How to Choose Good Sources of Protein

Protein is an essential part of any diet, regardless of your age, sex, physical fitness, or any other factor. The simple fact is, without protein, the human body would not function. Proteins are absolutely crucial for an enormous variety of processes, including cell signaling, DNA replication, metabolic processes, and the functioning of the immune system.

How do you choose good sources of protein to complement a healthy diet? The answer lies in selecting primarily plant-based proteins, along with a selection of animal proteins as an occasional rather than every-day addition to the diet.

What’s so great about plant-based protein? Or rather, what’s wrong with animal protein? Animal protein itself isn’t harmful, but it’s definitely a case of too much of a good thing being harmful. Whether it’s because of the saturated fat and cholesterol they contain, or for some other as-yet unknown reason, a diet high in red meat correlates strongly with an increased risk of certain types of cancer, including colon cancer. Note that it’s red meat in particular that correlates with cancer risk. This doesn’t extend to poultry and fish, or with dairy products.

Another important consideration is to examine the "packaging" your protein comes in. Choose proteins that have undergone as little processing as possible to ensure you’re eating food that still contains all the nutrients it was grown with.

• What is your protein in—animal or plant? How much fat is in there and of what kind? Try to limit the amount of protein you get from meat, and instead go for plant proteins and dairy products.
• When eating animal protein, choose lean cuts of meat and low-fat dairy products.
• Avoid processed protein foods when possible. Even plant-based proteins can come in unhealthy forms when they’re overly processed.
• Eat a mix of plant and animal proteins and eat a variety of foods to get the best mix of nutrients along with them.
• Too much of a good thing doesn’t only apply to red meat. Why soy-based products are healthful, recent studies show that too much soy might have the opposite effect. Instead of following the latest protein food fad, simply eat a mixture of foods to get the protein you need.

While animal products and certain plant foods contain the most protein, small amounts of protein are present in most foods, so it’s difficult to become entirely deficient in this essential nutrient.

For good health we need around 0.8 grams of protein per one pound of body weight (or around eight grams per twenty pounds of weight) per day. Good sources of protein include the following:

• Nuts, beans, seeds, and legumes.
• Soy products.
• Milk, cheese, yogurt, and other dairy products.
• Fish
• Poultry
• Pork
• Red meat

One thing that should be noted is that most plant-based proteins are not complete proteins. This means that unlike animal proteins, these plant-based sources do not contain all twenty essential amino acids. Those who don’t eat any animal products should therefore be certain to eat a wide variety of plant-based proteins every day, to ensure they get enough of the essential amino acids.