Hatten Health Podcast Episode 7 Talk About Protein Pt.1

Hatten Health Podcast Episode 7 Talk About Protein Part 1.
In this episode we dive deep into the hot topic of the day in the health & wellness world. Protein! There was so much eye opening info that we had to split it in to two episodes! We dive deep into the facts. We address the common myths and explain the details about the pros & cons of protein pls much more education on this topic. We use extensive research to break down the truths and valuable information for you!
To learn more or if you would like to talk more about it, you can reach us at these links below! Thank you for watching!
 
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You can also catch the video version of this episode on our Youtube channel.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:13

Everybody, welcome to another episode of our Hat to Me Health podcast.

SPEAKER_00 0:18

Episode seven.

SPEAKER_02 0:19

Yes, yes, yes. Today we're going to talk about protein, break down some of the myths, and talk about a lot of the facts.

SPEAKER_00 0:27

Also, yeah, protein is a huge craze right now for a lot of different reasons. So we just want to break down, give you some insights on why it's happening, why everything's high protein, high protein, and whether it's a good or a bad thing. We'll do some myth busting as well. There's a lot we want to talk about. Hopefully we can get this in within 45 minutes.

SPEAKER_02 0:50

Yep. But first, as always, we're going to start off by letting you know that we, if you're a first-time listener or return listener, meaning letting you know that we are about all about family, help, growth, and empowerment. So let's make it happen.

SPEAKER_00 1:03

Together.

SPEAKER_02 1:05

Good as always.

SPEAKER_00 1:07

Jump right into it. Okay, first off though, Kari, I want to ask you something. As the chef, how does it feel that the word protein is now on a bag of chips?

SPEAKER_02 1:19

It genuinely offends me, honestly. Like we've taken a word that belongs to a whole well-rounded food, and we just decided to slap that on anything just because it's marketable and we think people won't buy it. And that's kind of deceiving, to be honest.

SPEAKER_00 1:33

Yeah. I cringe for different reasons because we have clients that come in thinking that they're making a good choice, right? It says protein on the back, so it must be a good choice, right? But in reality, it's really not.

SPEAKER_02 1:47

Well, the food is the food industry found out that people care about protein, and immediately they said, put it on chips, put it on anything.

SPEAKER_00 1:55

Yeah, it's a big, it's a big marketing campaign. Which is exactly why we need to do this episode. There's a ton of research behind protein, an important science. Uh, but it's also it's fascinating research, and it's getting completely buried under our noses, right? Under all the noise, all the things, high protein, high protein that influencers have started, bodybuilder, all of that.

SPEAKER_01 2:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:23

So today we're gonna clear that all up. What protein actually is, why your body needs it, how much you really need, where to get it, and whether the obsession has gone too far.

SPEAKER_02 2:41

Yeah, and I'll be the one that has to actually turn all this food science into food that people will actually eat and families will enjoy. And because like knowing protein is important, but knowing what to cook for dinner, that's two very different things.

SPEAKER_00 2:55

You're so right. It's so true. One thing to say, yeah, you let's eat this, this, and this, but if it doesn't taste good, right. Let's dive into why everybody is actually talking about protein now.

SPEAKER_02 3:09

It's like the cultural moment and what's driving it.

SPEAKER_00 3:13

So let's start with this cultural phenomenon, like you said. Protein is what's called a macronutrient. We have three of them, right? We have protein, carbs, and fats, and they'll make up the bulk of what we eat every day, what we survive on. And so why it has become such a trend now, and to be honest, some of it is legitimate and um some of it is just not.

SPEAKER_02 3:42

Yeah. And where I sit in the culinary world, I've watched the conversation about nutrition evolve over the years and went from low fat to low carb. Now it's high protein that seems to be the hot topic of the day.

SPEAKER_00 3:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 3:55

Yep. And what I'm noticing, the food industry, it always catches up to whenever the public conversation is, and they decide to monetize off that.

SPEAKER_00 4:02

Yeah, that's exactly right. And here's what's different about protein, though. The protein trend compared to, say, the fat-free diet in the 90s, there is underlying science that makes it actually solid. And we do have good research showing that adequate protein intake supports like muscle preservation, uh metabolic health satiety, healthy aging. It's not just a fad in the way that the fat-free bad was.

SPEAKER_01 4:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:39

The fad with protein is that it is an overcorrection.

SPEAKER_02 4:44

Wow. So, what do you mean, what exactly do you mean by overcorrection?

