Various Protein Diets - Free Paper Sample

Introduction

Human bodies are made of about 20% proteins (Ramirez-Sanchez et al., 2016). The proteins can be sourced from either animals or plants. Human bodies do not store proteins; therefore, it is essential to maintain the right intake levels to stay healthy. Proteins form large parts of the human bodies, including the muscles, organs and bones (Ramirez-Sanchez et al., 2016). People have different opinions and preferences when it comes to choosing between plant or animal proteins. This paper compares the pros and cons of meat-based proteins to plant based-proteins.

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Animal Products

According to Almeida, animal products act as a good source of proteins and contributes to a well-balanced diet compared to plant proteins (Almeida et al., 2015). Animal products such as milk and meat are essential to human bodies. Almeida suggests that, with developments in technology, humans can use proteomics to form simple protein mixtures from complex protein structures (Almeida et al., 2015). Through proteomics, humans can use science to enhance efficiency and better quality. Proteomics allows farmers to identify stressors and come up with appropriate measures to address them to improve high-quality protein production, for instance, in fishes and poultry. The overall goal of proteomics is to check on animal health to enhance quality products such as eggs, meat and milk (Almeida et al., 2015). Almeida acknowledges the contributions of animal products in terms of enhancing a balanced diet and calls for the adoption of proteomics technology to improve the animal welfare to enhance quality production (Almeida et al., 2015).

Plant Proteins

The amino acid levels are high in animal compared to plant proteins. The human body requires around 20 amino acids (Ramirez-Sanchez et al., 2016). The body is capable of producing around 11, meaning it has to source the extra nine (Ramirez-Sanchez et al., 2016). Animal proteins such as eggs, milk and meat can offer all the essential amino acids that the body requires because they have bountiful. Animal products have the highest amounts of proteins. Animal products tend to contain all amino acids that humans need, the case is different for plant proteins (Ramirez-Sanchez et al., 2016). Some plant proteins contain a relatively low amount of amino acids; for instance, some have low tryptophan, and lycine (Ramirez-Sanchez et al., 2016). Therefore, their intake cannot provide the body with all the required amino acids. All proteins have amino acids, but their quality differs based on the source with animals having more compared to plants (Ramirez-Sanchez et al., 2016).

Some nutrients are abundant in animal than plant proteins. Proteins rarely exist in isolation; they come with a wide range of nutrients (Hou et al., 2017). Meals with high levels of animal protein are likely to have high nutrient levels that might be lacking in plants. Some of the nutrients are vitamin B12, Vitamin D and Zinc (Hou et al., 2017). Vitamin B12 can be sourced in animal products such as poultry, fish and meat. People who like avoiding animal proteins are deficient of vitamin B12 (Hou et al., 2017). Vitamin D can be sourced from oily fish, dairy and eggs. Some plants have it, but the animal one is more effective. Zinc occurs mostly in beef, lamb and pork. Zinc can be easily absorbed and used by the body from animal products.

However, meat has its cons, and this affects choices. Some types of meat can cause diseases. Too much red meat intake increases the risk of heart attack and other conditions such as stroke (Aggarwal & Drewnowski, 2019). Processed red meat is the most dangerous; it raises the chances of heart attack and can result in death. Processed meat also increases the chances of diabetes infection and heart conditions (Aggarwal & Drewnowski, 2019). However, white meat, such as fish and chicken is less likely to contribute to heart diseases and diabetes.

Lower Risks

On the other hand, animal products are associated with lower risks of body diseases. Diets rich in animal products are less likely to cause diseases such as blood pressure and high body cholesterol (Berrazaga et al., 2019). High plant proteins assist in reducing blood pressure and cholesterol. Food rich in high plant protein prevents the risk of type 2 diabetes (Berrazaga et al., 2019). Plant proteins help check on the sugar levels preventing possible diabetic infections. Meals rich in high plant protein helps to keep weight on check. Having high levels of nuts in meals helps in weight loss and body shape maintenance (Berrazaga et al., 2019). Eating plant proteins such as peas and beans can help in weight management and body maintenance.

Conclusion

To conclude, some people portray animal-based proteins as less important because of the adverse side effects that they cause to human bodies. Most of the modern diseases such as heart attack, high cholesterol levels and diabetes are associated with increased protein intakes. However, it would be unfair to dispute the contributions of animal-based proteins because they are equally crucial to the body. They give the bodies the required levels of amino acids, and they are equally important for maintaining balanced diets. Both plants and animal proteins are vital to the body; hence they should be taken at moderate levels to avoid severe consequences.

References

Aggarwal, A., & Drewnowski, A. (2019). Plant-and animal-protein diets in relation to sociodemographic drivers, quality, and cost: findings from the Seattle Obesity Study. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 110(2), 451-460. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqz064

Almeida, A. M. D., Bassols, A., Bendixen, E., Bhide, M., Ceciliani, F., Cristobal, S., ... & McLaughlin, M. (2015). Animal board invited review: advances in proteomics for animal and food sciences. Animal, 9(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731114002602

Berrazaga, I., Micard, V., Gueugneau, M., & Walrand, S. (2019). The role of the anabolic properties of plant-versus animal-based protein sources in supporting muscle mass maintenance: a critical review. Nutrients, 11(8), 1825. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11081825

Hou, Y., Wu, Z., Dai, Z., Wang, G., & Wu, G. (2017). Protein hydrolysates in animal nutrition: Industrial production, bioactive peptides, and functional significance. Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology, 8(1), 24. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-017-0153-9

Ramirez-Sanchez, O., Perez-Rodriguez, P., Delaye, L., & Tiessen, A. (2016). Plant proteins are smaller because they are encoded by fewer exons than animal proteins. Genomics, Proteomics & Bioinformatics, 14(6), 357-370. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gpb.2016.06.003.