cell in the body is made up of proteins. Protein is also essential for muscle building, producing red blood cells, the production of various enzymes and hormones, and good hair, nails, and skin. Our immune systems are almost all protein based, so providing our body with protein means that we can fight colds and other infections better. Proteins are also needed in our body to repair muscle damage that occurs during mild exercise. Protein is made from a chain of amino acids and our body cannot make some of these amino acids, which means that they need to be found in our diet. There are eight amino acids that our body cannot make and must be found in our diet every day. These include: isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine. Although it is nice to know which amino acids are essential, it is even more important to know where you can find these amino acids because your muscles and body need them on a daily basis.

Since proteins are constantly being broken down, it is necessary to get some every day. It is suggested that women aged 19 to 70 need 46 grams of protein per day, while men of the same age need 56 grams. Now that you know that protein is essential to your life, what kind of protein is actually needed? Even though protein can be found in a good diet by simply eating meat, nuts, eggs, and other foods, many of us with busy lives need a quick and convenient source of protein. At a health food store, your choices are soy, casein, whey, and egg. Although the classic protein source is whey protein, the problem is that even though it has a high amount of useable amino acids, some people don’t like it or have a hard time taking it. Other proteins like soy and casein don’t have the complete amino acid content that your body is looking for.

With all the different forms of protein available one might wonder which is best? Egg white is the perfect protein source. Egg whites contain more than half the protein of an egg and are also rich in chlorine, niacin, potassium, magnesium, riboflavin, selenium, vitamin K, and sulfur. Additionally, egg whites have a high amount of protein but exclude the cholesterol and sodium found in the yolk. Egg white protein is considered almost perfect because human requirements for amino acids and the amino acids contained in eggs are almost identical. Eggs are also one of the well-tolerated proteins, as over 90 percent of the protein of eggs is digested into the individual amino acids that your body needs. Egg white protein is one of the few products on the market that taste good without the added artificial flavors, colors, or additives.

Do I Really Need All That Protein?

You've seen the protein ads - massive muscled bodies, shining with paint on tan, in skimpy bathing costumes...all claiming that you too can look like this with a protein shake and a workout. There's a whole lot of hard work that goes into competitive bodybuilding, and that's not just on the weight bench. Muscle building nutrition is a science in itself - nutrients for optimal growth, nutrients for intense workout recovery, and nutrients to prevent and repair injury.

The foundation nutrient is of course, protein. All the other add-ons are to help the protein be assimilated and strengthen the signals to the muscle to grow. But for those of you like me that just want to maintain a strong, attractive physique, the body building regime is not what we are after. So just what type of protein should we be consuming, when and how much? This article helps answer that question.

What Is Protein?

Protein is the foundation structure of all of your organs, nerves, hormones, muscles, antibodies, and enzymes. Its assimilation into the body is aided by a number of vitamins and minerals.

Protein is made up building blocks called amino acids. There are 22 different amino acids, that combine in numerous ways, to form the thousands of different proteins found in your body. Of these 22 amino acids, eight cannot be made by your body from other nutrients. These eight are referred to as 'Essential Amino Acids' and must be obtained from food.

Animal Foods - such as eggs, fish, chicken, red meat, and dairy contain all eight essential amino acids.

Plant Foods - no single plant food contains all eight essential amino acids; you must eat a variety of plant foods such as vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, grains, and
even fruit.

How To Add Protein To Your Diet

To obtain the right balance of proteins, there are many food options. Each option has its benefits and drawbacks, but the following is a useful guide:

Animal Protein

The best source of animal protein is from organic animal foods. These are best eaten raw, lightly cooked, or braised in broth or water. High cooking temperatures can change the molecular structure of the protein and fat, making it harmful to your body.

Animal foods are best eaten with a large serving of vegetables. Cooked animal foods contain higher levels of free radicals than plant foods. Vegetables contain a high level of natural antioxidants, which help protect your body against some of the free radicals. Also, the fibre in the vegetables helps prevent constipation and endogenous toxaemia. Avoid luncheon meats and bacon. These are generally preserved with nitrites or nitrates, which have been closely linked to many different types of cancer, particularly in the digestive tract, bladder, and lungs.

Also avoid charcoal grilled meats; these contain chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons which are known to induce cancer in animals.

Plant Based Proteins

Beans, nuts, seeds, and grains should be soaked in water for at least a few hours, preferably overnight, before eating or preparing to eat. This helps deactivate compounds in these foods that are known to cause mineral deficiencies and digestive disturbances.

Always chew these food groups until liquid to make it easier for stomach acids to break the protein down into amino acids, making them them available to your blood stream via your small intestine. Chewing well also decreases the potential for food-allergic reactions.

Processed Protein Supplements

Avoid isolated protein products, usually made from soy, egg whites, whey, and casein. These isolated protein products are typically made with high-temperature processes that can make the protein unusable by the body, and can even be harmful. Protein isolates are found in many health food bars, energy bars, muscle-building supplements, and dietary shakes.

Instead, look for protein supplements that have been manufactured using

How Much Protein Is Required?

In general terms, a good guide is to take you body weight in pounds, half it to get the number of grams of protein required per day. As an example - a woman weighing 126 pounds would require 63 grams of protein per day.

