Best Protein Sources

In general, animal foods are the best sources of protein containing all the amino acids. Overall, the highest-rated protein food is eggs, followed by beef and fish. With the exception of soybeans, which are mostly carbohydrate, vegetable foods individually contain only some of the amino acids. Combining the right non-animal foods can provide a complete amino-acid meal. But eating all the amino acids at one meal is not necessary. For those who don’t eat animal products, obtaining all your amino acids is accomplished by combining enough variety, since no one plantbased food (except soybeans, which have very low amounts of the amino acid methionine) contains all the amino acids. Certain combinations of plant foods, such as beans and rice, or whole grains and legumes, can provide a complete protein. However, combining meals high in carbohydrates (such as rice, beans, grains, etc.) with protein can reduce digestibility, with the result that some protein will not digest into amino acids, and some amino acids won’t get absorbed.

Digestion of concentrated protein foods, such as eggs, meat, and fish, can be impaired by combining it with complex carbohydrates (or double sugars). That’s because these two macronutrients digest at different rates. So eating foods such as a meat sandwich, pasta and fish, or eggs and toast, can result in less protein digestion. This can also cause indigestion. (Combining simple sugars with proteins should not cause these problems since these carbohydrates don’t require digestion.)

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For most people, getting enough protein should not be a problem as there are many healthy options. These include eggs, meats, fish, and dairy foods. Choosing the best animal proteins means finding the best sources: organic, grass-fed, free-range, kosher, and whatever other labels are used to differentiate the highest quality eggs, meats, fish, and dairy from those obtained from poorly treated animals. In some cases, visiting a small local farm will help you decide. Some of today’s local farmers are not only health-conscious but actually care about their animals and how their operations impact the environment.

The human body, especially the intestine, is well adapted to digesting animal source foods, having evolved on a high-meat/fish and low-carbohydrate diet with varying amounts of vegetables, fruits, and nuts. While the popular trend in recent decades has been toward the misconception that meat consumption is unhealthy, there are a variety of unique features of an animal-food diet that are vital for fitness and health. Here are some of them:

 

 

 
  • Animal foods contain high levels of all essential amino acids.
  • Vitamin B12 is an essential nutrient found almost exclusively in animal foods.
  • EPA, a powerful essential fat important in controlling inflammation, is almost exclusively found in animal foods (conversion of omega-3 fats in plants to EPA is not always efficient in humans).
  • Iron deficiency is a common worldwide problem and is prevented by eating animal foods containing this mineral in its most bio-available form.
  • Vitamin A is found only in animal products (conversion of beta-carotene in plant foods to vitamin A is not always efficient in humans).
  • Animal products are dense protein foods with little or no carbohydrate to interfere with digestion and absorption.
  • People who consume fewer animal protein have a greater rate of bone loss than those who eat larger amounts of animal protein.