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The Science of Higher Protein

After my post about the importance of protein to ensure a healthy old age, I came across a talk by Prof. Stuart Phillips. He is a professor in Kinesiology (the study of the anatomy, physiology and mechanics of movement) at McMaster University in Canada. His research focuses on how the way the human body uses skeletal muscle protein is affected by nutrition and exercise. He is specifically interested in how diet and exercise can change body composition, particularly in older people.

The takeaway from this talk in 2019 is that the best way of making the most of the protein one eats is to combine it with regular, daily exercise, and not just any exercise, but resistance training, for example weight training. He recommends a daily intake of a minimum of 1.6 g of protein/kg of body weight. In this talk he also addresses the myth that a higher protein diet might be detrimental to kidney function.

So you may ask what to eat for a higher protein diet. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be just meat.

To know how much protein a food contains, the concept of protein percentage is used. This reflects how much the protein in a food contributes to a food’s total calories (excl. calories from fibre).

Animal protein is known to have the highest protein percentages:

  • shrimp (97%)
  • egg whites (85%)
  • white fish (82%)
  • chicken breast with skin (63%)
  • chicken drumstick without skin (65%)
  • wild salmon (69%)
  • chicken liver (60%)
  • steak (60%)
  • lean minced beef (54%)

It may come as a surprise that the protein percentage of vegetables may be as high as 50+% (these numbers from dietdoctor.com):

  • spinach (57%)
  • arugula or rocket (42%)
  • asparagus (53%)
  • mushroom (52%)
  • romaine lettuce (40%)
  • kale (41%)

The best plant-based protein can be found in

  • lentils (42%)
  • edamame beans (40%)
  • lupini beams (55%)
  • sunflower seed protein powder (66%)
  • pea protein powder (79%)
  • tempeh (40%)
  • tofu (48%)
  • seitan (77%) – this is a form of vital wheat gluten considered to be an good substitute for meat
  • nutritional yeast (72%)

The protein powders included above may be used to supplement a plant-based diet as otherwise it might be difficult to meet protein needs.

Lastly, dairy is also a good source of protein:

  • plain non-fat Greek yogurt or Skyr (80%)
  • low-fat cottage cheese (65%)
  • reduced-fat Swiss or cheddar cheese (60%)
  • plain low-fat Greek yogurt or Skyr (57%)

With non-fat or low-fat yogurt it is important to check that there is no sugar added, as this will only push up the calorie count with no nutritional benefit.

Obviously, as an omnivore/carnivore I prefer to get my protein from animal sources, but with vegetables and dairy it means it won’t be as expensive as what might be the case otherwise.

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The case for whole food supplementation

It is well-known that the incidence of chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes and cardiac disease is on the increase. All of these are linked to something called metabolic syndrome. Something else that shows this increasing trend is auto-immune diseases, where the body attacks itself.

Obesity seems to play an important role in the increase in chronic diseases. There are various theories to explain this increase. In my opinion it has to do with what we eat, as Dr Zoe Harcombe says “I don’t think obesity is a disease. I think it’s a natural response to an unnatural diet.” This unnatural diet is one lacking in the crucial nutrients our bodies need.

People often say that they follow a healthy diet and don’t need to supplement as their diet is sufficient for their nutritional needs. BUT, research has shown that whilst there has been great advances in crop yields over the past 100 years, the nutritional content of crops has actually declined. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0889157516302113

It is ironic that nowadays (in the Western world, at least) we have more food than ever, but that the available food is worth a lot less in terms of nutritional content: 10-25% less iron, zinc, protein, calcium, vitamin C and other nutrients.

This paper ( https://journals.ashs.org/hortsci/view/journals/hortsci/44/1/article-p15.xml ) confirms this decrease in nutrient value: “Contemporaneous analyses of modern versus old crop varieties grown side-by-side, and archived samples, show lower mineral concentrations in varieties bred for higher yields where increased carbohydrate is not accompanied by proportional increases in minerals.” What this means in practice is that one has to eat much more in order to maintain the amount of minerals ingested. And that clearly doesn’t help with the obesity epidemic.

Furthermore, the paper states that “The benefits of increased yield to supply food for expanding populations outweigh small nutrient dilution effects addressed by eating the recommended daily servings of vegetables, fruits and whole grains.”