SPEAKER_00 4:47

Yeah. So the science says that protein is important for most people, and people could benefit from being more intentional with how much they're consuming. But how the internet interpreted that was that we need to eat as much protein as possible at all times, and it's superior to all other foods, and that it's where we've gone wrong. Social media has amplified the fitness and bodybuilding community in their approach to protein, which is legitimate for specific reasons. Like for those specific populations, yes, they need to do that, but we haven't taken it into account or applied it to everybody across the board. Not everybody is a bodybuilder or a fitness guru. So, regardless of age, activity level, health status, lifestyle, that also plays a big role in how much protein you should eat every day.

SPEAKER_02 5:48

And then that's where the food companies jumped in.

SPEAKER_00 5:51

Exactly. Food companies jumped in. We now have protein chips, we have protein cookies, protein donuts, protein coffee. I mean, we walk down the aisle in the grocery store, everything that's in a package said protein.

SPEAKER_02 6:06

So it's like a protein donut, it's still a donut at the end of the day. There's no way around it.

SPEAKER_00 6:13

Yeah, and so people see that and they think they're making a health conscious choice, but like you said, donut's still a donut.

SPEAKER_01 6:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 6:22

So today we are giving people the real foundation so they can cut the noise. That starts with what protein actually is. So the science is that honestly, the basics of protein are pretty simple. It's really not that complicated. But we as a society tend to overcomplicate it.

SPEAKER_01 6:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 6:47

So here's the foundation of what happens when you consume protein or why you should know about it. So your body is made up of trillions of different cells, going back to middle school biology class, right? All the cells. And every single structural, functional things that those cells do is built on protein. Your muscles, your organs, your skin, your hair, your nails, even, all protein-based structures. But protein also runs your body's operations, like enzymes that drive chemical reactions within the body, antibodies that fight infection, hormones like insulin that regulate blood sugar, hemoglobin that carries oxygen through your bloodstream. Protein is not just a muscle-building nutrient, it's the fundamental building block and the workhorse, the power of human biology.

SPEAKER_02 7:48

And that's fascinating to know. That's really good information for all of you to know. And also want to know where does the food come in, though?

SPEAKER_00 7:56

So protein in your body is made of a smaller unit called amino acids. So amino acids build and make proteins. And there are 20 amino acids. Think of it like what's a good example, like the alphabet, right? So you have your amino acids, there are different letters of the alphabet. Yeah. And you're putting words together, and those are proteins. So all the different combinations of different letters, all those different words are built in new proteins in your body. And here's the critical part there are nine of those 20 amino acids that are called essential amino acids. So what that means is our body does not produce them on its own. We have to consume food with those nine essential amino acids in it to actually be able to do some good.

SPEAKER_02 8:48

The divine nine of human biology, right?

SPEAKER_00 8:50

Exactly. Um, so if you're not eating enough of those nine essential amino acids, your body literally cannot build what it needs.

SPEAKER_02 8:59

So is that where the idea of complete and complete protein comes in?

SPEAKER_00 9:04

Exactly. Complete proteins contain all nine essential amino acids in them. Most animal foods, for example, meat, fish, eggs, dairy, those are all considered complete amino acids because they have all nine of those. Most plant foods, on the other hand, are incomplete. There are some that are found in nature, uh, but majority of them are missing one or two of those essential amino acids.

SPEAKER_02 9:33

I see.

SPEAKER_00 9:33

I should note here that it doesn't mean that plants are inferior as protein goes, but it just means that if you're eating a plant-based diet, you need to eat a lot of variety to be able to have all of those present in your diet, essential amino acids in your diet. Um, that's really a non-negotiable for sure.

unknown 9:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:53

We'll talk about that later on. But uh as a chef, Kari, do you think about protein when you're developing recipes or eating people?

SPEAKER_02 10:02

You know, absolutely, especially when developing recipes and developing, which becomes developing a plan for a menu. That's definitely what I think about. Think about the protein as the anchor of the dish. Okay. So I build around it. I start with the protein. What kind of meat am I going to use? What kind of, if it's a vegetarian dish or a vegan dish, what kind of protein is it going to be the main focal point of the dish? I build around it. I go to starches, what kind of starch pairs with that? Veggies, what kind of veggie pairs with that? And I build around that and I structure the portion sizes too, around the size of the protein. Because that makes it a balanced meal, no matter what the meal is, as long as it's healthy. Because it can be a beautiful piece of fish, chicken, a piece of pork, beef, or if you want to go to the vegan vegetable or vegetarian side, get like the tofu, get some of the goons in there, some lentils, anything like that, whatever that main course is, decide what your sides are going to be around that. So, yes, it's definitely um, definitely the start point of the show, which is that plate. You want to put it in those terms. And yeah, I just leave with that and go from there.

SPEAKER_00 11:15

Very nice. Good point. Good point. Also, protein is kind of the start of the dish, too, because it really helps with satiety and helping blood sugar regulation with a meal, too. Um, so yeah, building a meal around a quality protein source and add everything else from there is really a sound approach.

