Are You Eating Enough Protein?
By Sara Butler
Protein is an essential nutrient. In fact, getting enough protein in your diet is one of the building blocks of healthy eating. Plus, if you're trying to reach or maintain a healthy weight, protein helps you to feel fuller for longer and reduce the overall number of calories you eat in one day. But are you getting enough protein in your diet? Here are some signs you may not be!
What You Need
How much protein should you get each day? It depends. The requirements for men and women are a little different. Men between the ages of 19 and 50, should shoot for 56 grams of protein per day. Women in the same age group should get about 46 grams.
Signs You Don't Get Enough
When you're not getting enough of something important such as protein, your body has a way of letting you know. Some of the biggest signs include:
- Loss of muscle mass - Your body needs the amino acids it gets from protein to build muscle, so if you don't get enough of it, then you may notice reduced strength or a change in the way your clothes fit - and not in a good way
- Increase in stress fractures - If you work out a lot and don't get enough protein, then you may be prone to stress fractures since your bones become more susceptible to injury over time when your body is not getting what it needs
- Your mood plummets - Protein helps to balance out the impact of carbohydrates, helping to keep your blood sugar from suddenly spiking or dropping. Lack of protein means more variance in blood sugar and that can cause irritability.
- You get sick a lot - Protein helps to support your immune system. If you're lacking enough protein, then your immune system won't be in the best shape either, which can lead to getting sick more often.
- Brittle nails and slow-growing hair - Protein is what your body uses as a building block for many things, including hair and nails. When you don't get enough, then your body starts to use the protein you do eat to support other body functions, leaving hair and nails to suffer, getting thin and brittle.
You need to ensure you're getting enough protein each day. If you need help understanding the best ways to do that, then talk to the chiropractors at The Joint Chiropractic today.
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Sterling, Va.