{"id":43939,"date":"2015-10-06T11:15:41","date_gmt":"2015-10-06T15:15:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=43939"},"modified":"2021-05-18T06:05:56","modified_gmt":"2021-05-18T10:05:56","slug":"how-much-protein-proteinaholic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/health\/how-much-protein-proteinaholic\/","title":{"rendered":"Are You a Protein-aholic? How Much Meat Should You Eat"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Are
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pop quiz: What\u2019s the better snack choice<\/a> \u2014 an apple or a packaged protein bar? If you answered protein bar, you might be in trouble, at least according to a new book called Proteinaholic: How Our Obsession with Meat Is Killing Us and What We Can Do About It<\/em><\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n

The book\u2019s title might sound extreme, but author Garth Davis, MD, medical director of the Davis Clinic at Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas, is setting out to change the way we think about protein. \u201cI\u2019m not saying that protein is necessarily bad for you, but I want to stop this idea that you have to choose food based on protein claims,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> The Flexitarian Diet: Less Meat, Better Health?<\/a><\/p>\n

So, should you give protein a starring role on your plate? Or should you reconsider? We explored both sides of the controversy.<\/p>\n

The Case for a Plant-Based Diet <\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cOf all the nutrients our bodies need for various functions, protein is the most vital.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

We hate to say it, but not all protein is created equal. Protein can come from both plant and animal sources, and it\u2019s the animal-based protein that carries more danger, says Davis. Meat is a big source of saturated fat<\/a>, which raises your risk of heart disease<\/a>. It also increases inflammatory markers<\/a> like cortisol and c-reactive protein, which can also cause issues with your ticker.<\/p>\n

That being said, it probably won\u2019t surprise you to learn that Davis follows an entirely vegan diet<\/a>. And while he doesn\u2019t suggest everyone do the same, he does recommend eating plant-based \u2014 and limiting meat and dairy.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> 3 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Going Vegan<\/a><\/p>\n

The Problem with Processed Protein<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Even if you limit your meat and dairy intake, packaged protein bars can carry a whole other set of risks. \u201cI see vegans and vegetarians that are so obsessed with protein that they eat all these processed foods [with added protein],\u201d he says. Those items often carry a \u201chealth halo<\/a>\u201d \u2014 the appearance of being good for you, when in fact, they may have more calories, artificial ingredients and fat than whole foods.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> 6 Easy Tips for Eating Clean on a Small Budget<\/a><\/p>\n

Luckily, there are a lot of protein and nutrient-rich foods you can <\/em>eat to your stomach\u2019s content. \u201cResearch shows the foods that are the most associated with health are fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, beans, and seeds,\u201d says Davis. These foods are also chock-full of fiber<\/a>, protein\u2019s less sexy (but just as filling) stepsister. \u201cFiber keeps your blood sugar stable, increases fullness, and reduces your cholesterol,\u201d Davis says.<\/p>\n

The Pro-Animal Protein Argument<\/strong><\/h3>\n

It won\u2019t surprise you to know that not everyone agrees with Davis. Caroline Cederquist, MD, says most of her clients aren\u2019t getting enough protein in their daily diets. \u201cOf all the nutrients our bodies need for various functions, protein is the most vital<\/a>. If you eat enough at regular intervals during the day, your metabolism will run at an optimal level,\u201d Cederquist, creator of bistroMD and author of The MD Factor<\/a>, says.<\/p>\n

She has her clients eat 25 to 35 grams at each meal (especially at breakfast) and 10 to 15 grams per snack. For perspective, the Institute of Medicine<\/a> recommends at least 46 grams per day for women and 56 grams for men \u2014 the amount needed to prevent deficiency. Cederquist says she encourages people to eat more than 100 grams of protein a day so that individuals can preserve muscle mass<\/a> (especially if they’re trying to lose weight).<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> What 25 Grams of Protein Looks Like<\/a><\/p>\n

However, that doesn\u2019t give you permission to indulge big honking steak. Eat too much protein and your body may store the excess as fat<\/a>, Cederquist says. She suggests four to six ounces of lean protein, like chicken beast and pork tenderloin<\/a>, per meal. (That\u2019s about the size of a deck of cards.) Davis, on the other hand, recommends not counting protein or calories \u2014 and instead focusing on eating a well-rounded diet of real, whole foods.<\/p>\n

The jury\u2019s out (probably for good) on which argument is better. But the one place they agree: Plant-based protein<\/a> is always<\/em> a good choice. Check out these 14 best proteins for meatless meals<\/a> for a guilt-free fix any time of day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This new book is aiming to put an end to America\u2019s obsession with all things protein. Are we getting too much of a good thing?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":71,"featured_media":43941,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,7],"tags":[51,59,80,341,388,95],"class_list":["post-43939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diet-nutrition","category-health","tag-food-choices","tag-healthy-substitutions","tag-protein","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2nutrition","tag-vegetarian"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43939","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/71"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43939"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43939\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43941"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}