The Importance of Protein

Do you have enough protein in your diet? While you may monitor your calories, sugar and salt intake, you should also make sure you are getting enough protein. It plays a key role in the creation and maintenance of every cell in our bodies. It fuels our cells and powers our bodies.

Protein and amino acids are the main components of our muscles, bones, skin, tissues, and organs. When we eat protein, our body breaks it down into individual amino acids during digestion and then uses these amino acids to create new proteins where needed.

Why is it so important? Well, read below.

Protein Makes You Feel Full

Protein promotes satiety, or the feeling of fullness, more than both carbohydrates and fat. This can be beneficial for athletes who are often fueling their bodies for long stretches of time.

Protein Boosts Metabolism

Along with reducing appetite, eating protein temporarily boosts metabolism. The body uses energy to digest and make use of the nutrients in food. This is called the thermic effect of food (TEF), and protein’s thermic effect is much higher than that of carbohydrates and fat.

Protein Helps Maintain Your Muscles

Since protein is the building block of your muscles, eating adequate amounts of protein helps maintain your muscle mass and prevents muscle wasting. So if you walk a lot, enjoy cycling, or do any sort of exercise to stay active, you need to eat protein.

If we don’t get enough protein, our body will start to plunder it from within – beginning with the breakdown of muscle.