Protein, what's the deal?

Americans are obsessed with protein. The most common question that vegetarians and vegans are asked is "where do you get your protein from?" The truth is, protein is found in everything and many foods other than meat like: greens, vegetables and grains can supply your body with substantial amounts of protein.

What is protein and why is it important? Protein is made up of chains of amino acids. There are 22 types of amino acids, 8 of those being essential meaning that our body needs to consume certain foods in order to get them. The other 14 are non-essential and our body is able to manufacture them on it's own. Protein helps with the overall functioning of our body, helps with cell and muscle renewal, repair, gives us energy and promotes healthy hair and skin. However too much protein is often accompanied by high cholesterol since the majority of people get their protein from meat which is high in saturated fat. Too much protein strains the liver and kidneys and due to the bodies ability to convert only a certain amount of protein at a time the remaining protein is converted into glucose and stored in the liver or stored as fat.

Protein is important and should be consumed every day but don't be fooled into thinking you can only get adequate or complete amounts from eating meat because in the health world today we know that is simply not true. In general American's consume too much protein, so take a look at your diet and examine how much you are eating a day and where it is that you get your protein from. Experiment with different forms and see how your body feels.

For ideas on how to incorporate different protein into your diet contact me at gillianmelia@gmail.com

A list of Protein sources:

Meat(poultry, fish)
Dairy
Whey
Eggs
Soy
Spirulina
Chlorella
Seeds (hemp seeds are great!)
Grains (quinoa is very high in protein)
Buchwheat, Millet, Legumes
Rice