HowMuchProteinDoYouReallyNeed?
A) Themarketingistempting: Getstrongermusclesandhealthierbodieswithminimaleffortbyaddingproteinpowdertoyourmorningshakeorjuicedrink. Orgrabaproteinbaratlunchorforaquicksnack. Today, youcanfindproteinsupplementseverywhere -- onlineoratthepharmacy, grocerystoreorhealthfoodstore. Theycomeinpowders, pillsandbars. Withmorethan $12 billioninsalesthisyear, theindustryisboomingand, accordingtothemarketresearchcompany, GrandViewResearch, isontracktosellbillionsmoreby 2025. Butdowereallyneedallthissupplementalprotein? Itdepends. Therearepros, consandsomeotherthingstoconsider.
B) Forstarters, proteiniscriticalforeverycellinourbody. Ithelpsbuildnails, hair, bonesandmuscles. Itcanalsohelpyoufeelfullerlongerthaneatingfoodswithoutprotein. And, unlikenutrientsthatarefoundonlyinfewfoods, proteinispresentinallfoods. "ThetypicalAmericandietisalothigherinproteinthanalotofusthink," saysregistereddietitianAngelaPipitone. "'It'sinfoodsmanyofusexpect, suchasbeef, chickenandothertypesofmeatanddairy. Butit'salsoinfoodsthatmaynotcomeimmediatelytomindlikevegetables, fruit, beansandgrains."
C) TheU.S. government'srecommendeddailyallowance (RDA) fortheaverageadultis 50 to 60 gramofproteinaday. Thismaysoundlikealot, butPipitonesays: "Wegetbitsofproteinhereandthereandthatreallyaddsupthroughouttheday." Take, forexample. breakfast. Ifyoueattwoeggstoppedwithalittlebitofcheeseandanorangeontheside, youalreadyhave 22 gramsofprotein. Eachegggivesyou 7 grams, thecheesegivesyouabout 6 gramsandtheorange -- about 2 grams. Addalunchofchicken, riceandbroccoli(西兰花), andyouarealreadyovertherecommended 50 grams. "YoucangetenoughproteinandmeettheRDAbeforeyouevengettodinner," saysPipitone.
D) Soifit'ssoeasytogetyourproteininfood, whyaddmoreintheformofpowders, snackbarsoraboostatyourlocaljuicebar? Noneedto, saysPipitone, because, infact, mostofusalreadygetenoughproteininourdiet. "Wholefoodsarealwaysthebestoptionratherthanaddingsupplements," thesays, notingtheFDAdoesnotregulatesupplementsasrigorouslyasfoodsordrugs. Sotherecouldbelessprotein, moresugarandsomeadditivesyouwouldn'texpect, suchascaffeine(咖啡因).
E) Ifyouareconsideringasupplement, readthelistofingredients, shesays, althoughthisisnotalwaysreliable. "I'veseenveryexpensiveproteinsupplementsthatclaimtobehighqualitybuttheymightnotreallybebeneficialfortheaveragehealthyadult," shesays. "Itcouldjustbeawasteofmoney.
F) Buttherearecertainsituationsthatdowarrantextraprotein. "Anytimeyou'rerepairingorbuildingmuscle." Pipitonesays, suchasifyou'reanextremeenduranceathlete, trainingforamarathon, oryou'reabodybuilder. Ifyou'remoderatelyexercisingfor 150 minutesaweek, astheCentersforDiseaseControlandPreventionrecommends, orlessthanthat, you'reprobablynotanextremeathlete. Extremeathletesexpendlotsofenergybreakingdownandrepairingandbuildingmuscles. Proteincangivethemtheedgetheyneedtospeedthatprocess.
G) Veganscanbenefitfromproteinsupplementssincetheydonoteatanimal-basedproteinsourceslikemeat, dairyoreggs. And, forsomeonealwayson-the-gowhomaynothavetimeforameal, aproteinsnackbarcanbeagoodoptionforoccasionalmealreplacement. Also, individualsrecoveringfromsurgeryoraninjurycanalsobenefitfromextraprotein. So, too, canolderpeople. Ataroundage 60, "musclesreallystarttobreakdown," saysKathrynStarr, anagingresearcher, "andbecauseofthat, theproteinneedsofanolderadultactuallyincrease.