I am unconvinced by this argument. The increase in crop yields may produce more food, but people will need to eat more to be able to obtain sufficient nutrition from the food they eat. The published recommended daily intake of vitamins and minerals are sufficient to support a notional 50% of the population who are healthy, but the other 50% of the population will need a higher intake. Given the high incidence of chronic diseases it is likely that even more than 50% of the population will need to supplement their diets to ensure an adequate intake of vitamins and minerals for a healthy life.

In addition to the decrease in nutritional content, the use of GMOs and pesticides are also compromising the quality of the food we eat (http://www.ewg.org/key-issues/food/gmo-foods). Indeed, this may also be contributing to the rise in chronic and autoimmune diseases.

Using the building blocks provided by the protein we eat in combination with vitamins and minerals, the body has the ability to repair itself. Unfortunately, various substances in the environment may interfere with the body’s ability to heal itself, often due to free radical damage of the DNA structure inside the cell. Antioxidants found in fruit and vegetables neutralise the effect of these free radicals and help the body to protect itself against the effects of free radicals.

For all of this to happen, the body needs a combination of both macro- and micronutrients from the diet. These macro- and micronutrients must come from real food. In the case of poor health, supplementation may increase the availability of micronutrients to support nutrition at the cellular level.

A whole food supplement providing healthy oils from whole grains and omega-3 fatty acids from fish, 23 vitamins & minerals and carotenoids from fruit and vegetables.

Whole food nutritional supplements tend to be significantly more expensive than synthetic versions, especially if they are made from organic, pharmaceutical grade, whole food sources:

  • organic, as that means it is uncontaminated by pesticides
  • pharmaceutical grade, as often food supplements don’t contain the amount of nutrient stated on the label
  • whole food, as the bio-availability of synthetic nutritional supplements is significantly lower than whole food supplements

I take Neolife whole food supplements for the three reasons listed above – at least I know my body will recognise the contents as “food” and won’t just eliminate it without minimal absorption.

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Why eating too little protein may set us up for poor quality of life in old age

In the UK & US it is recommended that people’s daily intake of protein should be 0.8 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight or ~50 grams (i.e. the RDA is ~50g).

However, what is less known is that RDA values are meant to be sufficient to meet the nutrient requirements of ~97% of healthy people. What this then means is, if anybody has any health issues, they should consider increasing their protein intake, unless they have known kidney disease. (Anyone who has any concerns about their kidney health, do consult your medical professional before eating more protein).

So why is protein intake important?

Proteins are the building blocks of our bodies. They are required for the structure, function and regulation of the body. Proteins are included in:

  • cell membranes
  • the cellular structure of skin, hair, muscle & bone
  • hormones
  • enzymes

Proteins consist of amino acids chained together to form the different proteins. Amino acids are divided into three categories: essential amino acids, conditionally essential amino acids and non-essential amino acids.

Essential amino acids are ones that must be included in the diet. Non-essential amino acids are ones that the body is able to build from other amino acids if needed. Some amino acids are considered “conditionally essential”, meaning that for most people they are not required in the diet because the body can make them from other amino acids. But for some populations who don’t make them in sufficient amounts, they may become essential, i.e. they had to be specifically included in the diet.

Non-essential amino acids are especially important to vegetarians and vegans, as many of the essential amino acids the body needs are contained in animal protein, which are considered as “complete” protein.

Increasing protein intake to 1.2-2 gram per kilogram of body weight has been shown to preserve muscle mass and improve body composition. There are multiple apps and websites which give an indication of the actual amount of protein in the chosen food. As a rough guide 100 g of meat contains ~20-25 gram of protein.

From the third decade onwards, muscle protein synthesis declines, and declines even faster from the age of 60 onward. For older adults, international consensus now recommends protein intake of 1-1.2 g/kg per day.

Sarcopenia is a condition primarily seen on older people. It is characterised by progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength and it correlates with physical disability, poor quality of life and death. Increased protein intake at a younger age may prevent this debilitating condition in old age.

People who are underweight or healing from illness, injury or surgery may temporarily increase their intake to more than 2 g/kg per day, to aid and accelerate healing and recovery. Increased protein intake during time of illness or recovery makes sense knowing that protein are the building blocks of our body.

Anecdotally, too high an intake of protein has been linked to kidney failure, especially in athletes/body builders. Thus there is a perception that too much protein is bad for one’s kidneys. However, the question here may not be protein itself, but the quality of protein, e.g. artificial protein shakes vs. protein from real food.

