Proteins Part 2: How Much Do I Need?
Adequate protein intake is essential for maintaining healthy bones and hair, and body in general. But what is adequate? According to health professionals, only about 1 out of every 10 calories consumed should be from protein. Men and athletes do need slightly more, but not much. In fact, diets too high in protein may cause osteoporosis and kidney disease. I am proud to say that the World Health Organization has found that healthy vegan diets contain the ideal level of protein intake while omnivores actually take in more than the recommended daily allowance.
Vegetarians, and yes even vegans who don’t eat eggs or dairy, can and do get plenty of proteins. The key is simply to eat a varied diet. Our bodies digest vegetable proteins in a different - not necessarily better or worse, just different - way than animal proteins. Thus, eating veggie burgers everyday would be unhealthy … and mean to your taste buds as there are so many other delicious ways to get your daily dose of protein.
So how much do we need? Aim for 0.45 grams per lb. of body weight per day. That means I need about 60 grams of protein in a day. Here’s just one way that I could get it:
Breakfast: Clif Bar (I LOVE these!) - 12g
Mid-Morning Snack (because I only had a meal bar for breakfast): nuts, seeds, and dried fruit - 15g
Lunch: peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat - 15g
Light Snack: apple - 1g
Dinner: brown rice with a vegetable stir-fry (broccoli, carrots, etc.) - 15g
Dessert: soy ice cream - 3g
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May 29th, 2007 at 7:11 pm
[...] Sally Andersen Can you believe I have even more to tell you about proteins? I would like to back up my previous statement that excessive protein intake may actually weaken bones and potentially cause [...]