Sarah M's List: Protein

• • Essentially, meat is a great source of protein but also contains a lot of fat, so you have to watch how much meat you eat. 
• Animal protein and vegetable protein probably have the same effects on health
• 1. Mix it up. Most reasonable diets provide enough protein for healthy people. Eating a variety of foods will ensure that you get all of the amino acids you need.
• 2. Go low on saturated fat. Beans, fish and poultry provide plenty of protein, without much saturated fat.
• So when choosing protein-rich foods, pay attention to what comes along with the protein
• Vegetable sources of protein, such as beans, nuts, and whole grains, are excellent choices, and they offer healthy fiber, vitamins and minerals
• best animal protein choices are fish and poultry
• 3. Limit red meat—and avoid processed meat. Research suggests that people who eat more than 18 ounces a week of red meat have a higher risk of colon cancer.
• 4. Eat soy in moderation.
• 5. Balance carbs and protein. Cutting back on highly processed carbohydrates and increasing protein improves levels of blood triglycerides and HDL, and so may reduce your chances of having a heart attack, stroke, or other form of cardiovascular disease

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• • It's a little elementary, but the information is still valid. It's a trusted source. 
• Protein from animal sources, such as meat and milk, is called complete, because it contains all nine of the essential amino acids.
• best sources are beef, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy products, nuts, seeds, and legumes like black beans and lentils.
• Most vegetable protein is considered incomplete because it lacks one or more of the essential amino acids
• Protein builds up, maintains, and replaces the tissues in your body
• Your muscles, your organs, and your immune system are made up mostly of protein
• Your body uses the protein you eat to make lots of specialized protein molecules that have specific jobs
• 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
• Each day, kids need to eat about 0.5 grams of protein for every pound (0.5 kilograms) they weigh
• Adults, for instance, need about 60 grams per day
• 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)
• 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
• amino acids then can be reused to make the proteins your body needs to maintain muscles, bones, blood, and body organs.
• 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.
• f those 22 amino acids, your body can make 13 of them
• Your body can't make the other nine amino acids, but you can get them by eating protein-rich foods

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• Every cell in the human body contains protein
• You need protein in your diet to help your body repair cells and make new ones
• Amino acids are found in animal sources such as meats, milk, fish, soy, and eggs, as well as in plant sources such as beans, legumes, and nut butters. You do not need to eat animal products to get all the protein you need in your diet.
• Essential amino acids cannot be made by the body, and must be supplied by food

• The nine essential amino acids are:

  • Histidine
  • Isoleucine
  • Leucine
  • Lycine
  • Methionine
  • Phenylalanine
  • Threonine
  • Tryptophan
  • Valine
• Nonessential amino acids are made by the body from essential amino acids or in the normal breakdown of proteins.

• They include:

  • Alanine
  • Asparagine
  • Aspartic acid
  • Glutamic acid
• Conditional amino acids are usually not essential, except in times of illness and stress.

• They include:

  • Arginine
  • Cysteine
  • Glutamine
  • Glycine
  • Ornithine
  • Proline
  • Serine
  • Tyrosine
• A diet high in meat can contribute to high cholesterol levels or other diseases such as gout

• The following are the recommended serving sizes for protein:

  • 2 to 3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry, or fish (a portion about the size of a deck of playing cards)
  • 1/2 cup of cooked dried beans
  • 1 egg, 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, or 1 ounce of cheese

• Other good sources of protein include:

  • Pinto beans, black beans, kidney beans, lentils, split peas, or garbanzo beans
  • Nuts and seeds, including almonds, hazelnuts, mixed nuts, peanuts, peanut butter, sunflower seeds, or walnuts (just watch how much you eat, because nuts are high in fat)
  • Tofu, tempeh, and other soy protein products
  • Low-fat dairy products

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• body proteins are constantly being broken down and replaced
• Proteins are part of every cell, tissue, and organ in our bodies
• 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)
• most adults in the United States get more than enough protein to meet their needs.
• There are 20 different amino acids that join together to make all types of protei
• it's recommended that 10–35% of your daily calories come from protein

• Here are examples of amounts of protein in food:

   
   
  • 1 cup of milk has 8 grams of protein
   
  • A 3-ounce piece of meat has about 21 grams of protein
   
  • 1 cup of dry beans has about 16 grams of protein
   
  • An 8-ounce container of yogurt has about 11 grams of protein
• Most people eat more protein than they need without harmful effects
• protein contributes to calorie intake, so if you eat more protein than you need, your overall calorie intake could be greater than your calorie needs and contribute to weight gain
• animal sources of protein can be sources of saturated fat which has been linked to elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, a risk factor for heart disease

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• For the body to process protein properly, the foods that you eat must contain the nine essential amino acids that are available only from dietary source

• Good Sources of Protein
   Good low- or nonfat sources of protein include:

   
   
  • Beef, poultry, pork and lamb 
  • Fish and shellfish 
  • Dairy products, including cottage cheese, cheese, yogurt and milk 
  • Eggs, egg whites or egg substitutes 
  • Dry beans, peas, oats and legumes 
  • Tofu and soy products 
  • Nuts and seeds
• Meat, eggs and dairy products are considered complete proteins
• vegetables, beans and other plant products are considered incomplete proteins
• some incomplete proteins can be combined to create a complete protein - rice and beans, peanut butter and jelly, and corn and beans are examples of complete-protein meals.
• Your protein intake will be dependent upon your age, your medical condition, your activity level and your size
• The Food Guide Pyramid recommends that for most adults, two to three servings of protein a day is adequate

• Some common serving sizes of protein include:

   
   
  • 3 to 4 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry and fish (a portion about the size of a deck of playing cards)  
  • 1/2 cup of cooked dry beans, lentils or legumes  
  • 1 egg or 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, which count as 1 ounce of lean meat
• People who eat too much protein may be at risk for high cholesterol or gout, a joint disorder
• High-protein diets, such as the Atkins Diet and Protein Power, have also been implicated in kidney problems because of the extra effort the body must expend to process large amounts of protein

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