Proteins form part of the structure of EVERY cell and tissue in the human body. So as a lot of what we see in the mirror is made up of protein, we need to be replenishing it daily. We need to eat new sources of protein everyday in order to supply raw material to repair and replace protein structures.
Proteins themselves are made up of building blocks called amino acids. There are 20, and they make up ALL of the protein based structures in the body from tiny hormones to huge muscles.
11 of these amino acids can be made in the body from other amino acids, carbohydrates and nitrogen (a chemical element). These are called non-essential amino acids.
The other 9 amino acids must be supplied through our diet. These are called ‘essential amino acids’.
This means that when we look at foods, we shouldn’t be only looking at the amount of protein it has, but also at the quality of protein it has. Foods with all essential amino acids are called ‘complete proteins’. These are mainly animal products: eggs, dairy, meat, fish, poultry. Plant-based protein sources might have 1 or 2 which are in short supply or missing. However this doesn’t mean plant-based diets can’t be good - as long as you make sure and combine two or more different sources of plant-based protein at any meal, you should get all essential amino acids.
It’s easy to get information on amino acid profiles for different protein sources online.
