Protein
There are two aspects to getting enough dietary protein. The Quantity of protein that you eat, and the Quality of protein that you eat (whether you get the full array of essential amino acids).
I don’t want to add too much to the food noise here. Some Women are aiming for 100g of protein per day… This is a high amount, by anyone’s standards, and much higher than most traditional diets (including the diet recommendations of Chinese Medicine). This increase in the recommendations seen online may be based on a 2023 study, and a 2018 systemic review outlined below**. Context is always key to health research.
DIETARY PROTEIN QUANTITY
The current Australian Guidelines (RACGP) are 0.8g of protein per day for each kg of ideal body weight.
This increases to 1-1.1g for pregnant and breastfeeding Women and 1.1g per kg of ideal body weight for people over 70.
The target range of 0.8g of protein per kg of ideal body weight, for most Women, is about 50-60g/day. This will still take a bit of work! Protein quantity is really important when:
you’ve done some resistance exercise on that day
you’re trying to gain muscle mass
you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or trying to conceive
you are peri-menopausal, menopausal or post-menopausal
you are recovering from a major illness
you are trying to lose weight (you would be swapping carbohydrates and fat for protein here and aiming for a caloric deficit)
your blood test results show signs of low protein (bring them in for assessment, as it’s not just Protein levels that I look at)
Protein containing sources and meal ideas:
2 large eggs (13g) + 2 pieces of wholegrain sourdough (8g) = 21g
2 large eggs (13g) + mushrooms + spinach = 14-16g
1/3 cup of oats (5g) + 1 Tbsp Chia seeds (2g) + 2/3 cup full cream milk (5.5g) + handful 30g of nuts and seeds (5g) + 1 tbsp Peanut butter (4g) = 21g
¾ of a cup of greek yoghurt (15g) + berries + 1 tbsp of Chia seeds (2g) = 17g
100g of tofu = 12-15g
¾ cup Regular cottage cheese = 18-22g
¾ cup low fat cottage cheese = 20-24g
30g handful of nuts or seeds = 5-7g
100g Chicken breast = 30g
100g Chicken Thigh = 25-28g
100g Lean beef = 26-30g
100g Lamb = 25-28g
100g steak = 28-32g
¼ cup of cooked legumes (40-50g) = around 4g protein
*1 serve of baked beans (130g) = 6.5g
Slice of Tasty Cheese (5g)
*50g of sliced Ham = 9g
*this protein source is high in salt
If you are sensitive to dairy, or any of the foods on the list, avoid them. If you’d like to track your macro and micro nutrients more closely, the app Chronometer is a good place to start (although the protein target is very high)
DIETARY PROTEIN QUALITY
This is most important if you are eating mostly plant based protein sources. Proteins are long chains of Amino Acids.
Human bodies are not able to manufacture all of the Amino Acids we need. There are 9 ‘essential’ amino acids we must eat each day. Some foods contain a ‘Complete Protein’ with all 9 of these ‘Essential Amino Acids’:
Red meat, Poultry, Fish, Eggs
Dairy (milk, cheese, yoghurt)
Soybeans
Quinoa
There are only 2 plant sources on this list. Most plants are missing one or more of the essential amino acids, so need to be eaten in combination with other plants to achieve a ‘Complete protein’. The combinations are Grains + Legumes OR Nuts/Seeds + Legumes. For example:
Rice + Peas
Pasta + Lentils
Soup with Legumes + Pasta (eg Minestrone)
Sourdough bread + Peanut butter (peanuts are a legume, not a nut)
Peanuts, Mixed nuts, Pepitas and Sunflower seeds as a trail mix
Salad with Lentils and Almonds
Hummus made with Chickpeas and Tahini (sesame seeds)
These are just examples, they don’t have to be eaten in the same meal.
**A 2023 study (Mallinson et al) followed Muscle Protein Synthesis (MPS) in Women in their 20s. The Women performed Resistance Exercise twice, 4 hours apart, and were fed either 15g, 30g or 60g of whey protein after exercise. Findings were that the 30g and 60g of Whey Protein groups showed signs of increased muscle synthesis. There was no different in muscle synthesis in the 15g group.
**A 2018 systemic review recommended 1.0-1.2g of protein/ kg of body weight per day for people over 65 years, inconjunction with an increase in Calcium intake. This was associated with a lower likelihood of suffering from bone fractures.