Hey, what's going on today, we're going to talk about amino acids and also this idea of 'complete proteins'
this is the second video on protein if you missed the first one definitely check it out link in the description below and also in
The YouTube card, it's that little 'i' in the corner. Today we're gonna dig a little deeper. What's a 'complete protein'?
What foods are 'complete protein' sources? I gotta stop with the air quotes. We'll also take a look at specific amino acids
What do I eat to get all the protein and all the amino acids I need? let's get some answers
Proteins are strings of amino acids. There are nine so-called essential amino acids. Meaning our body can't produce them
So we need to get them from food. They have names like histidine, isoleucine,
Etc. Etc. They all sound like valley girl names. 'Oh my god leucine. You're like so cute right now'
There's a lot of talk out there of complete protein
and sometimes people just mean a food that contains all those 9 essential amino acids and
Sometimes they mean it contains them in a certain proportion. Let's take a look at this step by step
There's a common belief that animal foods like meat and eggs are complete protein sources
Whereas plants are not and maybe there are some exceptions like quinoa that are complete but most plants are incomplete
But is there any truth to that? let's do some fact-checking
According to the official USDA food database beef indeed contains all nine essential amino acids. No surprise there
What about chicken? all nine. eggs? all nine. milk? all 9. Okay, so that checks out
What about quinoa? Is it true It has all nine? Yes
Tofu? also all nine
Lentils? Yes. potatoes? Yup. broccoli, bananas, rice, cherries, you name it,
They all have all nine essential amino acids. In fact all plants have all nine essential amino acids
The opposite would be really surprising. each plant contains many proteins and each protein is a long string of amino acids
So it would be really bizarre, if we found an entire plant, an entire organism, that was somehow missing one of the building blocks
That's for natural foods. with processed foods nutrients can be artificially added or removed. like for example, gelatin
Which is a processed food of animal origin and it lacks one essential amino acid
Here's another way to think of this: those nine amino acids we can't produce, the essential ones? pigs and chickens can't produce them either
So where are they getting them in the first place? Well from plants, of course
Okay, fine. So all natural plant foods have all nine essential amino acids, but maybe they're not in the correct proportion
Maybe there's too much of some and not enough of others
Maybe a complete protein is not just a food that has all nine essential amino acids
But also a food that has them in a certain correct proportion and maybe animal foods have that and plant foods
don't? let's take a look at some specific foods. This is the breakdown for chicken, the amount of each essential amino acid
And here's a bowl of edamame. soybeans. the overall proportions are similar
Although you can see some differences, a bit more of some amino acids a bit less of others
That's spirulina, which is an algae. pretty rich in the essential 9
That's a cup of milk. That's a cup of lentils
That's an egg. And that's a peanutbutter sandwich
The point here is not that plants have more protein
We covered quantity in the first video and quantity is gonna depend on the exact food
You're looking at, the precise amount, etc. Animal foods have plenty of protein, plant foods hav plenty of protein
what we're looking at here is a amino acid balance and what we've seen so far is that there isn't necessarily
a huge difference
It doesn't mean that every single plant food is gonna be this rich in the essential 9
But it seems we have some pretty good options here. Okay, but this is isolated foods. Who cares, right?
What I want to know is at the end of the day after all my meals, 10, 15, 20 different types of food mixed,
Do I get all the amino acids I need? let's look at this example from the first video
breakfast:
Blueberry oatmeal and a peanut butter sandwich, a couple hours later a handful of almonds. lunch:
Lentils rice and broccoli and finally dinner: tempeh and mixed veggies
That's less than 1,500 calories total
2,000 being the ballpark daily intake and yet we already have 80 grams of protein total with every single essential amino acid being maxed out
That's how easy it is to get your daily requirements. And that's the daily requirements calculated for me
I'm 6'1'', 185 lbs give or take and I exercise almost every day. if you're even bigger than me
You're gonna want to have more but if you're bigger than me
You're gonna have a lot more than 1,500 calories in a day anyway, so that's not an issue
but for the vast majority of people this is already way more protein than you actually need and
All we've counted is a few light meals and no snacks in between or anything
So that's how easy it is to get your protein. bottom line, If you like to eat meat eggs and dairy
That's your call
But don't let anybody tell you that you have to eat those foods
Because there's some magical amino acid in there that you can't find anywhere else
It's your choice and it is a choice
Plenty of protein in animal foods, plenty of protein in plant foods, and both have all the amino acids
we need. in the words of these two protein experts: mixtures of plant proteins can serve as a complete and
well-balanced source of amino acids that effectively meet human physiological requirements and they go on to explain
Consumers do not need to be at all concerned about amino acid
Imbalances when the dietary amino acid supply is from the plant food proteins that make up our usual diets
Mixtures of plant proteins can be fully adequate for meeting human requirements. Okay. What about combining proteins?
There's an idea out there that plant protein needs to be deliberately combined so that the individual
Deficiencies are averaged out. It is true that the best diet has a variety of plant foods. if your diet is 100% potatoes
No, that's not going to be ideal. But neither is a diet that's 100% eggs or any animal or any plant food
So, yes, you do want to mix it up: greens, legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, fruit. That's variety
But we don't need to worry about pairing up specific foods at each meal. Our body can store amino acids
So even if you have a meal that's short on one of the essential ones your body can complement it as long as you're getting
That variety of plant foods and you're getting enough calories overall you're covered for protein and you're getting all the amino acids you need
No need to worry and you don't need to take it from me
Here's the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
The terms complete and incomplete are misleading in relation to plant protein
protein from a variety of plant foods supplies enough of all essential amino acids
As long as caloric requirements are met and here's the American Heart Association
You don't need to eat foods from animals to have enough protein in your diet
Plant proteins alone can provide enough of the essential and non-essential amino acids
As long as sources of dietary protein are varied and calorie intake is high enough to meet energy needs. and they go on to explain:
Whole grains legumes vegetables and seeds and nuts all contain both essential and non-essential amino acids
You don't need to consciously combine these foods within a given meal
So again, as long as you're not starving, you're getting enough calories,
You're good for protein whether you choose to eat animal foods or not
Okay, maybe this is fine for you and me, adults
But what about kids? they need meat and dairy to grow tall and strong, right?
No. here's the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics again
Plant-based diets are appropriate for all stages of life including pregnancy lactation infancy childhood
Adolescence, older adulthood, you name it. Okay. So this is fine for normal people
But what if I'm an athlete? then I need meat, right? plant-based athletes include Venus Williams, Tom Brady, NBA star
Kyrie Irving and sprinter Carl Lewis during his prime
okay fine,
I can be an athlete at the highest level on plants
But what if I want to build a ton of muscle then I need meat right? This is Olympian weightlifter, Kendrick Farris
He's a hundred percent plant-based
So is this guy and this guy and this guy and here's professional bodybuilder Nimai Delgado
'I have beans, I have tofu. I have lots of greens, spinach broccoli
All these things are packed with protein. You can build muscle faster. You can lose fat faster
So, I mean it's a win-win for me.' Not only is he a hundred percent plant-based he's vegetarian from birth. He's never eaten a steak
Okay, I think I've made my point we can get all the protein we need from animals or plants it's our choice
That's it for today. We have a lot more to cover on protein absorption upper limits and much more
So stay tuned and hit that subscribe button so you don't miss any of the upcoming videos and I'll see you on the next one