As I have experienced the benefits of a higher-protein diet, I will continue eating this way for a healthier old age.

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What! Carnivore? (cont.)

Update from the last post on my results following a carnivore diet:

I mentioned the weight loss and change in body shape. The other big change is the change in my body composition: my lean body mass has increased by ~5%, despite not losing a great amount of weight.

So why am I excited about the change in lean body mass?

Increased lean body mass means more muscle mass. More muscle mass means that my body is burning more energy, which will continue contributing to weight loss.

Now, I have to make some sort of disclaimer. My motivation for this quest is not about weight loss for the sake of losing weight, but to ensure I don’t fall victim to the detrimental health effects of the chronic diseases which are associated with metabolic syndrome. I definitely do not want to spend the later years of my life in poor health, with worries about medical cover and the cost of medication or not being able to live an active life.

The following may be signs of metabolic syndrome:

  • a waist circumference of 92 cm or more in men or 79 cm in women
  • a blood pressure that is consistently 140/90mmHg or higher
  • insulin resistance
  • non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
  • polycystic ovarian syndrome in females
  • erectile dysfunction in males
  • acanthosis nigricans (velvety hyperpigmentation of skin, usually in skin folds)

Sources online describe metabolic syndrome as having at least three of the following five medical conditions: abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high serum triglycerides and low serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL). One’s risk of developing cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes is increased in the presence of metabolic syndrome.

Based on blood tests over the last few years, I know that my blood sugar, serum triglycerides and serum HDL values are all where I want them to be. My blood pressure has also decreased since I started the LCHF way of eating. My only remaining concern is abdominal obesity.

Abdominal obesity is a condition where excessive fat builds up around the stomach and abdomen. This compares to subcutaneous fat, which is found underneath the skin or intramuscular fat, which is found between the layers of muscle tissue. Abdominal obesity is often visible as a “beer belly” in men, or an “apple shape” in females. There is a strong link between abdominal obesity and cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s and vascular diseases.

Abdominal obesity can be measured in various ways:

  • absolute waist circumference of more than 102 cm in males or more than 88 cm in females
  • waist-to-hip ratio of more than 0.9 for males or more than 0.85 for females
  • waist-to-height ratio of more than 0.5 for adults under 40 y.o. or more than 0.6 for adults over 50 y.o.

So I’m going to keep on with my quest to get rid of the last remaining thing that may affect my quality of life as I grow older.

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What! Carnivore?

Last time I said that I would tell you about my experiment with a carnivore diet.

First off, what is a carnivore diet? To some people it is an extreme dietary fad, whilst for others it is the ultimate elimination diet.

Those who’ve been diagnosed with a food intolerance may have followed an elimination diet to identify which food group/food item was causing their symptoms and discomfort.

This picture off the internet gives an idea of what a carnivore diet could be.

The reason the carnivore diet is the ultimate elimination diet is that one eats only food from animals. It can be just beef, salt and water in its purest form (also called the Lion Diet), whilst the more relaxed approaches include poultry, eggs, fish and dairy, and even some vegetables (which are treated like condiments).

How did I end up eating just meat for 3 months?

Like most people, I had gradually been gaining weight over the past 20-odd years, not helped by long days at work, irregular eating patterns and eating ready meals, rather than cooking from scratch. All of it made me a prime candidate for diabetes.

In June 2017, I signed up for the I QUIT SUGAR programme, which provided meal plans and set me on my way to an improved diet. The programme meant eliminating all added sugar from meals, and resulted in 10 kg weight loss over the course of a year. Around the same time I joined a gym doing resistance training to increase my muscle mass, given that muscle burns more calories than fat tissue.

Then in August 2018, I discovered the low carb (LCHF) way of eating. I started concentrating on eating real food and removed high-carb, highly processed food from my diet, replacing them with low-carb vegetables and healthy fats. The fat provides energy and satiety as one tends to eat significantly less with the LCHF way of eating. (The fear of fat for health reasons will be the topic of a future post).

One of the benefits of the LCHF way of eating is that my non-fasting blood sugar level is now roughly the same as the fasting reference value the NHS uses. Thus, if I had been pre-diabetic before LCHF, I am sure I’m definitely not anymore.

