How much of each food do I need to make the protein complete?!
How much of each food do I need to make the protein complete?
If I eat.... say a bowl of noodles made of wheat flour and then a small amount of beans with it (maybe a few spoonfuls) .. So a lot more of one than the other--does that provide a complete protien for all the noodles/beans, or is it just for the beans and a small part of the noodles?
Additional Details6 days ago
Okay so I know you don't have to eat it all in one meal.
I just wanted clarification on the idea of the complete protien complementing foods thing and what proportions of each to have, within this idea, whether or not it is useful
Answers:
6 days ago
Okay so I know you don't have to eat it all in one meal.
I just wanted clarification on the idea of the complete protien complementing foods thing and what proportions of each to have, within this idea, whether or not it is useful
Darn it all! How many times do I have to post debunking about this myth about complete proteins before people stop spreading it?
YOU DO NOT HAVE TO COMBINE YOUR PROTEINS DURING ONE MEAL TO MAKE A COMPLETE PROTEIN!
The person who spread that information has since taken it back and said she was sorry! It was Frances Moore Lappe in DIet for a Small Planet that did it. She said she was trying to make sure that non-vegetarians didn't discredit her diet and so she was overly cautious, but knows now that she was wrong in her thinking that you have to combine proteins to get this "complete protein."
In the reprint of the book she wrote ...
"In 1971 I stressed protein complementarity because I assumed that the only way to get enough protein ... was to create a protein as usable by the body as animal protein. In combating the myth that meat is the only way to get high-quality protein, I reinforced another myth. I gave the impression that in order to get enough protein without meat, considerable care was needed in choosing foods. Actually, it is much easier than I thought."
Anyone who eats enough calories in a day and who eats a variety of vegetables and grains throughout the week is getting PLENTY of protein. do a little research on protein in the vegetarian diet and you will see reference to notion of complete protein being bunk all over the place. Even the American Dietetic Association says it is a silly idea. The only reason it's still out there is that people read Diet for a Small Planet and keep spreading it!
Please, I beg of you, read this article from Vegetarian Times about protein...
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0...
Wikipedia, too: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/protein_com...
I'm quoting here, since they say it very well:
"Protein is an important nutrient required for the building, maintenance, and repair of tissues in the body. It was once thought that various plant foods had to be eaten together to get their full protein value; this practice was known as “protein combining” or “protein complementing.” We now know that intentional combining is not necessary. As long as the diet contains a variety of grains, legumes, and vegetables, protein needs are easily met.
Especially protein-rich vegetarian foods include soy-based products like tofu, texturized vegetable protein, tempeh (a fermented soybean product), and veggie burgers, seitan (a meat substitute made from a wheat protein called gluten), black beans, lentils, chickpeas, grains such as quinoa and bulgur, and whole wheat bread. "