- People argue about carbs and fat
and most everything in between. However, almost everyone agrees that protein is important and it has numerous benefits, including increasing strength and muscle mass, and, of course, helping you lose weight. In this video, I'm looking at six
delicious high-protein foods that are super healthy. The last one is part of a highly controversial meme that's been all over the Internet that I just want to clarify. Number one, oats. I wanted to start with something that
was a little unexpected, because I just feel like oats are so under-appreciated. They're among the healthiest grains on the planet. They're loaded with healthy fibers, magnesium, thiamin, or vitamin B-one and several other nutrients. The protein content makes up 15% of the total calories,
so half a cup of raw oats contains 13 grams with 303 calories. Oats are also naturally gluten-free for those concerned. Now, in saying that, they can be cross-contaminated with gluten from sharing the processing and packaging line with gluten-containing cereals.
That's why gluten-free oats exists, which means they have been packaged separately. Number two, Tuna. Although tuna is very high in omega three fats, it's actually low in total fat when compared to its protein. So, what we're left with is mostly just protein.
The protein content makes up 94% of its calories; that's tuna canned in water. So, one cup contains 39 grams of protein with only 179 calories. Now, all other fish varieties are also high in protein and low in fat, and they also tend to be rich
in other nutrients too, particularly salmon. Number three, eggs. Whole eggs are among the healthiest and most nutritious foods available. They're rich in vitamins and minerals, healthy fats and other nutrients
that most people don't get enough of. One large egg contains approximately six grams of protein and about 80 calories. Now, the vast majority of that protein comes from the egg white, and all the other nutrients are in the egg yolk.
Number four, lentils. Lentils are among the world's best sources of plant-based protein and are an excellent source for vegetarians and vegans. And they're also high in fiber, magnesium, potassium, iron, folate, and various other
important nutrients. One cup, or 198 grams of boiled lentils contains 18 grams of protein with 230 calories. There are other high-protein legumes as well, including soybeans, chickpeas, and kidney beans. Number five, lean beef.
Beef is very high in protein and is rich in highly bio-available iron and vitamin B-12 and many other important nutrients. A three ounce, or 85 gram serving of cooked beef with 10% fat contains approximately 22 grams of protein and 184 calories.
Now beef and its protein content has been involved in a very controversial meme, which brings me to the final high-protein food in this list. Number six, broccoli. You know that is an incredibly healthy, super nutritious vegetable; calorie for calorie, it contains
a lot of protein compared to other vegetables, which is why I thought to include it in this list. One cup, chopped, contains about three grams of protein. But, I also wanted to clear up this meme that is often shared by vegan advocates, which states that broccoli is a better source of protein
than red meat. Now firstly, those numbers are not quite right. They're actually both about nine grams of protein per hundred calories. Secondly, it compares per calorie, rather than per gram, which is super-misleading,
because meat is very high in calories, whereas broccoli is very low. It's a green vegetable, after all. So, 100 calories of meat is a very tiny, tiny portion, around 50 grams or less, compared to 100 calories of broccoli,
which is several whole full cups. That meme also lacks context, which is just so important in nutrition. So, let's give it some context. The average 80 kilo person should eat, at minimum, 60 grams of protein per day based on dietary references.
Now, assuming that person has already had 30 grams that day, and they needed 30 grams of protein from either beef or broccoli at dinner, you could either eat 130 grams of beef, which is about 0.3 pounds, a very modest portion, if you think about a restaurant,
which typically might serve at least 200 or 250 grams, or you could eat 980 grams, or 2.1 pounds of broccoli, which is about 10 full cups. So, it's not only about which scenario you prefer, but also about which scenario is actually possible to do in one sitting.
Like you've heard me say so many times before in other videos, context is just so important when we're talking about nutrition. Thanks for watching. If you've found this video useful,
or you enjoyed it, please give it a thumbs up, and be sure to subscribe to the Authority Nutrition Youtube Channel by clicking the big red button below the video. That way you won't miss out on our other videos like this one.
(bright music)
No comments:
Post a Comment