Tricks to increase effective protein intake - UK-Muscle Body Building Community

Greyphantom · 04-02-2004, 11:04 AM

This is an article I found on a website (sorry cant remember which one... Its not bad in regards to getting the most out of protein...

If you're like most people, you have a target number of protein grams that you aim for each day. So you keep track of the protein content of everything you eat and drink, add it all up and hopefully, by the end of the day, you've reached that magic figure (pun intended!)

But, rather than simply counting the grams of protein being consumed, the biological value of different proteins should also be taken in consideration, thus adding another variable into your daily calculations. Whilst another variable to calculations may not be welcomed by many, I'm sure the practical applications of manipulating the biological values of proteins will be.

All proteins are assigned a Biological Value (BV), which is based on the efficiency with which they are absorbed. Naturally the numbers vary considerably and as such, researchers have concluded that the quality of any protein can be measured by the amount of protein retained in the body; this is calculated by comparing the amount of protein consumed with the amount actually retained. The difference between these two figures is protein waste.

Since the metabolism of protein in the body is extremely difficult to trace, the key element of protein - nitrotech, I mean nitrogen is used as a measuring stick. A BV is allocated to an individual protein source based on the ratio between ingested and absorbed nitrogen on one side, and excreted nitrogen on the other.

According to the biological value index, all proteins are different and comprise a wild variation of amino acids. Of these aminos, some are much more necessary for humans than others are, these being the essential aminos. Almost all animal proteins have higher biological values than plant proteins because most plant proteins are deficient in one or more of the essential aminos. But, this can be changed as you will soon see.

Whey protein is of course, king of the castle, but before its introduction, egg protein was the #1 player and as such, researchers made egg protein the yardstick by which to measure all others and assigned it a BV of 100 or 1.00 (this has since been amended with whey as the benchmark since some whey proteins have a BV of 150+ on the old scale, but for the sake of this post, we'll forget about whey protein and leave the egg at the top of the heap)

Now, the egg having a BV rating of 100 doesn't mean that it is 100% absorbed and transformed into body-tissue protein, rather, the BV is a comparative number which indicates how one protein compares to another in terms of amino constituents and absorption in the body.

Here is a short list of single protein sources and their respective biological values

Egg (reference standard) 100 Egg white 93
Potato 86 – 100 Whole milk 84 - 88
Beef 83 – 92 Soy 84
Rice 83 Tuna 83
Rye 76 – 83 Corn 76
Green beans 73 Wheat 56 - 58

Now that we know the BV of some single protein sources, here comes the good bit (thank god I hear you say). By combining two or more of these single proteins, you can increase the BV of the food you are consuming, therefore increasing your (usable) protein intake without having to necessarily eat more food.

What I am talking about here is manipulating foods to create "combined food, complete proteins". This means that the aminos lacking in one food are present in the other/s. For instance, grains are, in general, low in lysine, threonine and in some cases tryptophan; conversely, legumes are high in these aminos. Combining foods from these two groups eg. Rice and corn therefore creates a complete protein and ensures a higher total BV (a case of the whole being better than the two halves or thinking of them as a compound food rather than an isolation food)

Similarly, egg and potato can be combined to yield one of the most effective protein sources of all. If you have a combination of egg and potato such that roughly 35% of the protein comes from egg and 65% comes from potato, the total biological value jumps to 137 or 1.37 (who needs whey LOL!)To put this into perspective, let's say that in one meal, you might consume 3 ounces of beef which has a total of 20g of protein. Taking an average BV for beef from the above list, we will say that the beef has a BV of 0.88. Using the formula (grams of protein x BV = effective grams of protein) we find that the beef yields 17.6 effective grams of protein (20 x 0.88 = 17.6) In comparison, say you had an egg and two large potatoes with a total of 20g of protein, but with a BV of 1.37, this combination yields 27.4 effective grams of protein (20 x 1.37 = 27.4) that's almost 10g more effective grams than the beef!!!

What does this mean for you in a practical application? One egg has 6g protein, two large potatoes yield 14g of protein, so with a total of 20g of protein and a BV of 1.37, eating one egg and two large potatoes is equivalent to eating 4-5 ounces of ground beef (now were talking) For further comparison, we will compare the egg/potato combination with the ever popular egg white. Egg whites have a lower BV than whole eggs because many aminos contained in the yolk are absent in the white. An egg white contains 3g of protein with a BV of 0.93, so you would need to consume 10 egg whites to reach the protein equivalency of one whole egg and two potatoes (30 x 0.93 = 27.9)

There are of course an infinite number of comparisons, but you get the drift. Below is a list of foods which result in the highest BV's.

35% egg + 65 % potato =1.37
60% egg + 40 % soy = 1.23
70% egg + 30% milk = 1.22
68% egg + 32% wheat = 1.17
36% egg + 64% green beans = 1.05
75% milk + 25% wheat = 1.04
56% milk + 44% rye = 1.01
52% green beans + 48% corn = 1.01

Whilst the values are represented as a percentage relevant to each other, it is not vital that you are dead on with the ratios when combining them in your meals, just knowing what works well synergistically will ensure you have a higher BV than eating those foods in isolation and will provide your body with the essential aminos needed to maximise growth.

**robdog** · 04-02-2004, 12:20 PM

intresting mate

Jock · 04-02-2004, 01:05 PM

Great post mate.....