SPEAKER_02 11:37

Absolutely. See, like what I learned through cooking and through feeding people is that it doesn't really matter what protein you choose, as long as it's a whole protein and a solid and we're on the cleaner side, you can even select your salsa from there. I tell a lot of cooks that I work with, younger cooks that I work with that are learning that are coming up, these vital tips in building a dish. If we don't have certain ingredients available, what can we use to substitute? And it's amazing that you said that because all the education that you learn from like in school, in text, and the science and everything that I learned from on the job and experience cooking, feeding people of different sizes and groups and ethnicities and cultures, we've both arrived to the same place from different paths. This is awesome.

SPEAKER_00 12:25

Yeah, that's why Hatton Health exists, right?

SPEAKER_02 12:32

Yep, and bringing the real information amongst all the clutter out there.

SPEAKER_00 12:36

All right. So now let's get into some information about protein and muscle building. Um so with muscle. This is where the relationship with protein really starts, right? That's where most people know about it. Protein, of course, helps build muscle. Uh, I think most people know that, but that's really not the whole story. And so I want to give the people a clear picture of what is really happening.

SPEAKER_02 13:07

Yeah, because the gym conversation around protein can be a lot.

SPEAKER_00 13:10

For sure. So here's the physiology of it. Uh, when we do resistance training, lifting weights, even body weight exercises, throw off those guns. Anything basically that places an external load on the body, a mechanical load on your muscles, you create microscopic damage to those muscle fibers. So those little tiny tears that you're creating when you're lifting heavy weights or doing any body weight exercise. It doesn't have, I said heavy, it doesn't have to necessarily be heavy.

unknown 13:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:44

Um, so that's actually causing some damage to those muscle fibers. And so your body is flooding those tissues with all kinds of different, what are called like satellite cells and different things to help build and repair those tissues. And that is where you get what's called hypertrophy. You're growing those muscles where you're building that those muscles back up. And so they become slightly thicker and a little bit stronger, and that is called muscle protein synthesis or NPS, if you will.

SPEAKER_02 14:21

So, quick question the soreness that you that you feel after a good workout, is that the you're feeling the tiny microteres in the muscles? Is that what that's from?

SPEAKER_00 14:29

Yeah, and all the chemical reactions that come with that. So, like I said, you're getting your body's flooding with different things. It was a lot of there was everybody for a long time says it's because of lactic acid that's getting released. Um, it's not necessarily because of the lactic acid, but yes, the materials and all the chemical reactions happening to it after that process.

SPEAKER_02 14:52

Okay, so the protein is the raw material for that rebuilding, right? Oh, I see. See, even when I think I know a lot, I'm still getting educated on the spot for with more information about this.

SPEAKER_00 15:04

So those, yes, exactly. So those amino acids within protein then become the building blocks to rebuild those muscles. And so they're repairing those muscle fibers, making them stronger. And if you don't have enough amino acids available within your body from food, either because you didn't eat enough protein during the day, before your workout, or after your workout, or you're in a severe calorie deficit, which a lot of people think they need to be for weight loss or what have you, the repair process actually becomes compromised. You did all this work, right? And your body just isn't able to capitalize on it. You're you're, like I said, if you're in a deficit or you didn't eat enough, um, then your body is also going to take from different areas to help repair those muscles. And also when you exercise and you work out, not only do you need to rebuild with protein, but your glycogen stores, so your immediate energy is also depleted. So that's also a reason why you need to consume food pre- and post-workout, is to help build up um those glycogen stores as well.

SPEAKER_02 16:15

Oh, so you can't just eat straight protein and grow muscle without training.

SPEAKER_00 16:19

Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 16:20

You gotta put it in the work.

SPEAKER_00 16:22

Yeah, that is one of the most important things I want people to hear is that eating protein alone is not gonna help you build muscle. And I think a lot of people think that with the whole high protein craze. If I just eat high protein, then I'm gonna have muscle and be lain. Without training, without that signaling of the muscle fiber tears or that muscle protein synthesis, the extra protein is just gonna basically get used up for energy and excreted. So um, you cannot out-eat your way to muscle. It just doesn't work that way. You need some type of stimulus and a nutrition in combination to work together.

SPEAKER_02 17:12

So, what about like regular people that everyday Joe Schmo who does not want to get bulk and big, they just want to remain healthy or get healthy?

SPEAKER_00 17:21

Yeah, they are not going to be most of the time like a competitive athlete, right? They're an average person doing average workouts.

