What’s the deal with protein?
What’s the deal with protein? And how much should we eat?
First off… why do we need protein? Well it’s not just for body builders!
Your body needs protein for:
- Tissue and organ repair
- Hormone production (e.g. insulin)
- Antibody production (immune system health)
- Oxygen transport around the body
Oh and another bonus - it helps keep you fuller for longer and helps manage blood sugar balance, so another great reason to make sure it’s in all your meals!
The UK Government recommends that we should eat 0.75g protein per kg of your body weight. However a growing amount of research suggests you should hit this amount as a minimum, rather than target this as optimum, especially if you are regularly exercising! And if you are pregnant make sure you increase this too (ideally to 70-100g protein per day depending on your weight).
Latest research also emphasises the importance of getting good quality diverse sources of protein and spreading your protein intake out throughout the day (so make sure there is protein at every meal rather than getting it all at dinner time).
It’s worth saying, increasing protein does not mean to just eat more meat. There are plenty of great plant based sources of protein too and diversity in your diet is key to a healthy mind & body.
Here are some examples of where you can get good quality protein:
Animal sources:
Poultry, eggs, fish, red meat*
(*High red meat intake is associated with cardiovascular disease, I would recommend to aim for eating red meat no more than 2 times per week)
Plant based sources:
Lentils, tofu, tempeh, peas, quinoa, nuts
Ideally choose organic sources if you can afford it 💚
Sources:
https://www.nutrition.org.uk/healthy-sustainable-diets/protein/?level=Health%20professional
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1876382018306309
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-much-protein-do-you-need-every-day-201506188096
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-much-protein-do-you-need-every-day-201506188096