Healthy eating tip 8: Put
protein in perspective
Protein gives us the energy to get
up and go—and keep going. While too much protein can be harmful to people with
kidney disease, the latest research suggests that most of us need more
high-quality protein, especially as we age.
How much protein do you need?
Protein needs are based on weight rather than
calorie intake. Adults should eat at least 0.8g of high-quality protein per
kilogram (2.2lb) of body weight per day.
- Older
adults should aim for 1 to 1.5 grams of lean protein for each kilogram of
weight. This translates to 68 to 102g of protein per day for a person
weighing 150 lbs.
- Divide
your protein intake equally among meals.
- Nursing
women need about 20 grams more high-quality protein a day than they did
before pregnancy to support milk production.
How to add high-quality protein to your diet
- Eat plenty of fish, chicken, or plant-based protein
such as beans, nuts, and soy.
- Replace processed carbohydrates from pastries,
cakes, pizza, cookies and chips with fish, beans, nuts, seeds, peas, tofu,
chicken, dairy, and soy products.
- Snack on nuts and seeds instead of chips, replace baked
dessert with Greek yogurt, or swap out slices of pizza for a grilled
chicken breast and a side of beans.
