Are you eating enough protein? Better question: Are you eating too much protein?! Nowadays, people will buy into anything to get the results they are looking for.  As a dietetics student, I have taken the classes and done the credible research. All that creatine, whey and meat your piling on is doing you more harm than good.  

According to our campus dietitian, Michelle Singleton, we only need 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. Protein isn’t listed as a percent value on the nutrition label, because the recommended intake varies so much, since it is dependent on an individual’s body weight. To get your weight in kilograms, divide your weight in pounds by 2.2. For example, if you weigh 130 pounds: 130/2.2 = 59kg. and 0.8 x 59 = 47.2 grams of protein per day. You would be amazed at how easy this is to meet. 

Various online nutrient content websites show the that I can get the following amounts of protein. 

6.3 grams of protein from one large egg.

6.5 grams of protein from two tablespoons of hemp seeds.

6.9 grams of protein from one cup of sprouted lentils

5.7 grams of protein from two cups of kale.

5.3 grams of protein from three tablespoons of sunflower seeds.

7.9 grams of protein from one cup of green peas.

6 grams of protein from two tablespoons of chia seeds.

9.1 grams of protein from three ounces of goji berries.

3.9 grams of protein from three medium sized bananas.

3.7 grams of protein from three oranges.

That’s already 55 grams of energizing, high fiber, hydrating and high vibrational protein! 

 Contrary to what you may read, consuming extra protein does nothing to bulk up muscle. According to sorts nutritionist, Rachel Clark, "For building muscle, moderate amounts of protein per meal are recommended. The first 30 grams of protein (as in four ounces of meat, or a piece of meat a little bit bigger than a deck of cards), go toward muscle building by increasing muscle protein synthesis by 50 percent."

In a study comparing muscle mass growth and protein consumption, Clark explained, when given 12 ounces of meat (90 grams of protein), synthesis was the same as with four ounces of meat. Meaning, any consumption of protein over 30 grams is not used.

Protein is also a minor energy source. "Carbohydrates are the preferred fuel, especially as intensity increases," says Clark. The protein needs for significant increase of weight training can easily come from food, so don't make your body work overtime to get rid of excess protein.

According to my advanced human macronutrient metabolism professor, Kim Buhman, there is no storage place for protein in the body. The carbon skeleton gets turned into glucose (possibly stored as fat), fatty acids, ketone bodies or cholesterol. The nitrogen (amino acids are made up of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen), is toxic to the body and has to get excreted through urea, in urine (mostly), feces or other places like hair, nails and sweat – which gives you rancid body odor and strong smelling piss.

It is really easy to measure if a person is getting enough or too much protein in their diet by measuring the amount of nitrogen that they excrete. A graduate student did a nitrogen balance study here at Purdue by comparing the excretions of a population with controlled protein intakes at various amounts. The student’s findings were that only 0.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day were necessary.

Buhman’s lecture also taught me that the estimated average requirement (EAR) for protein is only 0.63 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. The EAR is an average; it is what is thought to be sufficient for 50 percent of the population, whereas, the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) is 0.83 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. The RDA is meant to be sufficient for 97 percent of the population. It is clear that in order to be sure most people are getting enough protein, they bump up the requirements from the EAR to the RDA. Any more than the RDA is overkill!

Metabolizing all of these amino acids is complex business. Don’t make your body work harder than it has to – you’re already such a hard worker as it is!  High protein diets can cause a whole slew of issues. The minor ones are feeling fatigued and grumpy with horrible body odor, to acidosis issues (cancer grows in an acidic body). Don’t get me wrong, if you are a burn victim, or a division one athlete, by all means your cells are breaking down and regenerating quite rapidly and you might want to take in more protein.  But wait, what is protein deficiency called, again?  Oh ya – kwashiorkor. Don’t hear that one too often.  Dream big and carb up!