Why We MUST Have COMPLETE Proteins to Stay Alive and Healthy

Our digestive system breaks down all the proteins we eat (complete and incomplete - the whole nine yards) into their individual amino acids (building blocks) so that they can enter the bloodstream, go to where they are needed and re-assemble into new unique proteins. Cells, then, use these amino acids as building blocks for repair and maintenance - with more during times of physical and emotional stress, illness, injury shock, trauma or surgery.
A protein is a very, very long and complex chain of a collection of very many smaller amino acids - smaller molecules, that, combined with nitrogen, comprise the building blocks of the varied types of proteins we need.
Your body is about 20-percent protein by weight. It is about 60-percent by water. Most of the rest of your body is composed of minerals such as calcium in your bones.

Many people are turning away from a meat based diet because of considerations for the environment and animals’ welfare. Some New Year’s resolutions, some weight loss concepts and diets and many health claims - true or false - elevate and celebrate vegetarianism as the only way to eat right. Some folks expound on how meat / poultry / fish causes cancer and reduces our ability of returning to optimum health. Some claims are bang on and some, in my opinion, make the Ridiculous List. The question should always be - where’s the science - not where’s the emotional, politically correct opinion.

Once on a restricted diet, more attention and creativity has to be paid to obtaining all  basic nutrition, but even more so, the correct and sufficient essential amino acids - in sufficient amounts. The more restrictive the diet, the more important the care, knowledge and attention to each meal becomes.

There’s simple science in measuring each amino acid that is resident in each particular food, including all amino acids in fruits and vegetables. Amino Acid content should not be a politically correct ballpark opinion but is truly a measurable factoid useable so we can plan our health and shopping and meals. If we can put people on the moon, then we can find the amount of exact amino acid content in broccoli or lettuce.
So buyer beware - or more often - reader beware - as to how fanatical gurus explain or explain away lack of exact details as vegetarian “over” claims are made.
Website after website of pro-vegetarian insights proclaim that there’s enough protein in vegetables and fruits so that we don’t need to worry about quantity. But then there are no details to hold up the claim - merely a sweeping statement.
Even less likely will be a vegetarian focused web site that breaks down the different amino acids in fruits and vegetables so we can actually see where we are hitting and missing - eating non-essential amino acids is great - BUT THOSE ESSENTIAL ones - are they lurking in the lettuce or not? And if not, then which vegetables MUST I include daily to get my needs for basic building blocks met.

I love the comparisons some puritanical vegetarians make to replace data by relating to the strength of cows and giraffes (herbivores). This leaves me wondering about the lions and the tigers who wouldn’t be caught dead with leafy greens in their jaws. Neither would the hyena, nipping at the heals of the vegetarian, foraging zebra. It seems mother nature creates all varieties of digestive systems - so beware of food gurus who pick the examples that suit their persuasive needs! (And of course, follow the money! What are they selling or what is the site’s advertising supporting.)

General Requirements for Everyone
The minimum amount of protein required for an average adult (neither a full-out construction worker nor bedridden person) who is moderately active is 1/3 gram of protein per pound of body weight per day. We can coast a bit on reserves, but not for long. A toddler needs twice as much and a new born babe even more. So a 150 pound person needs 50 grams of protein per average day.

A can of tuna contains about 30 grams of protein, just to give an example. A glass of milk contains about 8 grams of protein. A slice of average commercial bread may contain 2 grams of protein.
As far as your body is concerned, there are two kinds of amino acids (the building blocks of protein): the nonessential variety - your body can create them out of other components found in your body - and the essential amino acids, which cannot be created from the bits and pieces of amino acids lying around. The only way to get them is through food or Intravenous.

Most animal sources (meat, dairy, eggs, seafood, etc.) provide what's called these "complete proteins" in that they contain all the essential amino acids together.
Vegetable sources, except for a few exceptions, are all missing some of the essential amino acids or all of them. For example, rice, nuts and beans are all high in most of the essential ones but not all of them. So even if you included these in your diet each and every day, your body would be hampered in creating the building blocks it needs.

Quinoa and spirulina are complete proteins - the only plant foods that are. So that’s one food for the vegetarians and one food for the raw foodists to focus on as their standby staple.

