The Benefits of a High Protein Diet

One of the three macronutrients, protein is often hailed as a crucial component for maintaining overall health, and for good reason!

It serves as essentially, the building blocks of life.

Whilst fat and carbohydrates are essential for energy, protein plays a different role, a more structural and functional one in the human body.

In this blog, we’re going to explore why protein is essential, the benefits of a high protein diet, the risks of not consuming enough and practical ways that you can boost your own protein intake.

Why is protein so important?

Let’s start with the ‘why’. Just why is this macronutrient so important?

As we said, protein is essentially the building blocks of life. We need protein in our diet for an array of reasons including:

• For growth and repair of tissue including muscles, skin and organs
• Healing of wounds
• Supporting immune function
• Supporting bone health
• Helps to control hunger
• And many more!

Without enough protein, the body struggles to perform these vital functions and could lead to serious health issues.

Oh and in case you didn’t know, the name ‘protein’ comes from the Greek word ‘proteos’, which means ‘primary’ or ‘first rank’!

Benefits of a high protein diet

Now that you know just why protein is important for the human body, let’s delve into some of the benefits of consuming a diet that is high in protein.

1. Promotes muscle growth maintenance

Probably the most popular benefit known of protein is the role it plays in the growth and maintenance of muscle mass.

So if you’re physically active, you need to ensure that you’re consuming enough protein daily so that your body can use it for muscle growth.

2. Can reduce appetite and hunger levels

Of the three macronutrients, it has been shown that protein is the most satiating, meaning it helps you feel more full with less food. This is great for those who are looking to lose weight since it can help reduce hunger and perhaps prevent overeating.

Also, protein is known to have a higher thermic effect compared to fats and carbohydrates. This means that after you eat, your body uses some calories to digest and metabolise the food and it is estimated that with protein, approximately 20-30% of the calories from protein are burned while your body digests it.

3. Great for your bone health

There is an ongoing misconception that high protein diets can weaken the bones, based on the idea that protein increases acid load in the body, which leads to calcium moving from your bones to help neutralise the acid.

However, many long-term studies have indicated that protein has major benefits for the health of bones. Those who eat more protein tend to maintain bone mass better as they age and it can help prevent certain conditions like osteoporosis.

The risks of protein deficiency

So now that we know just a few of the many benefits that a high protein diet can provide, let’s move into some of the risks that could potentially arise both short-term and long-term with a protein deficient diet.

1. Loss of muscle mass

When protein from the diet is in short supply, the body will tend to take protein from muscles in order to preserve more important tissues and functions of the body, thus leading to the loss of muscle mass over time.

This is especially true in older adults where due to the natural ageing process, we tend to lose muscle, but with a higher protein diet this can be slowed and bodily functions can remain well as we age.

2. Hair, skin and nail problems

As we mentioned before, protein is critical for maintaining healthy hair, skin and nails and with protein deficiency can come a host of problems since protein is a major component of these. With a lack of dietary protein, your skin could appear paler, drier and flakier and your hair may become more brittle and even hair loss could occur.

3. You could become sicker more often

This is because your immune system relies on proteins to create antibodies that help to protect you from infections and other illnesses. And with a protein deficient diet, this can lead to your body producing fewer antibodies which can increase your risk of developing an illness.

There are many other potential risks associated with protein deficiency, including:

• Stunted growth in children
• Increase in overeating
• Decreased bone density
• Edema

How to increase protein intake

So now that we understand the benefits of consuming enough protein and the potential risks of not, let’s look at some ways that one could increase their daily protein intake.

But firstly, how much protein do we need per day?

It does vary from person to person and by age, but in the UK the Reference Nutrient Intake is 0.75g per kg of body weight, this is the minimum amount and is based on an average sedentary adult.

This equates to roughly 45g per day for females and 55g per day for males.

Many people will require more protein to maintain optimal health, for example it is suggested that physically active people consume 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight and often even more.

Now there are plenty of ways to consume protein but it is important to note that not all protein is the same, there are complete proteins and incomplete proteins.

Of the 20 types of amino acids, 11 are actually produced by the body itself but we need to get the remaining nine types mainly via our diet. These nine are known as the ‘essential amino acids’.

Here’s a few protein sources that contain all nine essential amino acids that could be included in your diet. Animal proteins are complete with these nine and we've added plant-based options too:

• Chicken
• Beef
• Eggs
• Fish
• Quinoa
• Buckwheat
• Hempseed
• Dairy
• Whey protein

It may be the case that someone struggles to consume enough protein via whole food sources, this is where a protein supplement can come in and help. Whey protein is a complete source of protein and is an easy way to consume more protein, plus it is versatile too!

We have a range of high-quality whey protein powders with many incredible flavours to choose from.

So there you have it, the risks of not consuming enough protein daily plus the benefits and first-class sources of protein that you can add daily into your diet.