04-02-2004, 11:04 AM	#1 (permalink)
Greyphantom Getting HUGE! Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: London Posts: 1,573	Tricks to increase effective protein intake This is an article I found on a website (sorry cant remember which one... Its not bad in regards to getting the most out of protein... If you're like most people, you have a target number of protein grams that you aim for each day. So you keep track of the protein content of everything you eat and drink, add it all up and hopefully, by the end of the day, you've reached that magic figure (pun intended!) But, rather than simply counting the grams of protein being consumed, the biological value of different proteins should also be taken in consideration, thus adding another variable into your daily calculations. Whilst another variable to calculations may not be welcomed by many, I'm sure the practical applications of manipulating the biological values of proteins will be. All proteins are assigned a Biological Value (BV), which is based on the efficiency with which they are absorbed. Naturally the numbers vary considerably and as such, researchers have concluded that the quality of any protein can be measured by the amount of protein retained in the body; this is calculated by comparing the amount of protein consumed with the amount actually retained. The difference between these two figures is protein waste. Since the metabolism of protein in the body is extremely difficult to trace, the key element of protein - nitrotech, I mean nitrogen is used as a measuring stick. A BV is allocated to an individual protein source based on the ratio between ingested and absorbed nitrogen on one side, and excreted nitrogen on the other. According to the biological value index, all proteins are different and comprise a wild variation of amino acids. Of these aminos, some are much more necessary for humans than others are, these being the essential aminos. Almost all animal proteins have higher biological values than plant proteins because most plant proteins are deficient in one or more of the essential aminos. But, this can be changed as you will soon see. Whey protein is of course, king of the castle, but before its introduction, egg protein was the #1 player and as such, researchers made egg protein the yardstick by which to measure all others and assigned it a BV of 100 or 1.00 (this has since been amended with whey as the benchmark since some whey proteins have a BV of 150+ on the old scale, but for the sake of this post, we'll forget about whey protein and leave the egg at the top of the heap) Now, the egg having a BV rating of 100 doesn't mean that it is 100% absorbed and transformed into body-tissue protein, rather, the BV is a comparative number which indicates how one protein compares to another in terms of amino constituents and absorption in the body. Here is a short list of single protein sources and their respective biological values Egg (reference standard) 100 Egg white 93 Potato 86 – 100 Whole milk 84 - 88 Beef 83 – 92 Soy 84 Rice 83 Tuna 83 Rye 76 – 83 Corn 76 Green beans 73 Wheat 56 - 58 Now that we know the BV of some single protein sources, here comes the good bit (thank god I hear you say). By combining two or more of these single proteins, you can increase the BV of the food you are consuming, therefore increasing your (usable) protein intake without having to necessarily eat more food. What I am talking about here is manipulating foods to create "combined food, complete proteins". This means that the aminos lacking in one food are present in the other/s. For instance, grains are, in general, low in lysine, threonine and in some cases tryptophan; conversely, legumes are high in these aminos. Combining foods from these two groups eg. Rice and corn therefore creates a complete protein and ensures a higher total BV (a case of the whole being better than the two halves or thinking of them as a compound food rather than an isolation food) Similarly, egg and potato can be combined to yield one of the most effective protein sources of all. If you have a combination of egg and potato such that roughly 35% of the protein comes from egg and 65% comes from potato, the total biological value jumps to 137 or 1.37 (who needs whey LOL!)To put this into perspective, let's say that in one meal, you might consume 3 ounces of beef which has a total of 20g of protein. Taking an average BV for beef from the above list, we will say that the beef has a BV of 0.88. Using the formula (grams of protein x BV = effective grams of protein) we find that the beef yields 17.6 effective grams of protein (20 x 0.88 = 17.6) In comparison, say you had an egg and two large potatoes with a total of 20g of protein, but with a BV of 1.37, this combination yields 27.4 effective grams of protein (20 x 1.37 = 27.4) that's almost 10g more effective grams than the beef!!! What does this mean for you in a practical application? One egg has 6g protein, two large potatoes yield 14g of protein, so with a total of 20g of protein and a BV of 1.37, eating one egg and two large potatoes is equivalent to eating 4-5 ounces of ground beef (now were talking) For further comparison, we will compare the egg/potato combination with the ever popular egg white. Egg whites have a lower BV than whole eggs because many aminos contained in the yolk are absent in the white. An egg white contains 3g of protein with a BV of 0.93, so you would need to consume 10 egg whites to reach the protein equivalency of one whole egg and two potatoes (30 x 0.93 = 27.9) There are of course an infinite number of comparisons, but you get the drift. Below is a list of foods which result in the highest BV's. 35% egg + 65 % potato =1.37 60% egg + 40 % soy = 1.23 70% egg + 30% milk = 1.22 68% egg + 32% wheat = 1.17 36% egg + 64% green beans = 1.05 75% milk + 25% wheat = 1.04 56% milk + 44% rye = 1.01 52% green beans + 48% corn = 1.01 Whilst the values are represented as a percentage relevant to each other, it is not vital that you are dead on with the ratios when combining them in your meals, just knowing what works well synergistically will ensure you have a higher BV than eating those foods in isolation and will provide your body with the essential aminos needed to maximise growth. __________________ Greyphantom The Ghost who Grows!!!

04-02-2004, 12:20 PM	#2 (permalink)
robdog Super Moderator Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Home!! Posts: 5,574	intresting mate __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. 25% off for UKM members (discount code UKM25)

04-02-2004, 01:05 PM	#3 (permalink)
Jock LEAGUE LEGEND! Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: UK Posts: 3,019	Great post mate..... __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.