H) Infact, alongwithhercolleagueConnieBales. Starrrecentlyconductedasmallstudythatfoundthataddingextraproteinfoodstothedietofobeseolderindividualswhoweretryingtoloseweightstrengthenedtheirmuscles. Participantsinthestudywereseparatedintotwogroups -- onegroupwasaskedtoeat 30 gramsofproteinpermealintheformofwholefoods. Thatmeanttheywereeating 90 gramsofproteinaday. Theothergroup -- thecontrolgroup -- wasputonatypicallow-caloriedietwithabout 50 to 60 gramsofproteinaday. Aftersixmonths, researchersfoundthehighproteingrouphadsignificantlyimprovedtheirmusclefunction -- almosttwiceasmuchasthecontrolgroup. "Theywereabletowalkfaster, hadimprovedbalance, andwerealsoabletogetupoutofachairfasterthanthecontrolgroup." Starrsays. All 67 participantswereover 60 yearsofage, andbothgroupslostaboutthesameamountofweight.
I) Starrisrowlookingintowhetherhigh-proteindietsalsoimprovethequalityofthemuscleitselfinseniors. She'susingCTscanstomeasuremusclesizeandfat, andcomparingseniorsonahigh-proteindietwiththoseonregulardiets. Shesaysherfindingsshouldbeavailableinacoupleofmonths.
J) Inthemeantime, 70-year-oldCorlissKeith, whowasinthehighproteingroupinStarrslateststudy, saysthefeelsabigdifference. "Ifeelexcellent," shesays. "IfeellikeIhaveadifferentbody. Ihavemoreenergy. I'mstronger." ShesayssheisabletotakeZumbaexerciseclassesthreetimesaweek, workoutonthetreadmill(跑步机), andtakelong, briskwalks. Keithalsolostmorethan 15 pounds. "I'mafashionableperson, sonowI'mbackinmy 3-inchheels," shesays.
K) Aspeopleage, Starrsaysmusclestrengthiskeytohelpingthemstaystrongandcontinuelivingontheirownintheirownhome. "Ifeelverymuchalivenow," saysKeith. "IfeellikeIcouldstaybymyselfuntilI'm 100."
L) Batcanpeopleoverdoprotein? Pipitonesaysyoudohavetobecareful. Otherresearcherssaytoomuchproteincancausecramps(痉挛), headaches, andfatigue. Dehydration(脱水) isalsoariskwhenyoueattoomuchprotein. Pipitonesaysifyouincreaseprotein, youalsohavetoincreaseyourfluidintake. "Ialwaystellpeopletomakesurethey'redrinkingenoughfluids," whichfortheaveragepersonis 60 to 70 ouncesaday, whichtranslatesintoeight 8-ounceglassesofwaterorliquidperday.
M) Therehavebeensomeindicationsthatextraproteinmakesthekidneysworkharder, whichcouldbeproblematicforindividualswithahistoryofkidneydiseaseandforthem, thesupplementsmayincreasetheriskofkidneystones, thesays.
N) Bottomline, ifyouthinkyouneedmoreproteininyourdiet, considerthesequestions: Areyouanextremeathlete; areyourecoveringfrominjuryorsurgery; orareyou 60 yearsorolder? Ifso, addinghighproteinfoodslikeeggsandmeatproductstoyourdietcanbebeneficial. And, ifyou'renotsure, inisalwaysagoodideatocheckwithyourprimarycareprovider.
36. Itisquiteeasyforonetotakeintherecommendedamountofprotein.
37. Pipitoneclaimsthathealthyadultsneednotspendmoneyonproteinsupplements.
38. Theproteinsupplementbusinessisfoundtobethriving.
39. Proteincanspeedtherepairingofdamagedmuscles.
40. Proteinsupplementsmayoverburdensomeinternalorgan, thusleadingtoitsmalfunctioning.
41. Olderadultsneedtotakeinmoreproteintokeeptheirmusclesstrong.
42. Proteinisfoundinmorefoodsthanpeoplemightrealize.
43. Additionalproteinwasfoundtohelpstrengthenthemusclesofoverweightseniorsseekingweightloss.
44. Pipitonebelievesthatwholefoodsprovidethebestsourceofprotein.
45. Peopleareadvisedtodrinkmoreliquidwhentheytakeinmoreprotein.