What is plant protein? Is plant-based protein good?
What is Plant Protein?
First, the basics: plant protein is simply protein that has come from a plant (as opposed to an animal… or whatever’s in those microwavable burgers from the corner shop).
Protein itself is a food group that has multiple benefits, from keeping you full for longer, to helping you maintain your muscle mass, to supplying some of the essential ingredients (‘amino acids’ – the building blocks of proteins) your body needs to keep itself running smoothly.
Plant protein can come in the form of a wallet-pounding smoothie powder or the old fashioned way – actually eating the plant itself. If you’re happy to go retro and step away from the blender, you’d want to take a look at the protein-rich lentils, beans, nuts, seeds, tofu, soy, etc. Good ol’ beans on (whole grain, of course) toast is a half decent place to start. Or, if you fancy some recipes with more than just two ingredients, feast your eyes on these gems at The British Heart Foundation: How to get protein without the meat – Heart Matters magazine¹. FYI, animal-sourced products such as eggs and dairy, as well as fish, are all considered ‘animal protein’ by comparison.
Is plant-based protein good?
Now we’ve covered ‘What is plant protein?’, let’s try to tackle the second titular question: ‘Is plant-based protein good?’. This probably depends who you ask and what they’re selling! And also, what you’re stacking it up against. I would happily chew on a legume over a lego any day… but if a leg of lamb was on the list? I’d be letting go of the legume faster than you can say ‘Lets lug these loggers’ leggings to Legoland’!
More seriously, there are some great benefits to replacing some meat-based protein with plant-based. For starters, there is the environmental impact of reducing emissions and water consumption: see this Oxford-based article² for more info. And we know that diets high in red meat consumption put people at an increased risk of colon cancer so limiting red meat (especially processed meat) to less than half a kilo a week³ is sensible.
“Don’t forget, ‘beans, beans, they’re good for your heart’⁴!” I hear you say. The relationship between red meat and heart health is a complex one as it can be hard to separate out the impact of multiple other lifestyle factors but essentially yes, there may be some truth to the witty wind-themed rhyme you quote. There was an article in the BMJ⁵ last year that was able to provide some reasonable evidence (we’re talking 30 years of following up 50 thousand people) suggesting that swapping out some red meat for plant based protein may lower the risk of heart disease, likely due to the effect on cholesterol (LDL cholesterol in particular). This study looked at mainly white men of above-average socio-economic status so worth taking a minute before applying it’s population to every breathing person, but it is still (plant-based?) food for thought.
On the flip side, there are also benefits of eating meat products in general to consider. In terms of protein content, meat sources (remember this includes eggs, dairy, fish etc and not just red meat) tend to have a better ‘all round’ make up to their protein than most plant sources. If you’d like to get into the nitty-gritty, this article⁶ breaks it down by looking at essential vs non-essential amino acid content.
Still with me? Animal protein also tends to come as part of a package that contains other nutrients, such as zinc and Vitamin B12. ‘Zinc’ is fun to say, and B12 is important for the body’s nerve function and energy levels; people who completely avoid all animal products in their diet can be prone to B12 deficiency if they don’t use supplements. (OK ok, zinc also helps the immune system amongst other things…)
So what’s for dinner?
Hopefully something different than last night! The take-out (pun intended) message here is essentially: plant protein can be a healthy substitute to animal protein as part of a varied diet. You don’t need to throw out all of the meat products in the fridge. If you’re eating red meat every night, you should probably think about swapping this out at least one or two nights a week for either other animal products (eg fish, eggs, poultry), or even a bean chilli or some tasty tofu fajitas. If you’re already having fish once or twice a week and a plant-based meal another night or two, you’re probably doing alright.
Once again: variety is key⁷. Be mindful of any one company’s claims that they can sell you a super-food that you can rely solely on. Having a diet that has a number of different sources of protein is going to be a good thing. If you have a family history that is particularly concerning for colon or heart disease, you may want to dig a little deeper into some of the articles that I referenced.
Or, if you’re unsure about where to go from here, or would simply like to pass on your congratulations on such an entertaining and informative article, download the CheckUp Health app now and book a video or audio call with one of our private GPs, daytime or evening, 7 days/week.
References
- https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/heart-matters-magazine/nutrition/protein/how-to-get-protein-without-the-meat
- https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aam5324
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4698595/
- https://www.buzzfeed.com/lyapalater/how-well-do-you-remember-the-lyrics-to-the-beans
- https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m4141
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/animal-vs-plant-protein
- https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/
