Raise your hand if a sudden interest in where you get your protein is the first question you get when telling others you are eating a plant-based or vegan diet. Even and especially your doctor? Let’s clear up some myths so you will know the right answer and the real question to be asking ourselves.
What is protein and why do we need it?
Our bodies make protein out of 20 Amino Acids; 9 are considered Essential Amino Acids since we must get them from the food that we eat. All 9 come from plants, either directly by eating plants or indirectly from eating animals that eat plants.
Why the big deal about protein? In 1839, protein was the first nutrient ever discovered (there are now thousands of others). Early animal experiments showed that the animals died when it was withheld from their diet. Though it is required to build, maintain and repair tissues, the significance, amount and optimal source of protein was taken out of context.
Early protein requirements were overestimated for a variety of reasons. Observational studies assumed that people, if given a choice, will always make optimal nutrition decisions (the line at a fast food restaurant says otherwise). Worst case scenarios were used to be conservative. Animal experiments using rats were flawed since rat milk has 11x more protein than human breast milk. Protein was first found in meat leading to the mistaken belief that meat was the optimal and only source. By rounding up, they were ignoring the consequences of too much protein or its source.
How much protein do we need?
Rather than assuming ‘more is better’, the science research has since confirmed that ‘less is more’, especially when it comes to animal protein. In 1903, Yale Biochemistry professor Russell Chittendon’s research showed that a low protein diet was healthier than earlier inflated estimates. Since then, research has shown even lower amounts were shown to be sufficient and that the source of protein (animal vs. plant-based) mattered. In the 1970s, the Senate Select Committee on Nutrition, after intense investigation, came to the conclusion that we should eat less meat and animal foods. However, the dairy, egg and meat industries fought to change the recommendation and instead lobbied to encourage more lean meat and lower fat animal foods instead. Since then, we have only gotten sicker as a nation.
Spoiler alert: The real answer is simple.
By eating a whole food plant-based diet with a variety of foods and colors and enough calories, you will have all the protein you need. Need more data? Here goes.
The US RDA for protein is body weight (kg) x 0.8g or (pounds) x.36g. The World Health organization agrees, recommending 5% of our calories from protein, preferably from vegetable sources. For someone 150lbs, that would be about 55g protein. From there, you can do the math. True endurance and strength athletes, or those pregnant or breast feeding may need more, but they get all they need from the additional quality calories they eat without adding non-food additives according to the American Dietetic Association. In The China Study by T. Colin Campbell, the research supports 8-10% calories from protein, ideally from plants. Human breast milk is the perfect food for humans when we grow the fastest in our lifetimes and it is approximately 5-6% protein. Nitrogen balance studies have shown that humans actually only need 2.5% calories of protein or as little as .5-.66g at a minimum. We really only need to average about 70% or more of the RDA due to built in buffers.
Do we need to worry about complete proteins?
Francis Moore Lappe in her book Diet for a Small Planet in 1971 [link] introduced the concept of needing to eat foods in combination to get all our Essential Amino Acids in a single meal. This led to the often repeated myth that plant foods were incomplete proteins. Since then, in the second edition of her book, she corrected this misunderstanding of the science. The body actually stores amino acids in a reserve (they are not burned up like carbs) until we need them and reassembles what it needs. Therefore, a diet rich in a variety of plant-based foods, whenever eaten, provides all the amino acids required. The American Dietetic Association agrees. Intentional combining of amino acids for protein is not needed.
Is there such a thing as too much protein?
What harm is there in eating too much animal protein? As it turns out, a lot. Despite all the promises of the high protein, low carb diet for weight loss and observations of short term improvements in some health markers, the research shows us that the healthiest diet is in fact the opposite, a whole food plant-based low fat diet. One study showed that a diet rich in animal protein resulted in 23x risk of death from diabetes and 5x risk of cancer. As Dr T. Colin Campbell wrote in The China Study, it was the children who ate the most animal protein who had liver cancer. He showed that the amount of animal protein consumed could actually turn on and offer cancer growth. The body doesn’t store excess protein and it must eliminate it putting a strain on the parts of our bodies that eliminate waste. Eating too much protein displaces the calories our bodies need for fuel.
A diet high in animal protein has been shown to increase risk of…
- Heart disease due to dietary cholesterol and saturated fats
- Cancer by stimulating IGF-1, creating TMAO, and is linked cancers of the colon, breast and prostate
- Reduced kidney and liver function, through additional strain to remove protein waste
- Calcium loss leading to osteoporosis
- Sabotaging weight loss by unsustainable calorie restriction in increased insulin resistance.
How do I get the protein I do need?
Remember the spoiler above. To get all the high quality protein you need, follow some simple guidelines. Eat a whole food plant-based diet with sufficient calories to maintain a healthy weight. Eat a variety of whole foods from whole grains, starchy vegetables, legumes and vegetables. Eliminate processed and junk foods, even vegan junk foods. (There are many great articles by Jeff Novick on this subject, including this one.) You are better served finding your protein at the farmers market than at the meat counter.
On average, whole food vegans get 70% more protein than required. Here is the plant-based protein in some of my favorite foods:
- Beans. Try 1 cup black beans (15g),chickpeas (14.5g), lentils (17.9g) or ½ c tofu (20g), ½ c tempeh (15.7g)
- Vegetables/Tubers. Another good reason to eat a rainbow. Try 1 cup of Broccoli (4.6g), Asparagus (2.9g), Spinach (5g), Edamame (15g), Potato (6g)
- Whole Grains. Try 1/2 cup of Quinoa (11g), Seitan (24g), Bulgar (5.6g), Wheatberry (9g), Oatmeal (7g)
- Other sources of plant protein include chia and hemp seeds, nutritional yeast and nuts as well as so many more vegetables, grains and legumes.
What is the real question?
Glad you asked. The question is not where do you get your protein, but rather, where do you get your fiber?
