Protein Combining Myth
I am always surprised when I read recently written articles about vegetarian/vegan nutrition that still claim plant proteins need to be combined because they are not complete. The theory was originally presented in 1971 in Francis Moore Lappe’s Diet for a Small Planet. In 1981 Lappe changed her position and said there was no reason to “combine” protein.”
“In 1971 I stressed protein complementarity because I assumed that the only way to get enough protein was to create a protein as usable by the body as animal protein. In combating the myth that meat is the only way to get high-quality protein, I reinforced another myth. I gave the impression that in order to get enough protein without meat, considerable care was needed in choosing foods. Actually, it is much easier than I thought. With three important exceptions, there is little danger of protein deficiency in a plant food diet. The exceptions are diets very heavily dependent on 1. fruit or on 2. some tubers, such as sweet potatoes or cassava, or on 3. junk food (refined flours, sugars, and fat). Fortunately, relatively few people in the world try to survive on diets in which these foods are virtually the sole source of calories. In all other diets, if people are getting enough calories, they are virtually certain of getting enough protein.”
In 1988 the ADA released a paper on vegetarianism and said that it was not required to combine proteins for a healthy diet.
Eating a well rounded diet with adequate calories will provide enough protein for most people. Endurance athletes have increased protein requirements. Vegetarian endurance athletes need to eat an increased amount of carbohydrate calories and also emphasize high quality plant protein sources – certain grains, dried peas and beans, lentils, nuts, seeds, seitan and soy such as tofu and tempeh. The most important thing is to eat enough calories from a variety of sources.
Protein Tips for Vegetarians:
1. Use nut butters, hummus, and cheeses (soy or regular).
2. Drink milk or soy milk. Chocolate milk has been shown to be a great recovery drink.
3. Learn to cook with tofu, tempeh and seitan.
4. Learn to make a variety of dishes with bean – burritos, casseroles, salads, etc.
5. Make soups with beans and lentils.
6. Tofu can substituted for chicken in almost all recipes.
7. Use vegetable broth in place of chicken or beef broth.
8. Although not for everybody meat replacement products are becoming available for just about everything – what used to be just veggie burgers is not veggie chicken, chicken nuggets, hotdogs, luncheon meats, sausages, hamburger etc etc.