SPEAKER_01 17:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:31

And for adults, it's really, really hard to actually maintain and build muscle as we age. Yeah, after age 30, we're constantly losing muscle mass if we're not making efforts to maintain it. And so, especially for women, trying to feel stronger, maintain their weight, have energy, age well, all of that. Protein, eating protein and resistance training are probably one of the are the two most powerful tools we can have. And so, like I said before, after age 30, we're losing about three to eight percent of our muscle every year. And so when we lose muscle, that's called sarcopenia. So that's just the degradation of muscle over time as we age. And when you hit your 60s and 70s, if you haven't intentionally maintained muscle through your life, you can have significant loss in functional strength, metabolism, balance, mobility, independence. So eating adequate protein and combining that with moderate resistance training a couple of times a week doesn't have to be anything crazy, doesn't have to be like powerlifting or anything like that. Heavy resistance training, just some resistance bands, bodyweight exercises, lightweight is one of the most evidence-based interventions that we have for healthy aging.

SPEAKER_02 19:01

Wow. That's deep. I mean, that completely reframes protein for me. I used to always thought it was just like a young athlete's thing.

SPEAKER_00 19:08

Exactly. Most people do. And so that framing is what really does some harm, right? And so as older adults, they often think it's not for them when really they are the population that may need the most.

SPEAKER_02 19:24

I see that. I see that. So my next question is how much protein do people actually need?

SPEAKER_00 19:29

Okay, yes, let's talk about the numbers. So the recommended daily allowance, RDA or protein, is about 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. Okay. And that is a mouthful.

SPEAKER_02 19:42

Yeah. On Instagram, go ahead and follow.

SPEAKER_00 19:46

A mouthful. Um, and so for the average sedentary adult, so someone who is not regularly active, has wrestling around 46 grams per kilogram for women and 56 for men. Okay. 10% on average. But it's really critical to think of that RDA, that daily allowance, recommended daily allowance, as a minimum threshold. It's not a ceiling, it's the floor of how much you should be consuming every day to prevent deficiencies, to be generally healthy, but it's not necessarily a target for optimum health. Again, that is for the general sedentary person. Yeah. It definitely differs if you're more active.

SPEAKER_02 20:39

So when people hit those numbers, they tend to stop or think they're done. But in all actuality, they're under-eating the amount of protein that they need for their life and their goals.

SPEAKER_00 20:49

For many active people, yes. And so the research shows that optimum protein for active adults, people who regularly exercise, even moderately, doesn't have to be anything crazy. They should be consuming about 1.2 to 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight every day. So it's a little bit higher. Okay. And it's not super drastic, right? Versus 1.2, it's a little bit higher. And so, for example, someone who weighs 150 pounds, that's around 68 kilograms. So they should be consuming about 82 to 109 grams per day of protein. Athletes, though, on the other hand, who do like a lot of heavy resistance training or endurance training can bump that up to even 1.8 or two grams per kilogram of body weight. And they really need to do this, especially during Vintense training blocks.

SPEAKER_02 21:47

Oh, so so what about kids? Because parents need to know this.

SPEAKER_00 21:51

Yeah, great question. So children, they have a higher protein need relative to their body weight. So for adults. It was 0.8 per average sedentary adults. But for kids, it's it differs depending on their age. But for a taller, it's about 1.1 gram per kilogram of body weight.

SPEAKER_01 22:13

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 22:14

For school age kids, it drops down a little bit, about one kilogram, it's 0.95, but we'll round up to one kilogram. Teenagers, uh, if they're going through a major growth spurt, or if they're in athletics, they're very active, they need 1.2 grams per kilogram or more. And so also during adolescence, just as like prime time, you really need to focus on protein intake to really improve bone density, muscle development. Otherwise, there's some long-term implications into adulthood. And so it's really not something that you should take carefully.

SPEAKER_02 22:57

I agree. I agree. And so we spoke about kids. What about older adults? Because I know you have a lot of experience in your um elder dealing with elderly clients.

SPEAKER_00 23:06

Yeah, this is one of the actually the most evidence-backed areas of protein research. And also one of the most underserved populations, as I mentioned before, as far as nutrition goes and nutrition guidance. So for older adults 65 and up, they actually need more protein than younger adults. And we usually think it's the opposite. Yeah. Because the aging body becomes less efficient at using dietary protein for muscle protein synthesis, as I'd mentioned before.

SPEAKER_01 23:41

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 23:42

And so, say, for example, a 70-year-old, they need to eat more protein than a 30-year-old to get the same anabolic response.

SPEAKER_01 23:54

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 23:54

And so current evidence supports that 1.2 to 1.6 grams per kilogram for older adults. And so some research even says that there should be higher amounts. Oh.

SPEAKER_02 24:08

Here's something that I know you have firsthand experience with. Let's talk about pregnancy. What about that?

