Most of us equate the word diet with calorie reduction. This is understandable, since most diet marketing is relentlessly focused on offering consumers low-calorie options.
Unfortunately, this way of thinking is categorically wrong. The simple fact that any nutritionist will verify is that everyone is on a diet. Even those who do not wish, or do not need, to lose weight are on a diet, as are those who are increasing their weight. Dieting has nothing to do with calorie reduction, and everything to do with calories choices. The foods you 'choose' to eat determine the type of diet you are on.
Indeed, to the digestive system and the intestines, a candy bar and a stalk of celery are neither seen as junk food nor diet food. They are both seen as simply food. The candy bar leads to a rapid glycemic reaction and the production of fat cells. The celery does not. Still, the body does not label one as junk and the other as diet food. In fact, everything that the body ingests, it tries to use in the best way that it can.
However, outside the neutral intelligent internal body systems, the term diet persists in our often rather misguided external world of advertising, marketing, and diet plans. As such, we can group diets into two categories: deliberate and accidental.
Deliberate diets are designed with specific requirements, such as those engineered to lose weight, to gain weight, and to maintain weight. Deliberate diets are typically what people refer to when they use the catchall term 'diet'. This is in contrast to the other kind of diet that is called the 'accidental diet'. Accidental diets have no requirements, and march to a simple chant: eat whatever, whenever, and the body will take care of itself.
However, despite the fact that there are two terms for diets ? deliberate and accidental ? there is a denominator that unifies them both: protein. All diets, even those that are accidental, require protein.
Protein, and the amino acids that comprise protein, are essential for life itself. Every system within the body depends, directly or indirectly, on protein. In fact, because protein regulates hormones, some cases of depression or anxiety are actually instigated and perpetuated by either a lack of protein, or the body's inability to fortify its neurological system with this critical macronutrient.
Yet for those on a diet -- and that includes everyone -- the importance of protein is more pragmatic. Many deliberate diets such as the Atkins? diet and the South Beach Diet? restrict carbohydrates, while other restrict fats. That leaves protein. Protein is the common link between all nutritionally-sound diets. But is it also the missing link? Or, is protein readily accessible and readily present in the foods we eat?
Oddly, most American meals and snacks are protein deficient. Indeed, complete protein is absent from 6 of the top 10 foods eaten in the US, and absent from all 10 of the most popular snacks (see chart at end of article). This shortage of protein in the American diet refers both to the absolute amount of protein, which is recommended to be a minimum of 50 grams per day, and the kind of protein as well. The healthiest protein is a "complete protein", which includes all 19 amino acids. However, even people who are ingesting 50 grams of protein may not be eating complete protein. As such, these people are sometimes unwittingly suffering from some form of protein malnourishment, and experience symptoms that include drowsiness, digestive problems, emotional disorders, and other adverse physiological effects.
So to achieve a balanced diet -- regardless of the diet regimen ? an appropriate level of complete protein must be present in each meal. This, of course, is easier said than done for most time-starved people. Regrettably, these people are more than time-starved; they are oftentimes macronutrient starved, as well.
Pennsylvania-based Protica Research has developed a protein beverage to meet the protein needs of busy consumers, dieters, diabetics, students and others. Profect? is an advanced beverage that supplies 25 grams of protein in less than 3 fluid ounces. It is packaged in an unbreakable test-tube-shaped vial and can be consumed in 2 or 3 seconds. Akin to a multivitamin, Profect can be taken immediately before a snack or a meal to fortify it with 50% of the US RDI of protein and the complete spectrum of water-soluble vitamins.
Profect can turn an otherwise "empty-calorie" snack into a complete meal. Its macronutrient and micronutrient profile fills the nutritional void found in most meals and snacks. It does this by combining with the carbohydrates and fats generally present in most foods and thereby completing the 'nutritional trifecta' required by the body for nourishment.