I lost another 5 kg of weight in the first year of LCHF and then got stuck with my weight ossilating by ±2kg around my “set point”. I am sure things weren’t helped by the gym being closed during lockdown and by the dark outside over the long Northern Hemisphere winter.

This then lead me to my 3-month long carnivore experiment.

The experiment

As I was already eating a low carb diet, I didn’t suffer from the carb withdrawal symptoms experienced by most people coming to carnivore from the standard, recommended diet.

During the first month, I ate all the animal foods listed below, and kept on drinking coffee.

During the second month, I stopped eating dairy and eggs and stopped drinking coffee. And surprisingly, it seems like I am not actually addicted to coffee, as I didn’t suffer the typical withdrawal symptoms.

The third month was slightly more tricky. I started preparing 3 or 4 different types of meat to give some variety to my plate. Interestingly, when I told people that I only ate meat, the most common comment was that it must be so boring, which was the case when I didn’t eat cheese or eggs during the last two months.

The result of my experiment was another 3 kg weight loss, and a definite change in body shape. I put this down to the higher protein intake (topic of the next post) and increased use of my fat stores.

Foods to eat on a carnivore diet

Animal meat: beef, chicken or turkey, lamb, pork, etc.

Organ meats

Fish: salmon, mackerel, sardines, crab, lobster, herring, etc.

Other animal products: eggs, lard and fat from animals, bone marrow, etc.

Dairy products: double cream, hard cheese, butter or ghee

Water

Many people add salt and other seasonings and drink coffee and tea.

Benefits of carnivore diet

Many people find that they have lots more energy when they reduce their intake of carbohydrates. People following low carb diets make more efficient use of the body’s fat stores, providing a constant source of energy which doesn’t depend on the timing of the next meal. With a carnivore diet, the body has even more reason to use the body’s fat stores, which brings us to the next benefit of the carnivore diet: weight loss.

Anecdotally people also report improved mood and focus, as well as reduced inflammation.

In the world of human carnivores there are amazing stories of people who’ve improved their mental health by following a carnivore diet.

Thus, it seems like weight loss isn’t the only benefit of a carnivore diet.

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Introduction

Do you want to lead a healthier life? If yes, that’s excellent news! Because I would like to help you with that!

My name is Annette de Lange, and I currently live in Woodbridge, near Ipswich, in Suffolk in the UK.

Until 2010 I considered myself to be healthy – this despite chronic sinisitus, which gave my laryngitis several times a year. My knees ached going up and down stairs, I was on medication for an irregular heart beat (despite the cardiologist not finding any physical cause for it), and most of all, I was tired, even though I didn’t realise it, because that was my normal.

I ate my 5 a day, but I didn’t know about how crops are manipulated to increase crop yields and that the food is subsequently processed to increase shelf-life. What was the sad thruth is that at cellular level my body wasn’t getting the nutrients I needed for a healthy life.

That all changed when I found whole-food nutritional supplements. The sinisitus and achy knees are gone and I haven’t had laryngistis for some time. I also don’t need the medication anymore, because I have since discovered that a calcium deficiency may cause issues with nerve function, affecting the functioning of the heart: I had started taking KalMag because my mother had osteoporosis and I wanted to reduce my risk of it. Then, about 6 months after I started taking the supplements, I woke up one morning and realised that I hadn’t felt tired for weeks! This thanks to a plant lipid & sterol supplement.

When I changed jobs a few years ago and moved to a new area I went to an “introductory” appointment at my new GP, and they didn’t find any of the common chronic diseases people my age tend to suffer from. In 2015 I removed sugar from my diet and I had another set of amazing health improvements: weight loss, improved sleep and loss of swelling around my ankles. Recent blood tests were all well within the normal range. Not bad for a 57 year old female!

The changes in my personal health led to me to wanting to know more about how the food we eat help or hinder our health and wellbeing. I did a nutrition course and learned a lot about why the human body needs both macro- and micronutrients, and how protein, healthy fats and limited carbohydrates from fresh fruit and vegetables, together with vitamins and minerals, work together to maintain a healthy mind and body.

I’m so glad that I’m healthy and feeling great. We human beings were not meant to be sick and unhealthy and on medication. We only need to feed our cells by eating real food, and supplementing when required!

I look forward to discussing health & wellbeing with those looking to improve their health.

In my next post I’ll tell you about my recent experiment with a carnivore diet…