You probably don't need protein powder

Protein has had a facelift, it’s a marketing buzzword that everyone is using to sell their products. Don’t get me wrong, protein is an essential nutrient that we all need, but it’s easier to get than you think, and most people don’t need to buy the high protein version of foods.

The roles of protein:

• Protein is needed for growth and repair of cells and muscle.
• They play a crucial role in the immune system and make antibodies which protect the body from getting ill.
• They form enzymes which are biological catalysts and speed up bodily reactions.
• Some hormones are made from proteins and they play roles in all parts of the body.
• Proteins also transport other molecules around the body such as haemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen around the body.

Dietary protein is important because proteins are comprised of blocking blocks called amino acids and the body is not able to make all these amino acids. There are 20 amino acids and 9 of these are essential. Essential means the body is not able to produce them so you must get them from food. 

How much protein should you be having?

Protein quality is also something to consider, it considers how many of the essential amino acids a protein source has. Meat and eggs have a higher protein quality compared to foods like grains and legumes. But this doesn’t mean you need to consume animal products to get all the essential amino acids. A varied plant based diet can easily meet your protein needs. 

The average adult male needs 55g of protein a day, while an adult female needs 45g. Or 0.8g of protein per kg in body weight. This is an average so won't apply to people with medical conditions or people that do a lot of exercise, particularly strength training.

Protein keeps you satiated which means you feel fuller for longer, as it takes longer to digest. When having a snack, it is great to include a protein source to keep you going until your next meal. Some ideas: cheese and fruit, nut butter with apple slices, hummus and veggies, or yoghurt with berries. 

When having a meal, you should aim for good quality sources of proteins which can be meat, fish, beans/legumes, dairy or eggs. 

Foods marketed as high protein are usually targeted for weight loss or seen as ‘healthier’. While protein’s effects on fullness can contribute to weight loss as if you feel full, you’ll eat less, there are plenty of foods high in protein that don’t get marketed as such.

Are high protein products really high in protein?

High protein products often come with a high price tag, but they might not always be worth it. If you like the high protein versions of foods, keep eating them, but its worth seeing how much extra protein you're actually getting.

• Tesco’s finest super seeded farmhouse loaf has 11.2g of protein per 100g VS Tesco’s finest high protein loaf which has 13.5g of protein per 100g. There is a 2g difference in protein, but the high protein bread is 1.5 times the cost of the ordinary loaf (using cost per 100g). For me, the increase in protein isn’t worth the price increase.

• Halo Top’s vanilla ice cream is marketed as high protein and low calorie. It has 3.9g of protein per 100ml which is considerable compared to Tesco’s own soft scoop vanilla ice cream which has 2g per 100ml. But Halo Top is 12 times the price per 100ml of ice cream. Again, this may be worth it for some people, but I don’t think you need to be searching for high protein ice cream. Ice cream should be enjoyed for what it is, in moderation.

• Arla Protein yoghurt has 10g of protein per 100g while Fage 0% yoghurt has 10.3g of protein per 100g. Both products have the same amount of protein, but Arla is promoted as being high protein which could make people think it has more protein than other yoghurts.

Prices correct at time of writing 15/06/20. Using nutritional information and pricing from tesco.com

It is easy to get protein from ‘normal’ foods

Some people may like drinking protein powder, but I don’t want you to think that is the only way you'll meet your protein needs. It can be quite expensive, and the average person doesn’t need it. Everyday foods have protein too and you can easily get all you need from a balanced, varied diet. 

Sample day of eating with protein content*:

• Breakfast: 35g of Cheerios with 135ml of milk and a banana has 9g of protein.
• Mid-morning: Tea with milk and 3 custard creams has 4g protein (I’m not saying you use custard creams to get your protein in, but they do contain a few grams of protein.)
• Lunch: 170g serving of cooked white pasta with a lentil Bolognese has 19g of protein.
• Snack: plain yoghurt pot with fruit has 8g of protein.
• Dinner: 2 medium slices of brown bread with 200g of baked beans has 16g of protein.
• Total:  56g of protein

*This is a sample day of eating that I just made up, I’m not advocating that this is what or how you should be eating. I purposely didn’t use meat or eggs as they are not the only protein sources available and I wanted to show how you can get your requirements in. If you're a meat eater you will definitely get plenty of protein, for example, a small chicken breast has 29g of the stuff. The information is from a nutritional analysis software, but you can find nutritional information for foods on supermarket websites. They’ve been rounded to the nearest whole number to make it easier.

I hope you enjoyed this post, and it gave you some food for thought. Protein is essential in our diets and if you like the high protein versions of foods and can afford them, then keep enjoying them! But remember it can be easy to get enough protein from ‘normal’ foods too.

Bye for now! 👋

References:

https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/primer/howgeneswork/protein and https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/743790/Dietary_Reference_Values_-_A_Guide__1991_.pdf and https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1177/0148607115624084 and https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/87/5/1558S/4650426 and https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19400750/?from_term=protein+satiety&from_pos=3 and https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23107521/