What is a “Complete” protein and why should I care?

In the last blog we identified how protein is the single most important food we eat. So it stands to reason that the quality of the protein source must also be carefully considered.
Just eat more eggs, milk, beef, chicken, soybeans, fish right? Not so fast.

The quality of a protein food is measured by the amounts and balance of the essential amino acids it contains. If a food contains all nine essential amino acids in proper amounts to support your body’s health, we call that food a “complete protein”. Examples of complete proteins are eggs, milk, beef, chicken, soybeans and fish. If a food is missing an essential amino acid, or is too low in one or more, it is called an “incomplete protein.” Many people try to determine the quality of a food by the percentage of protein or the grams of protein it contains. (fyi, the recommended daily allowance for protein for females age 25-51+ is approx. 50 grams, males 63 grams). If the protein is “incomplete” however, that percentage/gram content is quite misleading. Some examples of incomplete proteins are peas, cereals and lentils. They can be combined to can give you a complete protein but you will need to know the amino acid content of each to make sure. This can be done, but is a challenge to say the least.

Protein is in meat, but meat is not all protein. A steak is meat, but 10 ounces of steak do not give you 10 ounces of protein. For instance, a broiled 10 ounce T-bone steak contains only 19 percent protein and a whopping 43 percent fat! Way too much for a person seeking optimal health! Nearly 70 percent of our protein intake comes from animal sources such as meat, fish poultry, milk, eggs and products made from them. These same sources contribute more than three-fourths of the saturated fat, and all the cholesterol in our diets!

The fat in 70 percent of our protein intake is significant. Perhaps just as important, what else comes with it? Antibiotic-laced feeds went on the market in the 1950’s. Today, over half of the more than 31 million pounds of antibiotics produced in the US go into animal feed-not because the animal is sick and needs them, but because they make them bigger. Besides penicillin and tetracycline in meat, you also can get nitrofurazone and sulfamethazine, along with other sulfa drugs. Because of the research on the misuse of antibiotics, several European countries banned the use of antibiotics in animal feed in the 1970’s, but our government is still dragging it feet on this issue due to money, power and politics. Additionally, significant pesticide residue has been found in many protein sources. Finally, due to overworked federal inspectors, processing plants leave much to be desired in insuring meat free of bacterial, antibiotic and chemical contamination.

What’s a person to do? Even a sub-clinical or low protein level diet causes symptoms of fatigue, loss of vitality, poor wound healing, depressed immune system, unusual hair loss, poor nail growth, skin problems, water retention, poor muscle tone and slow or lack of proper growth in children. Getting too little protein is definitely not harmless.

We’ve identified that a diet with high-quality, low-fat protein is of extreme importance in enjoying a vigorous, healthy life. To be sure, and provide nutritional insurance, choose a premium quality soy protein supplement to your diet to get all the tremendous benefits of optimal protein intake. The benefits of soy protein include sustained energy, vitality, and stamina – plus the benefits of naturally occurring isoflavones, compounds not present in meat or dairy foods. These naturally occurring beneficial plant compounds are shown in many studies to deliver long-term health benefits. Some soy protein products are alcohol-processed, which removes these isoflavones. Shaklee Soy Protein supplements are water-washed to retain naturally occurring isoflavones.

Why Choose Shaklee Soy Protein Supplements?
• 14 – 24 grams of protein per serving
• Uses only IPP-certified non-GMO soy protein
• Highest-rated protein quality
• Natural vegetarian protein source
• Naturally cholesterol free
• Low fat, and low glycemic
• Naturally lactose free
• All the amino acids, including the nine essential ones you
must get from food

We at the Universal Key encourage you to make the investment in your health and add a Shaklee Soy Protein Supplement to your daily diet for nutritional insurance. Also purchase beef, pork, poultry and dairy products from reliable sources that don’t use the growth hormones and antibiotics in the raising of their animals. Organic farmers have made the commitment to not using chemical pesticides/fertilizers on the crops that they produce and feed to their animals as well. Just lowering your intake of these types of foods and adding more organically grown vegetables, fruits and grains can reduce your risk of harmful contaminate exposure. (Find ways to connect and find out more at the links below the article)

Love to eat and don’t want to starve your way to weight loss? Ok, good choice. Well, I’ll help you speed up the weight loss process by giving you a quick list of high fiber foods that are my secret weapons for getting my clients to lose weight extremely fast with little effort.

High Fiber Foods

1. Black beans (the king)

Black beans are by far my favorite of the high fiber foods. Why? Well, a can contains 25 grams of fiber and 25 grams of protein. That 25 grams of fiber takes care of your whole daily need (although I recommend my clients take in at least 40 grams a day).

Cost, 50 cents. Wow, cheap too. Quick to cook also… less than 5 minutes.

And they’re easy to incorporate into your diet. I eat them with eggs, on tacos, with ground beef, with tuna, with chicken breasts, on salads… the list is endless.

2. Lentils (the queen)

Listen, lentils have even more fiber than black beans. A 72 cent bag of lentils contains 130 grams of protein… but get this, it also has 143 grams of fiber. BOOM! Read that again. That’s simply amazing considering it only costs 72 cents.

The thing I don’t like about lentils as compared to black beans is that they take about 30 minutes to cook. I’m impatient. So what I do is cook big batches and then reheat the lentils.

Like black beans, you can mix these into any kind of meal.

3. Apples

Apples don’t pack the fiber punch that black beans and lentils do, but relatively speaking, they are high in fiber (5 grams per apple). If you want some long term and consistent weight loss, just eat 3 apples a day.

Simple.

The high fiber and water content in them help you to lose on average 2 pounds a month for a few months.

This is a short list of high fiber foods, but believe me… eat them and you’ll lose weight without feeling deprived and without starving.