PROTEIN

Our need for proteins depends on what type of, and how much, physical activity we take on throughout the day. People who undergo a great deal of power and strength training need a greater intake of food in general but more protein is an important part of their diet. A healthy and balanced diet will usually provide sufficient protein so it is not recommended to increase protein intake just in case. This can create an overload on your kidneys and exceed your required calorie intake. All meals should contain some level of proteins take a closer look;

Varying quality of proteins

Proteins enable the growth and maintenance of our muscles, haemoglobin, antibodies, etc. and can also be burned as energy. Different combinations of amino acids constitute each kind of protein. Protein found in a regular diet consists of 20 different amino acids, 9 of these are essential in that the body can not make these alone, they must be supplied through diet. You can find proteins in food products both of animal (animal protein) and plant (vegetable protein) origin. Animal protein contains more of the essential amino acids which makes animal protein of higher quality than vegetable. The best sources for proteins in a healthy diet are fish, white and red meats, low-fat dairy products (milk, yoghurt, cheese). A big part of the protein in our diet has its origin in vegetable food products like bread, pasta, rice, cereals, beans, lentils and nuts. Even though the protein quality of vegetable products is less a combination of them can improve the quality. E.g. combining beans and lentils with a cereal product increases the protein quality.

Proteins in all the meals

Ideally you should have protein in all your meals, also before and after training, to make sure that the essential amino acids are available at all times.

Athletes have an increased need of proteins

Athletes doing strength, power and endurance sports need more proteins than those doing little physical activity. This difference in necessity is because physical activity increases the metabolism of the proteins within the muscles. People who train a lot therefore need a higher intake of proteins to maintain, restore and build muscles.

Is it possible to have a deficit of proteins?

Normally we cover our needs of proteins through a normal diet, although some athletes might need more proteins than a normal diet can provide them with this is an issue especially for vegetarians, people doing intense strength and power training or in some cases during a weight-loss programme. Decreased intake of energy leads to less proteins through the food and higher metabolism of the proteins in the muscles - this is why it is important to monitor the intake of proteins in certain cases. This might also happen to people doing endurance sports; if they changed the main sources of proteins for other food products maintaining an increased number of carbohydrates because they think they have to eat extreme amounts of carbohydrates. In some cases people might need a higher intake of carbohydrates, but it should never affect the intake of proteins. Not having enough proteins might lead to a loss of muscle-tissue, the repairing processes might last longer and over time it can lead to important health problems.

Is it possible to have an excess of proteins?

It is unlikely that healthy, active persons will feel any side effects if they have a daily intake of proteins similar to 2 grams per kilo of their body weight. Thus the long-term effects of a protein intake of 3 grams per kilo body-weight is less known. A high intake of proteins might lead to higher levels of calcium in the urine and that again can aggravate the development of already existing kidney pathologies.

Grants of proteins and amino acids

Generally most people would get enough proteins through a regular, healthy and varied diet if more or 15% of the total energy would origin from proteins. In some cases it might be interesting to use grants of proteins, especially in situations where there are no other practical solutions to get enough proteins through the normal food products. Products to help in the restitution process (carbohydrates and proteins) are recommendable because it gives the optimal amount of proteins, and the carbohydrates promote the effect of the protein. Pure protein grants normally gives very high values of proteins and almost no other nutritional values. Amino acids grants, either the simple amino acids or combined, are very popular amongst many athletes. This is basically because the marketing of these products often refers to an increased hormone production, increased fat-tissue loss, higher metabolism, better restitution process, better performance etc. None of these effects are properly documented. It is also normal to find food products with quite a higher amount of these amino acids than you can find in the amino acids grants. The protein and amino acids grants are quite expensive products and therefore a bad solution if you compare the costs with their actual effect.

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