Protein has never been so popular. Once upon a time, protein products seemed exclusive to body builders and elite athletes. Today it’s been determined that almost everyone needs to up their protein game, and the sports nutrition market has taken those new recommendations and hit the ground running. Recent years have seen a dramatic spike in the popularity of protein powders for people of all ages and fitness levels. But what is protein good for? And in a market flooded with protein possibilities, how do you wade through them to know which product is right for you?
Protein 101
You need protein because you’re made of it. Your hair, skin, nails, muscle tissue, bones, and even red blood cells contain a number of different proteins. While protein is usually associated with muscle building and exercise, your body requires it for many important processes. Protein supports digestive enzymes to help process nutrients, neurotransmitters to transmit messages in your brain, antibodies to defend your immune system, and hormone regulation to keep your body healthy. Most of all, protein is vital for building, maintaining, and replacing tissues in the body. The bottom line is this: if you want to be strong and healthy, you need protein.
You need twenty different amino acids to maintain good health, but the body is only capable of making eleven. The other nine need to be obtained from your diet. The foods that contain these nine essential amino acids are called complete proteins. Complete proteins include meat, eggs, fish, dairy products (like milk, yogurt, and whey), quinoa, hemp seeds, chia seeds, spirulina, and buckwheat. These proteins benefit your body in impressive ways.
1. Stabilize Blood Sugar
Carbohydrates are infamous for causing blood sugar levels to spike and crash, leaving you feeling irritable, lightheaded, unfocused, and hungry. But eating lean proteins can help to slow down the release of sugar into your bloodstream, keeping your mood at an even keel. Consuming meals with a proper protein-to-carbohydrate ratio is the best way to avoid blood sugar crashes.
2. Support Neurotransmitter Function
Neurotransmitters are the chemical messengers in the brain that transmit signals to nerve cells throughout the body. They have everything to do with your mental and physical health. Neurotransmitters are responsible for regulating sleep, mood, weight, and stress response—and are largely controlled by the amount of amino acids you consume. When you don’t eat enough of the right kinds of proteins, your neurotransmitters can suffer tremendously, causing depression, anxiety, and other serious disorders.
3. Prevent Muscle Loss
Maintaining muscle mass is always important, but it becomes even more necessary as you age. If you don’t use it, you lose it! In fact, it’s been reported that you lose 30 percent of your muscle strength between the ages of 50 and 70. This can be attributed to the natural process of aging, but also to a lack of proper amino acid intake in the diet, which contributes to muscle atrophy. Protein supplementation will help tremendously, and remember—weight-bearing exercise is crucial, too.
4. Support Healthy Weight
Protein satisfies—much more than carbohydrates or fats. Whey protein, in particular, helps to slow down gastric emptying, which makes it helps you feel full longer. By eating or drinking meals with protein throughout the day, you’ll boost your intake of essential amino-acid building blocks. This can be a great way to reduce the urge to grab unhealthy snacks that contribute to weight gain.
5. Build Bone Health
While research is still ongoing, protein intake—and whey protein in particular—could be very beneficial for keeping your bones healthy and strong. It will definitely help you maintain lean muscle mass and build your core strength, which is essential for supporting healthy physical activity and building bone density.
6. Boost Immune Health
Another reason to up your protein intake is a big one: Protein supports your immune system cells and helps attack bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens. Immunoglobulins, or antibodies, as they’re more commonly known, are proteins that flow throughout the bloodstream, protecting cells from foreign invaders that cause everything from the common cold to cancer. Protein is what your body needs to build a strong immune defense for overall wellness.
Article originally published in Good Health Lifestyles magazine, Winter 2017