Of course, this is just the first step. A truly healthy diet must also understand how to properly eat the other members of the macronutrient kingdom, including fats and carbohydrates. Actually, since so many diets revolve around the fluctuation of carbohydrates and fats, it is essential to understand how to properly consume these two sources of body fuel in order to achieve optimal health. Yet which fats and which carbohydrates reign supreme? Which ones add weight, and which ones actually help the body's metabolism function more effectively? The answers to these questions will be eye opening to most dieters, and they will form the dieting cornerstone for many consumers. You will find the answers in the second part of this two-part article entitled 'The Macronutrient Balancing Act'. If you do not have a link to the next article, you can find 'The Macronutrient Balancing Act' on Protica's web site at protica.com/publications
Top 10 Most Popular Foods in the US Source: http://tigerx.com/trivia/foods.htm
1) Fresh Produce & Processed Vegetables
2) Milk & Cream
3) Flour, Bread & Cereal Products
4) Meat, Poultry & Fish
5) Sugar & Other Sweeteners
6) Fruit
7) Potatoes
8) Oils & Fats
9) Eggs
10) Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt
Top 10 Most Popular Snacks in the US Source: http://tigerx.com/trivia/snacks.htm
1) Chocolate Bars
2) Potato Chips & Pretzels
3) Cookies
4) Non-Chocolate Bars
5) Gum
6) Filled Crackers
7) Nuts
8) Mints
9) Granola Bars
10) Crackers
ABOUT PROTICA
Founded in 2001, Protica, Inc. is a nutritional research firm with offices in Lafayette Hill and Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Protica manufactures capsulized foods, including Profect, a compact, hypoallergenic, ready-to-drink protein beverage containing zero carbohydrates and zero fat. Information on Protica is available at http://www.protica.com
You can also learn about Profect at http://www.profect.com
Copyright - Protica Research - http://www.protica.com
spotless home service Deerfield ..What ancient tribes and people of the Amazon have known... Read More
What is nutrition? We hear so many reports today on... Read More
Do you know your ph? By getting ph strips at... Read More
With so many people concerned about natural and organic foods... Read More
I would like to dispel some of the myths and... Read More
Have you ever felt like you were completely losing your... Read More
Mango is my favorite fruit next to pineapples. They're sweet,... Read More
Summer brings a lot of fantastic things with it, but... Read More
If you are like most people, you've tried dieting before.... Read More
They're not only good for you, but they taste good,... Read More
New studies bring to our attention that high levels of... Read More
Some say they don't or can't buy organic foods due... Read More
Fiber is the part of the plant that is resistant... Read More
Initially discovered as a new element in 1811 by Barnard... Read More
The best weight training and cardio workouts will do very... Read More
Nuts of all kinds (I am talking peanuts, cashews etc)... Read More
LIFESTYLE WELLNESS = An Adventure of Health + Vitality!Not a... Read More
I start from the premise that eating instinctively means eating... Read More
Can we really stop the aging process, slow it down,... Read More
I'm sure by now you've heard all about the amazing... Read More
Cholesterol finds its way into our bodies in two main... Read More
Many of us sprinkle oregano on our pizza and stews... Read More
Cranberry juice was first made by American settlers in 1683.... Read More
Cholesterol is present in our bodies by one of two... Read More
The story of creation begins with water. Water is an... Read More
spotless home service Buffalo Grove ..Most recipes end with instructions to "serve immediately." You could... Read More
In the brain, a typical protein can live for approximately... Read More
What I am also going to point out is the... Read More
Are there any benefits to be obtained from drinking water... Read More
Since the beginning of time, everyday fruits have been known... Read More
Better sleep = better metabolism. I have been saying it... Read More
Today's tip is on hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).Hypoglycemia affects both... Read More
The Human Body is in a constant flux with the... Read More
Since the 1930's the western diet has dramatically changed. This... Read More
You've heard that old saying: True beauty comes from within.... Read More
Media coverage of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) has incited... Read More
For decades science has been looking for the answers to... Read More
How Can... Read More
Do you know the risks to daily intakes of Starbucks... Read More
Tired of having stare-downs with those boxes of Krispy Kremes,... Read More
After we have eaten a meal -- and often we... Read More
Your fiber intake is a critical factor in weight loss... Read More
If you're looking for a power-packed entr?e or soup to... Read More
Studies on whey demonstrate it's an even better protein supplement... Read More
Fruit calories are very healthy as compared to calories in... Read More
Salt was used long before recorded history began. One of... Read More
The fact that diet directly affects behaviour is no news,... Read More
A lot of people I've talked with about health supplements... Read More
BASIC MEAL & MENU PLANNINGAs a basis for meals and... Read More
For any kid who grew up eating doughy, thick Wonder... Read More
Nutrition |