SPEAKER_00 24:14

Yeah. So during pregnancy and lactation, so breastfeeding, uh, definitely need to consume more protein as well. Uh, roughly around 25 extra grams per day for pregnancy, and especially in the second and third trimester. So when the baby's growing rapidly, when you are feeding your baby during lactation, the depending on the month activity level and body weight, adding on an extra 25 grams per day to what they're already eating. And then yeah, because you're growing and feeding a whole nother human being.

SPEAKER_02 24:54

Yeah. That's true. So, like the bottom line is most people need more than just a minimum. The specific amount depends on who you are, what you're doing, uh, stages in life, and different things demand different attention, right?

SPEAKER_00 25:10

Perfectly summarized. I yeah, I totally agree with that for sure. Importantly, too, most Americans are actually getting enough protein as far as grams. So saying those numbers, you know, can sound intimidating and like I'm not eating enough. I'll play with our fortune sizes and everything. Most people are actually meeting their protein goals. But where the concern is actually the sources of where they're getting their protein in specific populations who actually do need higher than average, but that's what we want to focus on.

SPEAKER_02 25:46

Wow. Well, let's just talk about protein. It's important to know where we get it. So let's talk about the protein sources, like animal versus plant. That's also a sub-hot topic right now. And we're gonna go into like where science meets the kitchen.

SPEAKER_00 26:00

Yeah, yeah. Animal, let's start with animal. So we want to approach this though without like sounding like we have an agenda, right? We're Switzerland, we're neutral as far as animal or plant-based goes. And that's because we see so many clients, so many different people that everybody's diet is different, right? Their eating patterns are different. We've changed eating patterns over our lives for sure, and um experimented with different things. So we want people to adhere to any framework or any eating pattern that suits their life. So, from the nutrition side of things, animal proteins such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy are complete proteins, as I mentioned before. They contain all nine essential amino acids in proportions that are highly bioavailable. So, what that means is that they're easily, readily available when you eat that food, digest it, they are going into your system and doing the work that they need to do. So your body absorbs that and utilizes them very efficiently. And so the bioavailability of animal proteins is higher than those of plant protein, and essentially meaning that you're using more usable amino acids every time you eat plants. You've got to work a little harder for it.

SPEAKER_02 27:22

Yeah. And I've cooked across all of those frameworks. So I can speak from both sides of the standpoint of food on that topic. For example, the egg. Egg is a gold standard, right? Yeah, I've heard just I know I've heard you say that before. I've heard a lot of people say that before.

SPEAKER_00 27:38

Yeah, so scientists actually use an egg, right? Chicken egg, standard egg, as a reference point as far as proteins go. Um, when they're measuring quality of proteins across all other foods, because the amino acid profile within an egg and the digestibility of it is so close to perfect, and that's hard to say in science. No one ever says perfect, right?

SPEAKER_01 28:06

Right.

SPEAKER_00 28:06

Um, the incredible edible egg is pretty much considered like the gold standard as far as protein amino acids go. And so eggs are one of the most nutritionally complete, affordable, and versatile foods on the planet. And we can talk more about eggs later on when we talk about more family protein sources and what they should be buying. But um, now let's dive into plants, plant proteins a little bit more.

SPEAKER_02 28:35

Okay. That's like the old you have to combine beans and rice with every meal rule, right?

SPEAKER_00 28:42

Yes, you're right, but the research is showing that you don't actually need to do that anymore. Yes, most plants are, as I mentioned before, incomplete proteins, meaning they're low or missing one or two amino acids in them in their profile. Legumes, though, tend to be low, for example, in methothionine, which is an amino acid, or grains tend to be low in what's called lysine, another different type. It's important to know that does not make plant proteins inadequate for those who eat a varied diet. When you eat a variety of plant proteins across the day, they cover each other as far as amino acid gaps. So you don't have to have them all in one meal. But if you're eating them throughout the day, it's called an amino acid pool. So your body has an amino acid pool. So if you're constantly jumping in and feeding that pool with variety of different plant sources, um, then you don't really need to have one single meal of beans and rice to cover all of that. So, really that's saying it's kind of outdated, it's kind of overcomplicated. Yeah, but uh your body is actually a lot smarter than that.

SPEAKER_02 30:02

Ah, I see. So, from uh from a cooking standpoint, what exactly are the best um best protein plant protein sources? Because I want people to know exactly what they're what they're working with in the kitchen.

