You Deserve To Be Healthy!: The Power of Protein

THE POWER OF PROTEIN

Protein is a food which is made up of amino acids. Amino acids are the building blocks for the body’s major parts and are crucial to its minute-by-minute regulation and maintenance. Your body makes its own supply of amino acids but also needs to get some from the food that you eat.

Today the majority of Americans eat too much protein When we eat too much protein we have low energy, constipation, dehydration, lethargy, a heavy feeling, weight gain, the body becomes over acidic, kidney function declines due to increased pressure to filter toxins and waste. We may also develop foul body odor, halitosis and calcium loss to compensate for the acidic status of the body.

If we are eating too little protein we experience sugar and sweet cravings, feel spacey and jittery, fatigue, weight loss, loss of healthy color. Other symptoms of low protein intake are weakness, anemia, skin inflammation and in severe cases the development of a pot belly.

Because we are all different, protein requirements vary from person to person. The only way to know what is best for you is to experiment with your protein intake, try different sources and take notice of the impact on your health.

Most people feel lighter and clearer and notice a decrease in physical symptoms when they reduce animal protein in their diet. Animal foods are rich in fats and cholesterol. Disorders such as heart disease, cancer, obesity and high blood pressure can all be linked to an excess of animal protein.

One must also consider the other issues when selecting a protein. Animal welfare, genetic engineering, bovine growth hormone, antibiotics, environment, poor quality, taste, difficulty in digestion and even spirituality issues are just a few of the factors that can determine what choices you make.

You may want to consider the following protein options..

Vegan Sources of Protein are:

Grains: A staple all over the world. By increasing grains we reduce cravings. Eat only whole grains and watch out for wheat. Many people are allergic to wheat and don’t know it.

Beans: Contain a more complete set of amino acids than other plant foods. To make them easier to digest soak them overnight, add spices and vinegar.

Soy: This is the most difficult bean to digest. Be careful as today’s soy is one of the most genetically engineered crops so it is always important to buy organic. Consumption of processed soy products are not a good idea.

Nuts: Generally considered a fat not a protein. Great for people that want to gain weight. Peanuts, which actually are legumes, are higher in protein than any other nuts.

Protein Bars: Some are much better than others. Be careful of chemicals and unnatural sweeteners. These are not meal replacers.

Protein Powders: These are not recommended in large amounts. Eat whole, natural foods as much as possible.

Leafy Greens: Many leafy greens contain some protein. These vegetables are associated with longevity. They contain high levels of antioxidants and have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties.

If your body requires animal protein consider these points when making your purchases:

Whatever type of meat you buy, go for the very best quality you can afford. It's better to have a smaller amount of good meat than a large serving of a meat that has been factory farmed and processed.

Animals raised organically are less likely to be intensively reared, and will have been treated humanely. The meat is less likely to contain chemicals from pesticides, and will sometimes have been fed on grass rather than grain, which makes for a higher proportion of healthier omega-3 fats in the meat.

Avoid cheap processed meats like burgers and sausages, or made-up dishes like lasagnas and shepherd's pie. Often the meat content is very low, and the food has been bulked out with fat, rusk or other filling agents. Check the ingredients list and shun anything that has a long list of additives. Buy burgers or sausages from a reputable butcher, preferably organic, and check the meat content. It's always better to buy fresh, unprocessed meat and make your own dishes - cook big batches and store some in the freezer if you're short of time.

Remember, science wants us to believe that a protein is a protein, whether it is from beans, chicken or beef. Each protein type affects us differently. Pay close attention and feel the differences each type of protein has on your body and decide what is best for you.

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Lentil Sambar

1 cup dried lentils
3 cups water
1 onion
1 small head of cauliflower
2 sweet potatoes
1 red bell pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 teaspoon of cumin
1 teaspoon of tumeric
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne
1 mild chile, seeds removed and chopped
1 Tablespoon of Tamarind concentrate, dissolved in 1 cup of hot water
1 teaspoon salt
2 to 3 tablespoons of cilantro

cooked brown basmati rice
Mango Peach Chutney
goats milk yogurt

Rinse lentils and place them in a pan with the 3 cups of water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 45-60 minutes, until tender. Stir occasionally, adding more water if needed.
Chop the onions, cauliflower, sweet potatoes and bell peppers into bite-size pieces and set aside. Warm the oil in a pot and saute the mustard, fenugreek and cumin seeds on medium heat, covering the pot and shaking it occasionally to prevent burning. When the mustard seeds begin to pop, stir in the turmeric, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne and chopped chili and saute for another 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
Stir in the tamarind liquid, then add the onions, cauliflower, sweet potatoes and salt and combine. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the bell peppers, cover and continue to cook until all of the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.
Drain the cooked lentils and stir them into the vegetable mixture. Reheat if necessary, then stir in the cilantro. Ladle over basmati rice and serve with Mango Peach Chutney and a generous dollop of yogurt, if desired.

Mango Chutney
1 large mango, peeled and chopped
2 cups of frozen peaches chopped
1/2 cup of unsweetened apple juice
1/2 cup of cider vinegar
1/4 cup agave or honey
1 medium onion chopped
1 small chile, seeds removed and chopped
2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of salt.

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently, uncovered for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and translucent. Cool before serving. This chutney will keep for several weeks in the frig in a tightly covered container.

The World

Rethinking the Meat-Guzzler

Global demand for meat has multiplied in recent years, encouraged by growing affluence and nourished by the proliferation of huge, confined animal feeding operations. These assembly-line meat factories consume enormous amounts of energy, pollute water supplies, generate significant greenhouse gases and require ever-increasing amounts of corn, soy and other grains, a dependency that has led to the destruction of vast swaths of the world’s tropical rain forests.
Just this week, the president of Brazil announced emergency measures to halt the burning and cutting of the country’s rain forests for crop and grazing land. In the last five months alone, the government says, 1,250 square miles were lost.
The world’s total meat supply was 71 million tons in 1961. In 2007, it was estimated to be 284 million tons. Per capita consumption has more than doubled over that period. (In the developing world, it rose twice as fast, doubling in the last 20 years.) World meat consumption is expected to double again by 2050, which one expert, Henning Steinfeld of the United Nations, says is resulting in a “relentless growth in livestock production.”
Americans eat about the same amount of meat as we have for some time, about eight ounces a day, roughly twice the global average. At about 5 percent of the world’s population, we “process” (that is, grow and kill) nearly 10 billion animals a year, more than 15 percent of the world’s total.
Growing meat (it’s hard to use the word “raising” when applied to animals in factory farms) uses so many resources that it’s a challenge to enumerate them all. But consider: an estimated 30 percent of the earth’s ice-free land is directly or indirectly involved in livestock production, according to the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization, which also estimates that livestock production generates nearly a fifth of the world’s greenhouse gases — more than transportation.
To put the energy-using demand of meat production into easy-to-understand terms, Gidon Eshel, a geophysicist at the Bard Center, and Pamela A. Martin, an assistant professor of geophysics at the University of Chicago, calculated that if Americans were to reduce meat consumption by just 20 percent it would be as if we all switched from a standard sedan — a Camry, say — to the ultra-efficient Prius. Similarly, a study last year by the National Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science in Japan estimated that 2.2 pounds of beef is responsible for the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide emitted by the average European car every 155 miles, and burns enough energy to light a 100-watt bulb for nearly 20 days.

This is an excerpt for a New York Times article dated January, 27, 2008

To read more of this fascinating article, go to:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/weekinreview/27bittman.html

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Monday, November 29, 2010

The Power of Protein

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