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- Created on Friday, 20 November 2009 22:26
Raw protein — lean body?
by Pauline Robinson
Hemp protein contains all 20 known amino acids including the 9 essential amino acids (EAAs) our bodies cannot produce. Proteins are considered complete when they contain all 9 essential amino acids in a sufficient quantity and ratio to meet the body’s needs. Hemp seeds contain an adequate supply of these high quality proteins (EAAs) for a well balanced diet.
Hemp protein is free of the tryspin inhibitors which block protein absorption and free of oligosaccharides found in soy, which cause stomach upset and gas. Not as easy to get lean now that you are no longer in your twenties, right? Or maybe you’ve never been very fit, but are trying to lose fat for the first time and don’t have the benefits of that youthful high metabolism. No bizarre fad diets are needed, just the standard high protein/low fat plan. Each daily meal should feature a good source of lean protein but very little animal fat or sugar.
An increasingly educated and health-conscious public is learning about the health benefits of supplemental protein powders, recognizing that they can be part of a healthy lifestyle for just about anyone, not just bodybuilders. In health fitness, muscle growth is perhaps the most important thing that you can do. In fact, it may be the most important thing you can do for your body and mind. The reason growing lean muscle is so important is because it will help with controlling your weight by helping you burn more calories. It helps the mind by increasing confidence and self worth.
It is of utmost importance in the elderly population, because it will help with osteoporosis, by building stronger, bigger bones and also allows one to be physically stronger and fatigue less easily. So by growing more muscle daily tasks are much easier, not to mention much safer, helping prevent falls and injuries.
Protein is an essential part of our (living) body and there is a difference between protein that has been cooked and protein in its raw (living) form. We should realize that our body (which is made of some 100 trillion living cells) is composed of 15 percent protein, making protein the primary solid element in our body, and second only to water, which composes 70 percent of our body. Protein is composed of amino acids, and amino acids are made up of chains of atoms. These atoms that make up amino acids that make up protein literally become the building blocks for our body.
The problem is that cooking kills food and de-natures or re-arranges the molecular structure of the protein, causing amino acids to become coagulated, or fused together.
In his 1980 book, The Health Revolution, Horne writes, “Cooked protein is difficult to digest, and when incompletely digested protein enters the colon it putrefies and ammonia is formed.” Horne quotes Dr. Willard Visek, Professor of Clinical Sciences at the University of Illinois Medical School as saying, “In the digestion of proteins, we are constantly exposed to large amounts of ammonia in our intestinal tract. Ammonia behaves like chemicals that cause cancer or promote its growth. It kills cells, it increases virus infection, it affects the rate at which cells divide, and it increases the mass of the lining of the intestines. What is intriguing is that within the colon, the incidence of cancer parallels the concentration of ammonia.” Dr. Visek is quoted in The Golden Seven Plus One, by Dr. C. Samuel West, as saying, “Ammonia, which is produced in great amounts as a by-product of meat metabolism, is highly carcinogenic and can cause cancer development.”
And meat in any form is not good for humans. We do not have a digestive system designed to assimilate protein from flesh: We do not have the teeth of a carnivore nor the saliva. Our alkaline saliva is designed to digest complex carbohydrates from plant food, whereas saliva of a carnivore is so acidic that it can actually dissolve bones. The digestive tracts of carnivores are short, about three times the length of their torso, allowing quick elimination of decomposing and putrefying flesh. All herbivores have long intestines, 8 to 12 times the length of their torso, to provide a long transit time to digest and extract the nutrients from plant foods.
When you consider the health problems caused by consuming too much indigestible (cooked) protein, it should drive home the point that our body is a living organism made up of living cells, and protein composes 15 percent of our body, therefore the protein we take in should be living rather than dead.
Hemp protein is a living plant protein which contains all 20 known amino acids including the 9 essential amino acids (EAAs) our bodies cannot produce. When pressed and milled, the result is the perfect high performance vegetarian whole food which may be used in place of all protein sources or supplements. Proteins are considered complete when they contain all 9 essential amino acids in a sufficient quantity and ratio to meet the body’s needs. Hemp seeds contain an adequate supply of these high quality proteins (EAAs) for a well balanced diet. In fact, hemp Protein is not only very high in fiber, but is unique in the plant kingdom for its perfect balance of protein, fiber, and carbohydrates, making it easy to substitute into any type of diet. A live protein concentrate, hemp protein is loaded with what your body needs, including all 9-10 essential amino acids, Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, enzymes, natural anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals and fibre.
Hemp protein is free of the tryspin inhibitors which block protein absorption and free of oligosaccharides found in soy, which cause stomach upset and gas. Soybeans contain a higher total percentage of protein, but these are complex proteins that many people find difficult to digest. An important aspect of hemp seed protein is a high content of arginine (123 mg/g protein) and histidine (27 mg/g protein), both of which are important for growth during childhood, and of the sulfur-containing amino acids methionine (23 mg/g protein) and cysteine (16 mg/g protein), which are needed for proper enzyme formation. Cysteine’s importance is related to the presence of a sulfur-containing thiol group in its side chain. This group participates in the catalytic reactions of certain enzymes, such as that of papain. Methionine is required because it assists in the breakdown of fats and thereby prevents the build-up of fat in the arteries, as well as assisting with the digestive system and removing heavy metals from the body since it can be converted to cysteine, which is a precursor to gluthione, which is of prime importance in detoxifying the liver. The amino acid methionine is also a great antioxidant as the sulfur it supplies inactivates free radicals. It may also be used to treat depression, arthritis pain as well as chronic liver disease — although these claims are still under investigation. Some studies have also indicated that methionine might also improve memory recall.
Approximately 65% of the protein in hemp seeds is made up Edestin and is found only in hemp seed. “Edistins (also spelled edestine) are plant globulins, and are classified as globular proteins. Globulins perform many enzymatic functions within the plasma itself. The human body uses globulin proteins to make antibodies that attack infecting agents that invade the body.” Edestin aids digestion, is relatively phosphorus-free and considered the backbone of the cell’s DNA. The other one third of hemp seed protein is Albumin, another high quality globulin protein similar to that found in egg whites.
In addition to being an excellent protein source, hemp powder can also be used as a quick and convenient blood sugar stabilizer because of the high fiber content which will again help in weight loss.
About the Author
Pauline Robinson is a Nutritional and Metabolic Bio Typing Consultant for HealthSmart Nutrition.