Chapter 11

PROTEIN--TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING?

Everyone talks about "high protein diets." It seems they can do no wrong. You just can't get enough protein, they say. But like everything else we are talking about in this book, there must be a balance between too much and too little. Surprisingly, researchers have found out that most of us are getting too much protein in our diets! How about that for a switch? And too much protein can be just as dangerous to our health as too little.

How much protein do we really need? For the average woman, it is 46 grams a day; for the average man, it is 55 grams a day. It is hard to tell sometimes just what is average and what is not, but you generally know if you are slightly bigger or smaller than most people. To help you get a better idea of your approximate protein requirements (nothing is exact in the dietary world and we are only talking about generalities here), I have listed a basic protein requirement chart, based upon your ideal body weight:

Like I said, this is just a general guideline. If you are overweight, you may have more than enough proteins already. The foods you eat will actually deter-mine the amount of protein your body is getting (i.e., the protein from dairy, meat and legume food groups are higher in quality than in some other groups).

Protein can come from animal, vegetable and dairy sources, and each of these three sources has something different to offer. For example, the animal sources also supply all eight of the essential amino acids that we need. Vegetables must be combined to supply all of the amino acids, for no one vegetable can do it alone. Dairy products can supply proteins that are low in fat or even fat-free. Therefore, it is important to know how to "mix and match" the foods you eat in order to get a balanced protein diet. Check with your doctor, dietitian and health food stores for books and charts that go into greater detail on this all-important aspect of a balanced diet for your new lifestyle. To get you started, here is a chart showing the amount of protein vs. fats in many of the foods we eat:

Keep in mind that too much protein gets turned into extra fat by the body; it does NOT become muscle tissue, as some people believe. That means you will have to exercise more in order to burn off the calorie increase. Otherwise your dietary efforts will become counterproductive. Thus, it pays to familiarize yourself with those foods that are rich in protein, but not necessarily high in fat. An overabundance of protein can also make it difficult for your body to maintain its calcium, an important consideration as we get older.

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