Up-close and Specifics for Each Essential Amino Acid (essential in the true sense of the word) by eating preference (unrestricted, lacto-ovo, vegetarian and raw vegan)

a) foods in unrestricted diets
b) foods in lacto-ovo diets
c) foods in full vegetarian diets
d) foods in full raw vegan diets

a) the main 8 essential amino acids are found in the following foods - in unrestricted diets:
 * tryptophan - turkey, chicken, dairy, nuts, oats, pineapple, bananas, dates
 * lysine - mainly in meat and poultry; somewhat in dairy, lentils, green and lima beans and eggs; and a smidgen in potatoes, spinach and amaranth
 * methionine - meat (esp. liver), fish, dairy, eggs, whole grains  
 * valine - meat, dairy, grains, mushrooms, nuts
 * leucine - chicken, fish, unfermented cheeses, lentils, nuts, seeds,   
 * isoleucine - beef, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, lentils, seeds, wheat, almonds
 * threonine - beef, poultry, eggs, dairy, beans, nuts, seeds
 * phenylalanine - meat, fish, dairy, almonds, avocados, beans, nuts, seeds (pumpkin and sesame)
 * histidine - meat, poultry, fish, dairy, eggs

b) The 8 essential amino acids are in the following foods if you are a lacto-ovo vegetarian:
* tryptophan - dairy, nuts, oats, bananas, dried dates and  chocolate, .
* lysine - somewhat in dairy, lentils, green and lima beans, eggs; and a smidgen in potatoes, spinach and amaranth
* methionine - dairy, eggs, grains
* Valine - dairy, grains, mushrooms, nuts
* Leucine - unfermented cheeses, lentils, nuts, seeds,   
* Isoleucine - eggs, dairy, lentils, seeds, wheat, almonds
* Threonine - eggs, dairy, beans, nuts, and seeds.
* Phenylalanine - dairy, almonds, avocados, beans, nuts and seeds
* histidine - dairy, eggs

c) The 8 essential amino acids are in the following foods if you are a complete vegetarian:
* tryptophan - very small amounts in nuts, oats, bananas, dried dates, chocolate, .
* lysine - lentils, beans (black, kidney, pinto, garbonzo, etc.), spinach, amaranth and a tad in chives
* methionine - very small amounts in grains, broccoli
* Valine - very small amounts in grains, mushrooms, nuts, sweet corn
* Leucine - lentils, peanuts, sesame seeds, sweet corn  
* Isoleucine - lentils, seeds, wheat, almonds
* Threonine - beans, nuts, and seeds
* Phenylalanine - very small amounts in almonds, avocados, lima beans, nuts, sweet corn and seeds
* histidine - very, very small amounts in sweet corn

Good news:
Quinoa (9 grams per cup of cooked quinoa) contains all the essential amino acids.

d) The 8 essential amino acids are in the following foods if you are a complete raw vegan:
* Tryptophan - very small amounts in some nuts, bananas, dried dates,
* Lysine - sprouted lentils, sprouted beans, spinach,
* methionine - very small amounts in sprouted grains, broccoli
* Valine - very small amounts in sprouted grain, peanuts,
* Leucine - sprouted lentils, nuts, sesame seeds,   
* Isoleucine - sprouted lentils, seeds, sprouted wheat, almonds
* Threonine - sprouted beans, nuts, and seeds
* Phenylalanine - very small amounts in almonds, avocados, sprouted lima beans, nuts and seeds.
* Histidine - not!!! NADA!!!

Spirulina and chlorella (broken cell) have all the essential amino acids and are about 60% protein by weight. This would be a staple in my diet if I were a raw vegan - daily - and I wouldn’t skimp on quality!
That’s a lot of green drinks - but it can sustain you on a hyper-restricted diet!

So a raw meal of broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, raw sweet corn, sprouted lentils, sprouted beans, nuts and sesame seeds would be almost, somewhat complete (histidine missing).

One reads all sorts of smart sounding advice that appeals to our sense of fairness to animals, the environment, our wallets and our calorie in take. Here’s a bit of typical rubbish: “if you keep at least 80 percent of your calories coming from carbohydrates - 10 percent from protein - and no more than 10 percent from fat, you'll pretty much automatically end up eating whole raw fruits, vegetables and limited quantity of fats”.

 80% of your calories from carbs means you could be having some insane blood sugar imbalances to navigate, (and weight gain - not from muscle).

10% of fats from vegetables - this would not be enough for optimum health and repair

10% of calories from proteins isn’t even enough for making proteins for maintenance (a minimum of 20%) let alone damage repair, stress, trauma and any health challenges or enough for good levels of cholesterol (yes! the healthy levels), hormones, horneymones and enzyme production

Happy shopping, eating, cooking and combining. And wishing you a healthy, vibrant body in 2012.

Hope to see you.

Merrie Bakker, Pacific Holistic, Kerrisdale, Vancouver, BC, 604-261-7742

Live Blood Analysis,
Sessions: $150; Review: $75.