SPEAKER_00 30:12

Yeah. So first one that stands out to me is soy. So things like edamame, tofu, tempeh are all excellent sources. And tempeh even is especially important because of the fermentation process. It allows it to be more digestible. You you have experience with cooking it. Yeah. But uh also I would say quinoa is another true, complete plant protein, which is like I said before, it's really rare to find in the plant world. Then you have Nazi, lentils, chickpeas, black beans, kidney beans, they're all fantastic. And I also really love hemp seeds, uh pumpkin seeds are great to add to a lot of different dishes, yogurt, salads, movies. So these aren't all complete on their own, but when you're eating a variety of them and combining them with all together throughout the day, yeah, um, as a very diet, then it's a beautiful pairing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 31:15

And as a chef, I'll add that plant proteins are some of the most interesting ones to work with, especially because the way they adapt to whatever you're pairing with it. For example, temp tempeh or not just the lentils, but what am I looking for? Tofu. If you steer them or fry them, they get a nice crust on the outside. For especially for people like me who don't like the texture of it. I like to get that little crust on there, it makes it more pleasurable on my palate for those like me. For just I think very texture-driven with certain foods. Um, like lentils and legumes, you got your quinoa, those things soak up whatever you put on it. Like if it's a broth or it's a sauce or a gravy, it soaks up and adapts to that flavor. So if the that protein by itself is hard for you to enjoy, you can add a healthy stock to it, homemade stock, healthy veggie stock, bone stock to it, or a light sauce, or even a even a dressing that helps to make it more fun to eat, more palatable, like chickpeas roasted with paprika or some type of dried herb or grounded herb into a powder. You got uh different types of beans, soybeans, things like that that you may not like to eat raw, eat by yourself. If you have to insist on cooking it, yes, cook it light, but don't kill all the nutrients. You can add something to it that's natural and still real. And we see hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, what else? You can make these things into like a salad toppers for or a snack, you can dry, dehydrate, but not too hard though, because like I said before, you don't want to kill all the nutrients, just give it a little crunch or heat it up a little bit. And these proteins are a hit. A lot of these are unexplored by home cooks because you think just they're unattainable or they're too expensive where you can only get them in a restaurant. There's ways that you can find them affordable in your local stores. I mean, it's just easy to have them on hand in your home to cook a lot of dishes with. And yeah, like I said before, they're underexplored by most cooks.

SPEAKER_00 33:15

Yeah, no, that's a good point for sure. And also eating a variety of plant proteins, even if you're not vegetarian or vegan, if you do eat animal proteins too, adding in plant proteins actually helps with gaining more fiber in your diet, vital nutrients, uh, minerals as well, that not all animal proteins are able to provide in the same way.

SPEAKER_02 33:41

So, what's the one thing that people miss when they go fully plant-based?

SPEAKER_00 33:46

Kind of the number one thing is vitamin B12, um, because that's found in most animal products. It's something you can't really find anywhere else in the plant world. It's exclusively from an animal product. So if you are completely plant-based, you need to usually have some type of B12 supplement. And that B12 helps with neurological functions, helps with red blood cell production, energy, be vitamin B12 shots are all over your age supplements, things like that. So if you're strictly plant-based, you more than likely need to talk to your provider about having some type of B12 supplement. Also, iron and zinc tend to be really low because you find those most of the time in animal products as well. Iron and zinc are found in sound plant products, but they're less bioavailable. So, as I mentioned before, that it takes more effort to get those um to do the job that they need to do within your body.

SPEAKER_02 34:47

That's interesting. That's interesting. I just got a lot of info right there. I'm taking it all in because you should too, because this is awesome.

SPEAKER_00 34:54

And lastly, calcium, yes, there's lots of plants with calcium in there. Dairy is known to be high in calcium. And so the amount of spinach, broccoli, things like that that you need to consume to equal the same amount of calcium found in dairy products is really high. Um, so these are all manageable now. If you have knowledge and intention with what you're eating, it just requires a little bit of awareness and not just wishful thinking you've got to be strategic about it.

SPEAKER_02 35:32

Excellent, excellent. Very well said. So now I like to talk about Whole Foods versus protein products. Like bar, like bars, right, powders, lollipops, whatever.

SPEAKER_00 35:44

Proteins in a package, like a plastic package. Uh yeah. So the supplement side of protein, it's uh where do I what do I say? It it has its place for sure in certain ways. Uh, but uh finding where it fits in and it knowing that it doesn't replace whole food.

SPEAKER_02 36:06

And as a chef, I got some strong opinions about this.

SPEAKER_00 36:10

I know you do. If you want to go ahead, go ahead.