If you exercise, you need more protein to help build muscle and replenish and maintain your cells, but keep to the maximums above.

There is a test you can use to monitor how well your body is responding to the amount of protein you are eating. This is called a blood urea nitrogen (BUN) test. When you eat protein, your body breaks it down into amino acids that contain nitrogen. Nitrogen separates from amino acids and combines with other molecules to form urea. This is filtered from your blood by the kidneys and excreted from your body in urine. The test measures the amount of urea in your your urine.

Importance Of High Protein And Low Fat Diet

For most high protein diets means low carbohydrates. Even body builders are not advised to go on a low carbohydrate diet as they have high protein requirements. Protein are the main source of muscle building, cell replenish and maintaining a good level of blood. In other words, proteins are the main building block of a body. And those who are interested in high protein diet need to do it carefully to avoid loss of carbs.

The main advantage of a high protein diet is that it triggers weight loss. Proteins have amino acids in them which are the main reason of good health. If your body is deficient in amino acid then you are bound to have health issues. If your diet revolves around good intake of protein instead of refined foods with high carbohydrate concentration then the body will turn into a state of ketosis. In this state the body will turn towards burning fats as energy source when it will not find fuel in the form of carbohydrates. Thus lesser carbohydrates mean more burning of fats.

Researchers have shown that not all intakes of protein are helpful. Let's say that you are taking a vegetable that are rich with high proteins but they are fried and dripping in oil then they more harmful to your health then being of any health to your body.

Another very good source of proteins is meat. Meat like pork and beef are rich with proteins and other nutrients. Or if you are a lover of oily and fried foods then you can opt to eat fish and other seafood. The reason behind this is that these are not only rich with proteins but also have fatty acid in them that help you in maintaining a good blood cholesterol level as well as prevent such conditions as stroke or coronary artery diseases.

However, some experts claim that too much protein results in reduction of calcium supply in body and cause diseases like osteoporosis. Moreover, the efficiency of kidneys is reduced. A high consumption of proteins can cause kidney stones, by increasing uric acid levels in the body.

Calculate Calories Contributed By Protein, Cards, And Fat

It feels great to begin a healthy new activity, like working toward healthy weight loss. In order to reach your goal, you will need some way to keep track of what you are eating and how much exercise you are getting. It helps to keep a food diary and an exercise journal so you can manage your progress. Most people, no matter how devoted to a great idea, do not have lots of extra time to devote to managing detailed records for either of these activities. There is a quick and easy solution to help you meet your goal in terms of your food consumption, and that is to use an online calorie calculator. Leave the research and math to your computer, and save yourself some time while keeping accurate records of the type and amount of food you are eating daily.

Most foods can be broken down into three main categories: proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. There are recommended amounts for all three of these that you will want to consume to ensure that even while losing weight, your body till has enough nutrients it needs to function properly and suffer no deterioration.

There are a wide variety of foods that you will want to consume. Monounsaturated fats, such as olive oil, are a healthier choice than saturated ones, typically found in red meat and butter, because they do not increase blood cholesterol. The majority of the food you eat should come from fruits, vegetables, whole grain products, beans, nuts and seeds, while red meat and saturated fats should be consumed rarely. Some people prefer plant-based diets. People with certain health conditions require diets limiting certain nutrients. Diabetics need to carefully monitor the amount of carbohydrates they eat and balance that with the medication needed to keep their blood sugar at appropriate levels. People with liver or kidney function issues often eat a low-protein diet. Athletes in training, as well as lactating women and people recovering from surgery require increased amounts of protein for the body to repair or maintain properly.

An online calorie counter is tied to a database of information about thousands of different foods, so when you enter the type and amount of food into the calculator, you will get a specific breakdown of the number of calories and the grams of protein, carbohydrates and fats you are consuming, so you can be sure you are staying in line with the specific diet you are following.

Nutritional Benefits From Protein Sports Supplements

One of the best ways that a person can benefit from a healthy diet and exercise routine is the addition of sports nutrition in the form of extra protein. Protein is found naturally in many of the foods we eat. But a person who exercises often should get one gram of protein per pound of their body weight. This presents a problem in our fast breakfast (or no breakfast) and fast food lunch lifestyles. We don't always get the protein our body needs to benefit from our daily workouts. This needed protein can be acquired safely from sport supplements promoting extra protein.

Protein nutritional sports drinks and mixes can provide many benefits other than increasing muscle mass and body tone. Proper protein sports supplements can help your body repair damaged cells, such as repairing muscles and bones that may get damaged during a workout. Like carbohydrates, protein can give you energy throughout the day, but unlike carbohydrates, protein offers a lower level of energy that last much longer, keeping the weight off that generally comes from a high carbohydrates diet. Getting the right amount of protein, even through sports nutrition supplements, can help the body make essential amino acids as well.

One type of protein sports nutritional supplement you may see is one called whey protein. Whey comes from milk and is one of the highest quality forms of protein with a rich amount of amino acids. And unlike other forms of protein (red meat for example) whey offers protein in a low fat and low cholesterol form. Whether you just run every other day or you are a professional athlete, protein sports supplements can help increase your body's energy and strength. Most athletes consume a protein shake of some kind before and immediately after exercise or an event to help repair and rebuild damaged muscles.