Of Primary Importance...Yes and No!
Guest blog by Harriet Swainson
"Be
careful about reading health books. You might die of a misprint."
Mark Twain
Of
Primary Importance...Yes and No!
The word
protein is derived from the Greek word, proto,
meaning 'of primary importance' and this is an apt description. It
is an essential part of our diet. It contains all of the elements
required for life: carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen.
Protein is
a crucial ingredient for our body to carry out its normal functions:
- the build up of structures: without protein, many structures within the body would be fluid. There are two distinct types of structural proteins: fibrous (fundamental to cartilage and other connection tissue, hair and nails) and motor (used to spontaneously move and convert chemical energy into work).
- as enzymes: enzymes catalyze chemical reactions. Enzymes carry out most reactions involved in metabolism, as well as manipulating DNA in processes such as DNA replication and DNA repair.
- Antibodies: antibodies are protein components of the immune system whose main function is to bind antigens, or foreign substances in the body, and target them for destruction.
Protein is
of course also vital for our muscles. However, despite the
misconception, simply stuffing your body with protein, manufactured
or natural, is not the best way to amass those abs or bulk up those
biceps.
Put simply,
to build muscle you need to give your body a reason to grow.
Overloading your muscles with weight training stimulates adaptation,
and it is in the recovery period that growth occurs. Protein is
commonly consumed after a workout in the knowledge that it will speed
up the time it takes for the muscles to recover, allowing you to get
back into the gym more quickly to create more overload. Of course,
protein is important for repairing muscle tissue, but this is not the
only effect it has on the body and filling up on protein at the
expense of other food types is not the way to go if you want to stay
healthy.
When
protein is broken down, acid is produced. To deal with the increase
in acidity, our bodies try to compensate by using two alkaline
substances, sodium and calcium. Initially the body uses its sodium
supply and then calcium is taken from the bone. Essentially, too
much protein can lead to calcium deficiencies, kidney stones, water
retention and dehydration as well as an excess intake of calories and
overall stress on your heart (not to mention bad breath).
Protein
cannot be stored. If too much is taken into the body it cannot all
be fully broken down and is therefore broken down into waste
products. When passing through the kidneys the additional acid
increases the risk of kidney stones developing and also causes damage
to the kidney bringing about water retention.
So, if you
increase your intake of protein, you also need to balance that with
more carbohydrates and essential fats as well as your fluid intake.
Obviously more food means more calories which means that you need to
ensure that you're doing enough exercise to prevent fat gain. Don't
forget though, this doesn't necessarily mean calories in equals
calories out. Each one of us is different and we all need to work
out our own balance when it comes to food intake depending on your
metabolic rate which will be affected on a daily basis by all sorts
of things such as stress and hormones.
(For
more information, take a look at our Effective Nutrition for Weight
Management course)
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