SPEAKER_02 36:13

Yeah, I mean, where do I start? I mean, real food is always first, you know, real solid whole food is always first. It's all about eating, consuming food the way it was meant to be eaten. Dating back thousands of years, our ancestors they didn't have powders, they didn't have live tricks, they didn't have the stats, they didn't have the candies and bars and things that are highly processed and all types of tricks and gadgets of things that are made to be edible. They just ate it straight from the source, raw. And we over the years, as human nature, humans, we evolved from that to what we feel like we need now, that we really don't, but we gotta find a happy balance because modern life, of course, knows different from back then. Bottom line for me is when you eat a piece of salmon or bowl of lentils, you're not just eating the protein, you're eating a whole matrix of nutrients together. Okay, got your omega-3s, your B vitamins, got the selenium in the salmon, fiberfolate, iron, potassium in the lentils. That's really important. A lot of people skip that. I got put onto that recently, and now I'm eating lentils before I didn't even know what a lentil was many years ago. When you do your research on things, when you get educated, you start to eat more things than you did before. You start feeling better, looking better, and understanding why these things are put into our diets. It's basically when you're getting those overly processed powders and bars and things of that nature, it's a lot of it's stripped down of all its key nutrients and reduced down to something that's can be mass-produced at a low cost and is minimally beneficial to your body, it's not doing as much as you may think it does. It might help a little bit, but not as much as it's always packaged to be.

SPEAKER_00 38:00

Yeah, but from a nutrition science standpoint, too, I I can completely agree with you for sure. And the research shows that whole food protein sources, like you said, salmon and things like that, actually show better outcomes than supplemental protein. And as far as satiety goes, body composition, overall uh diet quality, show better outcomes. Food is synergetic, right? Multrians interact with each other in ways that we don't quite always understand. But for example, say you're traveling, right? If you're going through an airport and if you're having a choice of a protein bar or completely skipping out on protein altogether for a meal, I would say go ahead and eat the protein bar, right? Just don't make it a regular habit. Don't eat it constantly, don't have it replace a meal all the time. And then eat those whole foods when you can. And if a shake helps, for example, if it's hard, say, for a student athlete to get all the calories and protein that they need throughout a day, eating it with whole by whole foods, go ahead and add an extra shake in.

SPEAKER_01 39:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 39:18

And help supplement that.

SPEAKER_02 39:28

That's a good point. I was gonna say that, but you said it a lot better than I would. So thank you for that. Thank you for breaking that down. So, what what would you look for in a protein powder? If anybody's willing to use one, what would you look for?

SPEAKER_00 39:40

Number one thing I would say is a short ingredient list. Always look at your nutrition labels and any type of happy food, if we can, take the time, look at your nutrition label. I always go to the ingredients first. Look there, and so the shorter the list, the better. Yep. And make sure that the actual protein sources are listed first in that ingredient list. So if you don't know ingredient lists, the first ingredient is the most out of that product, and then it goes down in order based on how much is in it. So you want those protein sources to be first, not some filler, not sugar. Majority of protein powders, bars are severely high in sugar. Protein bars, a lot of them are like glorified candy bars. Um, they can have upwards to 25 grams of sugar in a bar. So making sure that your protein is higher than your sugar content in your bars. For plant-based, you can look for pea or brown rice blends. They tend to cover all the amino acid profiles. So there are some other ones out there, but if you're looking for complete amino acid protein profile, those tend to be the better ones.

SPEAKER_02 41:00

You took the words right out of my mouth. I love it. I love it. So let's talk about families. I'm just talking about things like what's practical. Um, like this is the part that I care about the most. One of the main reasons why we started Hadden Health.

SPEAKER_00 41:12

Yep.

SPEAKER_02 41:12

All the science in the world doesn't matter if the food doesn't make sense, if the food isn't able to be eaten if it's not uh palatable. I like to say a lot. So let's talk about what actually works for families. People who are cooking for picky kids, people who are watching a budget, and uh the ones who don't have time for complicated recipes. Let's get into that.

SPEAKER_00 41:35

Yeah. I want to add that feeding families while is generally one of the most impactful things that you can do for long-term health goals for yourself and your kids. And so how we eat, how kids eat really shapes their relationship with food and their nutritional baseline for their entire lives. And like you said, this is what we're all about is starting them out young on the right foot, creating those good, lifelong, healthy habits because what they're eating today as a toddler is gonna show up when they're in their 30s, in their 40s.

SPEAKER_01 42:15

Yep.

SPEAKER_00 42:16

What we're eating today in our 30s and 40s is definitely gonna affect how we are in our 80s.

SPEAKER_01 42:22

That's true.

SPEAKER_00 42:23

So this matters greatly.

SPEAKER_02 42:25

Yeah. And one of my favorites that I've eaten my entire life up to this day is eggs. It starts with eggs. I'll say it again, I'll scream it from the rooftop. Eggs. Eggs are the most versatile, one of the most affordable. You can find them anywhere. They're easy to find. And like a dozen eggs for a few bucks, give or take the times and the economy.

SPEAKER_00 42:47

Price. Yep, price fluctuates on them for sure.

