Why Protein Is A Non-Problem - ACMMS I Kuan Tao Australia - Bao Guang Jian De

Main Menu

Tao Related Articles

Sutra Translation

Home

Why Protein Is A Non-Problem

Why Protein Is A Non-Problem

PDF

Print

E-mail

Written by Tiandi
Jul 11, 2006 at 05:10 PM
The major constituents of most foods are carbohydrates, protein and fat. All three of these can be sources of food energy, or calories. They provide calories at approximately the following rate: 1 gram protein = 4 calories 1 gram fat = 9 calories 1 gram carbohydrate = 4 calories If we know how much protein is in a food, and how many calories there are we can calculate what percentage of the food’s total calories is protein. Example: a 100–gram potato contains 76 calories and 2.1 grams of protein. What percentage of the total calories in this potato comes from protein? Each 2.1 grams of protein represents 8.4 calories [since each gram of protein contains 4 calories]; and if we divide 8.4 by 76 we discover that 11% of the calories in the potato are protein. This is not only a basic concept in nutritional analysis but the key to understanding the problem – or rather the nonproblem of protein in a VEGETARIAN DIET. We can analyze any number of foods in this manner. Using a table which lists the composition of feeds and using a little arithmetic we can discover that corn has 15% of its calories in the form of protein, and that broccoli 45%, that carrots have 10% and so on. We can do this not only for individual foods but for the entire diet. We can take the protein requirements per day and the calorie requirements per day, and derive the total percentage of calories which should come from protein. When we do this, what do we discover? If we know how much protein is in a food, and how many calories there are we can calculate what percentage of the food’s total calories is protein. Example: a 100–gram potato contains 76 calories and 2.1 grams of protein. What percentage of the total calories in this potato comes from protein? Each 2.1 grams of protein represents 8.4 calories [since each gram of protein contains 4 calories]; and if we divide 8.4 by 76 we discover that 11% of the calories in the potato are protein. This is not only a basic concept in nutritional analysis but the key to understanding the problem – or rather the nonproblem of protein in a VEGETARIAN DIET. We can analyze any number of foods in this manner. Using a table which lists the composition of feeds and using a little arithmetic we can discover that corn has 15% of its calories in the form of protein, and that broccoli 45%, that carrots have 10% and so on. We can do this not only for individual foods but for the entire diet. We can take the protein requirements per day and the calorie requirements per day, and derive the total percentage of calories which should come from protein. When we do this, what do we discover? According to the National Research Council (hardly a basic question of nutritional radicalism), a 154 pound adult male requires 56 grams of protein and 2700 calories a day. What then is the percentage of calories should this 154 pound male get in the form of protein? 56 grams of protein x 4 calories/grams of protein 2700 calories =8.3% of calories. The requirements for adult females weighing 120 pounds is 44 grams of protein and 2000 calories. This gives us: 44 grams of protein x 4 calories/grams of protein 2000 calories =8.3% of calories. What do the statistics suggest? If corn, broccoli, potatoes, and carrots have 15%, 45%, and 10% of their calories as protein (respectively) then even if a VEGETARIAN ate nothing but corn, potatoes, broccoli, and carrots, he should get plenty of protein, assuming that he fulfils the calorie requirement. Yet corn, broccoli, potatoes and carrots are by no means exceptional in terms of protein content. In the majority of vegetables, legumes, grains, nuts and seeds get more than 10% of their calories from protein. Only fruits, as a rule, have less than this. So the real problem for the vegetarian is not “how do I get enough protein?” rather “how do I get enough calories?” PROTEIN AS A PERCENTAGE OF CALORIES Food VEGETABLES calories per 100 grams protein percentage of calorie fat carbohydrate Broccoli 32 45 8 47 Cabbage 24 22 7 71 Carrot 42 10 4 86 Cauliflower 27 40 7 53 Celery 17 21 5 74 Collards 54 43 16 41 Corn 96 15 9 76 Cucumber 15 24 6 70 Kale 53 45 14 41 Mushroom 28 39 10 51 Potato 76 11 2 87 Squash (summer) 19 23 5 72 Sweet Potato 114 6 3 91 Tomato 22 20 8 72 Turnip 30 13 6 81 Watercress 19 46 14 60 LEGUMES Bean, pinto 349 26 3 71 Chickpea 360 23 12 65 Lentil 340 29 3 68 Peanut 564 18 76 6 Soybean, fresh 134 33 34 33 GRAINS Barley, light 348 11 3 86 Millet 327 12 8 80 Oatmeal (cooked) 55 15 16 69 Rice (brown) 360 8 5 87 Rye 334 14 5 81 Wheat (hard spring) 330 17 6 77 NUTS Almonds 598 12 81 7 Cashew 561 12 73 15 Pecan 687 5 93 2 SEEDS Sesame 563 13 78 9 Sunflower 560 17 76 7 FRUITS Apple 56 1 10 89 Avocado 167 5 81 14 Banana 85 5 2 93 Cherry 70 7 4 93 Grape (American) 69 8 17 75 Lemon 27 11 7 82 Orange 49 8 4 88 Peach 38 6 2 92 Pear 61 5 6 89 Food Values calculated on the below sources: (a) The Atwater constants (1 gram or carbohydrate = 4 calories; 1 gram fat = 9 calories) (b) Ford Heritage, Health Research. Composition and Facts about Foods (Mokelumne Hill, California, 1971) (c) US Department of Agriculture, Nutritive Value of American Foods, Agriculture Handbook no 456, 1975 NOTE: All foods except oatmeal are assumed to be in their uncooked form.
Last Updated ( Jul 11, 2006 at 05:13 PM )

Mambo is Free Software released under the GNU/GPL License.