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But Where Do You Get Your Protein?

4/7/2020

"But where do you get your protein?"

I know, I know...if you've been vegan for any amount of time you may be tired of hearing this question, I am definitely with you, I've been answering it since 1993!

However, I wanted to talk about protein today because I see such a wide range being recommended in the vegan community. I see recommendations for anywhere from 10-30% of calories from protein, or to put it in terms of ideal body weight, anywhere from 0.8-2.2g of protein per kg of body weight.

With such a wide range being recommended, how do you know how much to aim for?

The general consensus among vegan health professionals is that if you are eating enough calories, you will easily be getting more than enough protein. However, I did want to provide a few tips to help you determine where on the protein intake range you should aim for:

If you are sedentary or minimally active, then you could aim for 0.8-0.9g/kg body weight a day. (5)
If you are moderately active and just want to maintain your current body composition, then you could aim for about 0.9-1.1g/kg body weight a day (this is also the range recommended for children and during pregnancy). (1)
If you are very active, strength train 4+ days a week, and want to gain muscle, then you could aim for 1.2-1.6g/kg body weight a day (depending on frequency and intensity of training, and fitness goals). (1)
In the fitness & bodybuilding communities, you'll see minimum recommendations for 2.2g/kg body weight, however, a 2018 meta-analysis looking at protein intake and resistance exercise training (RET)-induced muscle gains found that "protein intakes at amounts greater than ~1.6 g/kg/day do not further contribute RET-induced gains". (2)

Now, to go back to that statement about not having to worry about your protein if you are eating enough calories, which I do agree with, but there are some things to keep in mind:

It can be difficult to estimate if you are eating enough calories from plant based whole foods (especially if you are new to the diet) because they are naturally high in fibre and low in calories.
A high fibre diet may make some people feel full before they reach their caloric needs, especially if there are any digestive issues like bloating or indigestion.
If you are eating enough calories but not including foods like beans, lentils, tofu, or tempeh at each meal it may be difficult to get enough protein if you are aiming for that higher range of 1.2-1.6g/kg.
Muscle gain requires the muscle building blocks (ie. amino acids) but also an increase in calories (you need more protein and more food in general if you are trying to build muscle).
If muscle gains are your goal, you can eat all the protein you want but if you are not also stressing the muscles (ie. strength training) then they will not grow.

Some people may suggest that you'll need to eat more than the recommended amount if you are getting your protein from plants because plant protein is 'incomplete' or not as bioavailable. This is not the case, and you are actually better off getting your protein from plants:

You do not need to worry about getting the full range of amino acids, you'll easily get all you need from a variety of plant foods throughout the day. (1, 3, 4)
Recent research shows that the bioavailability of plant protein is similar or in some cases the same as animal protein ("soy protein isolate, pea protein flour or isolate, wheat flour and lupine flour, the figures were 89–92%, similar to those found for eggs (91%) or meat (90–94%), and slightly lower than those reported for milk protein (95%)"). (3, 4, 5)
Animal proteins increase IGF-1, which has been shown to be a factor in cancer development. (20)
Animal proteins contain higher amounts of the amino acids methionine and cysteine, which can be turned into the inflammatory compound hydrogen sulfide by gut bacteria, and also increases TMAO, which plays a role in cardiovascular disease. (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
A plant based diet is more anti-inflammatory, leading to accelerated muscle repair (allowing for more frequent training sessions). (7, 12)

In summary:

If your goal is to maintain health and you are minimally active, just focus on getting in enough calories from a variety of plant foods.
A study looking at over 70,000 people did show that vegans do typically get more than enough protein (similar protein intakes were seen in non-vegetarians, semi vegetarians, pesco vegetarians, lacto-ovo vegetarians, and vegans). (14)
If your goal is to maintain muscle mass and you have an active lifestyle, you'll still be able to easily meet your slightly higher protein needs just by eating enough and including a variety of beans and legumes.
If your goal is to gain muscle mass and you have a very active lifestyle that includes a regular strength training program, then you many want to pay more attention to your calorie and protein intake to make sure you are getting enough to support muscle growth (a food tracking app may be helpful at first, in order to give you an idea about the volume of food necessary to meet your goals).
There is a relationship between longevity and protein intake. The diets of the longest living populations (ie. the Blue Zones) generally get about 10-15% of calories from protein (16, 17). We want enough protein to maintain our muscle mass for an active lifestyle, but we don't want excessive amounts that may contribute to higher levels of IGF-1. This may not be much of an issue if all of the protein is coming from plants, unless you're eating 7-18 servings of soy a day (22).
If you are aiming for those higher protein levels (20-25% of calories from protein), getting it from plant protein has more of a protective and preventative role compared to excess protein from animal products which is associated with negative health outcomes. (15, 18, 19, 21)
Low-Carb (ie. high protein/fat) diets are associated with higher rates of all-cause mortality. (18, 19)

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