SPEAKER_02 42:50

It has gives you 12 complete proteins that you can scramble, fry, bake, boil, uh, poach. You can make a batch make them for the week. You can egg them muffins, burritos, things of that nature. And you got them to fry rice, you can add them to a soup. Uh, kids usually like them eggs in any form. And we can we can start, we can start there. Now, I mean, scrambled eggs used to get a bad wrap, sometimes you do. It's only because a lot of people don't really know how to scramble them in a healthy way. It's more than just throwing lard in the pan. Don't do that. Just healthier oils, healthier fats, meaner fats, and use them in moderation always. You don't need a lot. So there's healthy ways to go about that. So enjoy the eggs the way you love them, the way you may have grown up eating them. So, yep, we can start there.

SPEAKER_00 43:36

Yeah. Also, eggs are really high in choline, which is super important for brain development and neurological function in children. And that is an incredibly underappreciated nutrient, too.

SPEAKER_01 43:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 43:51

But it's gaining some more popularity, especially with pregnancy and early childhood development. So eggs are one of your best sources for getting that nutrient as well.

SPEAKER_02 44:01

Well, next, next we got beans and lentils. Okay. Now, these are great equalizers of nutrition. Like a can of beans costs less than five bucks most of the time. And it delivers about 15 grams of protein. And all that fiber keeps kids full. Adults also. Like lentils are even easier, actually. You don't have to soak them. There's about 20-minute cook time and they disappear into sauces, into soups, into tacos. Yep. So if you are your kids don't really like the look of them, because you know we're all visual eaters first, especially kids. You can hide them in those things. They're easy to hide. They're easy to hide in um even in salads or salad dressings. Sometimes you gotta be a little creative, but if you also like it, they hide easily in meats and sauces. And basically, my philosophy is add beans to everything. You don't have to, but it's a key hint. Yeah, people say, Well, I'm like beans because they make you fart. Not always. If you eat if you don't overeat them, you find simple fruit.

SPEAKER_00 45:01

Well, and they make you fart because they're high in protein and high in fiber. And so the fiber is beneficial for yeah, that health.

SPEAKER_02 45:11

It's clear yourself out. But um, like I said, rounding them into beef and a pasta sauce, putting them into soups, that's a great way to consume them. Yes, it's they're they're one of nature's superfoods.

SPEAKER_00 45:26

For sure. And like you mentioned, they're friendly on a budget as well. So uh what you can call that, you know, the different different beans, lentils, meats, things like that, we call that protein layering. And so you're not necessarily replacing anything, you're just building upon it, right?

SPEAKER_01 45:47

Right.

SPEAKER_00 45:48

And so, um, as he mentioned before, as we mentioned, beans are also really high in fiber. Yeah. And that is something that you don't get from meat products. So adding that helps feed your gut microbiome biome. Um, also it helps slow digestion too. So you're gonna be fuller for longer as well.

SPEAKER_02 46:10

And one thing I just thought about is something that I never thought I would say many years ago before I started becoming health conscious was what I'm about to tell you now. Selecting thighs over breasts and chicken. Now, I used to think chicken breast was the gold standard growing up, and I ate a lot of wings and everything. Actually, I would recommend thighs because yes, you get the same amount of protein, but thighs has that fat on there that you don't get from chicken breasts. Chicken breast is the more leaner side, tends to be more drier. Now, this is the case where the fat that you get from the chicken thighs isn't really a bad thing necessarily.

SPEAKER_00 46:46

And it's great for kids too to get that extra fat.

SPEAKER_02 46:48

Absolutely. You know, you want them to eat that. You want to eat that. And they're more flavorful too. They're juicier. So if you have putting them in a broth, grinding it, or braising it, or roasting it, it absorbs more of that juice. And yes, I still love this chicken breasts. You tend to be able to do a lot with those, but it's easier to overcook them. That's why people will say they're dry all the time. If more experienced cooks don't overcook the chicken, they know how to cook them over. Yeah, man. Most home cooks are afraid of overcooking chicken breasts because they're easy because they don't have as much water, as much fat in them. But you get the same amount of protein in the thighs. So those are great to have. And I was want to say that it's usually more friendlier on your budget or more affordable than the breasts. You can get more for your buck and the more readily available in our butcher shops or meat sections, our grocery stores. Also, so switch for thighs. It's a game changer. You can get more in a pack, and if you want to uh meal prep for the week, you can do a lot more with them.

SPEAKER_00 47:51

Yeah. And you can buy them bone in or but bone out.

SPEAKER_02 47:54

Absolutely. True.

SPEAKER_00 47:55

If you're afraid to deal with the bones.

SPEAKER_02 47:57

Yep. And there's more some of the flavor comes from the bone too. If you buy the bone in kind, some people are able to debone if they want to, but that just gets more into the fancier side of things, which it's not necessarily getting into right now. We're just talking about the nutrient level and the protein facts in those one. I could talk about chicken forever because it's one of my favorite things to eat.

SPEAKER_00 48:18

You can eat a lot of chicken.