October 1, 2024
Madhura Mohan
What Makes A Protein High-Quality Protein?
P
rotein continues to be the hot topic of debate within the fitness and nutritional circles. Protein is perhaps the most comprehensive and fundamental nutrient which plays a crucial role in the functioning of our bodies. From building and repairing muscle tissues to immune system maintenance, synthesis and regulation of hormones, and enzymes and contributing to maintaining a healthy body weight, protein does so much more to wellness.
If you are incorporating proteins into your day-to-day foods, we have a question for you…Did you know? Not all proteins are the same. The effectiveness of protein is determined by its quality; did you know this? What do you understand from these statements?
In this blog, we’re going to talk about the details that decide the protein quality…
1. PROTEIN DIGESTIBILITY
Most people do not have an idea of what is meant by protein digestibility and how this affects the quality of proteins consumed.
Protein digestibility is the amount of protein absorbed and incorporated by the body from the amount you consume. This means protein digestion and absorption determine the quality of protein.
This aspect is analyzed by PDCAA. PDCAA classifies sources of protein according to their amino acid content and how digestible the protein is. The protein digestibility corrected amino acid score is derived from the ratio of limiting amino acids in a test protein to the same amino acids in a reference protein (established by the Food and Agriculture organization). The highest possible PDCAA value of a protein is 1.0.
The high-quality protein is easily broken down and utilized by the body. In this respect, it follows that a higher PDCAA value of protein means that a lot more of the consumed protein is available for use by the body whereas low PDCAA value would cause an unnecessary wastage of protein intake.
According to studies, animal-based protein are more PDCAA optimized than plant-based protein sources. Plant-based protein sources are not easily digested, which likely contributes to lower overall protein intake by the body.
The consumption of a protein with poor digestibility means that there are chances of the lower-level intake for all the necessary amino acids, which will lead to poor muscle growth.
2. ESSENTIAL AMINO ACID CONTENT
The amount of essential amino acids in a protein is important in determining the quality of protein. Muscle building or muscle repair potential of any protein source can be evaluated through its limiting amino acid composition percent. Amino acids are small building blocks of protein, which are divided into essential and non-essential. Essential amino acids are amino acids that cannot be made by the body and therefore their source has to be foods. Non-essential amino acids are amino acids which the body can manufacture and do not need to obtained from food. There are nine amino acids, known as essential amino acids that are required by the body. A protein source having all the nine essential amino acids is termed as complete and of high-quality protein. Incomplete proteins lack some essential amino acids and are classified as low-quality proteins. Examples of complete proteins are the animal proteins such as meat, poultry, fish, and dairy. Plant-based foods are commonly deficient in one or more essential amino acids.
Pay attention to the essential amino acid content to make sure you’re consuming quality protein.
3. BIOLOGICAL VALUE
The biological value of a protein is a measure and indication of how efficiently the body can make use of protein. Biological value is calculated by the amino acid composition of protein. Another factor that determines the biological value of a protein is how well it is digested and absorbed by the body. What this means is that protein source that contains all the essential amino acids in the right proportions and one that can be easily broken down into its constituent amino acids and absorbed into the bloodstream has a higher biological value. Egg is considered the gold standard for biological value with a score of 100. A protein source which has a biological value of 100 or close to it is considered a high-quality protein because they are almost completely utilized by the body.
Biological value of animal and plant-based sources are different.
Animal proteins generally contain all the amino acids, and are more bioavailable to the body, as opposed to plant proteins which are incomplete and absorb less of slightly on average.
When a protein source has a high biological value, it means more the protein you are consuming can be digested and absorbed for maximum benefit.
4. PROTEIN CONTENT
Another factor that should be considered for determining the protein quality is the protein concentration within a protein source. Protein content is the quantity of protein within a particular protein source. High-quality proteins contain a good quality and quantity of protein per serving. This is beneficial for those who wish to find a protein source that helps in the development and rebuilding of muscle tissues. The more protein concentration in a given protein source, the more the protein content per serving. A protein source that can provide around 25-30g of protein per serving would be ideal. A high protein content facilitates muscle mass gain, muscle soreness reduction and metabolism enhancement. Animal-based protein sources are classified as high-quality proteins and relatively give higher protein concentration per serving.
When choosing a protein source for your diet, be sure to consider the protein content and the amino acid profile to get the most out of your protein intake.
5. MINIMAL PROCESSING
The quality of the protein you consume is determined by the way it is processed and the level of quality control that is in place. It is essential to choose a protein that is minimally processed, clean and pure to ensure optimal overall quality of protein. Processing techniques like microfiltration or cold processing help preserve the protein’s structure, retain the essential nutrients, and reduce unwanted substances like fats and carbs.
Acid processing or heat treatment can denature the protein, and reduce the availability of essential amino acids, and lower their biological value.
High-quality proteins are minimally processed, retaining the quality of the protein.
It is also important to choose a protein that has undergone stringent quality control measures to ensure purity and consistency.
High-quality proteins are free from additives, fillers, preservatives, and unnecessary ingredients that can lower the quality of the protein. It is essential to choose protein sources that are manufactured in GMP-compliant facilities and have undergone 3rd party testing.
Always choose a cold-processed, micro-filtered protein that retains the protein’s integrity and nutritional value.
EXAMPLES OF HIGH-QUALITY PROTEIN
Whey protein, Casein protein, meat, fish, eggs, yogurt, cheese, soy protein, quinoa, lentils and chickpeas are some excellent sources of protein.
AS-IT-IS and ATOM Whey Protein are cold processed, fast-digesting, complete protein that are highly-bioavailable and have the highest PDCAA value. The high-quality protein supplements are zero amino-spiked, are manufactured in a GMP-compliant facility and are third-party lab-tested for assurance of purity and potency.
Choose a protein that has a complete amino profile, high bioavailability, adequate protein content, clean ingredients, and reputable sourcing…
The quality of protein is a vital factor to consider to seeking the maximum nutritional benefits of a protein. By incorporating high-quality proteins into your diet, you can optimize your protein intake and fitness goals…
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