Why is Protein Crucial in Your Diet? – Know 10 Health Benefits of Dietary Proteins

Every year, 27^th February is celebrated as National Protein Day in India to raise awareness about this essential nutrient in our diet. Protein is a crucial component of a healthy diet and is necessary to lead a healthy life. It is the building block of our muscles and helps strengthen them. Also, the consumption of protein is important to boost your immunity and maintain good health. So, everyone must have enough proteins in their diet. For this purpose, this year – 2023 the theme of the National Protein Day in India is “Easy Access to Protein for All” to raise awareness about this imperative nutrient and promote the significance of having easy access to protein for a well-balanced, nutritious diet. We should promote accessibility and affordability of protein in South Asian nations for the health improvement of the masses, minimize the burden of malnutrition, and contribute to the well-being and improved health of the population. So, you might be wondering why protein is a crucial component of your diet and what health benefits it offers, aren’t you? Give this blog a read to learn all about it.

Why is Protein Crucial in Your Diet?

Protein plays a key role in the generation and maintenance of every cell in our body. It fuels our body cells and powers our bodies. As mentioned above, protein is the building block of our muscles. Our body does not store protein, unlike fats. For healthy functioning and good immunity, every individual should consume protein daily. Daily intake of proteins helps maintain our cells in good condition, improves immunity, and enables us to enjoy good health. Just like we watch our intake of sugar, salt, and calories, we should also watch our intake of protein and ensure we have adequate proteins daily.

5 Fundamental Reasons Why Our Body Needs Protein

Here’s a list of five prime reasons that tell why our body needs sufficient proteins daily.

1. To Build Crucial Components

Protein is the building block not only of our muscles and cartilage but also our bones and skin. Also, our nails and hair comprise proteins majorly.

2. To Repair Body Tissues

Wear and tear is a part and parcel of our life. Protein is essential to build and repairing body tissues.

3. To Oxygenate

Protein compound present in our red blood cells (RBCs) circulates and carries oxygen throughout the body. So, your entire body receives the nutrients and oxygen it needs for healthy functioning. Haemoglobin is a dominant protein of RBCs.

4. For Digestion and New Cells’ Generation

Nearly 50% of the dietary protein that we ingest daily is used to make enzymes, which have a role in the digestion of food, and for making new cells in our body and various body chemicals.

5. For Hormone Regulation

Protein has a crucial role in regulating hormones, particularly during the development and transformation of cells during puberty.

Besides these key roles, protein offers several health benefits. Let’s have a look at them.

10 Best Health Benefits of Dietary Proteins

1. Improves Muscle Mass

As proteins are crucial parts of the composition of your muscles, increasing your intake of proteins helps you build muscles, improves muscle growth, and strengthens them. Proteins help maintain healthy body tissues, such as tendons and ligaments. So, it is necessary to eat protein-abundant foods after intensive physical exercises. If your muscles get damaged due to intensive exercise or any other reason, eating proteins helps repair and strengthen them. Also, a good intake of protein helps treat muscle aches.

2. Promotes Weight Loss

The consumption of proteins helps you feel full for longer and prevents you from eating now and then. Eating protein food sources reduces the chances of uncontrollable cravings that can impact your weight loss diet, goals, and health negatively. Increasing your intake of protein boosts your metabolism which in turn increases the number of calories you burn. It also helps in reducing belly fat naturally and healthily.

3. Prevents Hair Damage

Protein is a crucial component of our hair. So, the good health of our hair depends on our daily intake of proteins. Keratin is the protein that helps prevent hair loss and makes our hair healthy and shiny. Eggs are abundant in keratin and also contain omega-3 fatty acids. So, to prevent hair damage, make sure that you include eggs in your breakfast daily. If you are a vegetarian, you may add onions, garlic, green leafy vegetables, sunflower seeds, and carrots to your diet for improving hair health.

4. Promotes Healthy Brain Function

The intake of proteins helps build neurotransmitters, which are essential for the healthy functioning of the brain. When you try to focus and improve your concentration on what you are doing, your brain requires greater amino acids to meet your cognitive needs. Adding protein food sources to your diet helps you receive a steady supply of these essential compounds and improves your cognitive functions. Adequate intake of proteins helps you learn things markedly faster and have long-term memory capabilities.

5. Helps Keep Blood Sugar in Check

Proteins need a smaller quantity of insulin than carbohydrates need to metabolise. If you replace sugary foods and high-carb options with lean proteins or any protein food sources, your blood sugar levels won’t soar. By keeping your blood glucose levels in the normal range with protein intake, you are safeguarding yourself against type 2 diabetes. So, whether you have developed diabetes or not, increasing your intake of protein helps you keep your blood sugar in check.

6. Improves Your Mood

If you don’t have enough energy, you may fail to feel fresh and pleasant. If you enrich your diet with protein, it can help improve your mood. Although you may feel happier relishing sweets and candies, the happiness is only for the moment. Once your end up eating these sugary foods, your system will experience a rollercoaster ride. Adrenaline will be released in your blood which will make you feel anxious. So, extremes are not good for anyone. On the other hand, when you eat proteins and amino acids enter your system, they will balance your hormones immediately. This will help prevent mood changes. And, you no longer will feel more depressed, weak, or anxious. So, the intake of proteins improves your mood.

7. Maintains Healthy and Strong Bones

Proteins have a key role in improving skeletal health. Around the age of 30, the human body reaches the peak of bone tissue and may even curb the skeletal regeneration process. By the time one turns 80 years old, bone density may turn so weak that many people may experience painful symptoms of osteoporosis. Several people suffer from bone density loss. However, an adequate daily serving of proteins can help prevent this. Proteins and calcium share a strong link. The intake of proteins helps enhance bone health, improves calcium retention, and prevents osteoporosis.

8. Enables You Have a Healthy Heart

Increasing your protein intake helps keep your blood sugar in check which also impacts your heart health positively. Eating proteins helps keep harmful, chronic conditions, such as obesity and diabetes, at bay. So, replace unhealthy, junk, and other harmful food options with proteins to reduce your LDL cholesterol and lower your triglyceride levels.

9. Repairs Body Naturally After Injury

Proteins play a key role in repairing or healing your body after it suffers an injury. They are the building blocks of our organs and tissues. Consuming more protein after suffering from injuries helps speed up your recovery. So, enjoy smooth and fast healing by increasing your intake of proteins.

10. Slows Down Aging

Your body suffers from ageing due to oxidative stress occurring due to free radicals. Protein food sources contain glutathione, an antioxidant, which can help curb the adverse effects of oxidative stress by neutralizing free radicals. Also, the amino acids that result due to synthesis of proteins can help minimize muscle loss occurring due to ageing. So, add foods rich in proteins to your diet to delay the signs of ageing

So, let’s pledge this National Protein Day to boost our intake of protein to enjoy improved health and spread the word globally to incorporate more protein into everyone’s diet. Consulting certified nutritionists and dieticians, such as health experts at Health Total, can help you receive a customised diet plan comprising nutritious protein food sources to help you enjoy all health benefits. Our diet plan comprising protein not only helps in weight management and health improvement but also boosts your immunity and helps prevent or lower potential health risks. So, waste no time, get in touch with us at Health Total and pave your way to stay in the pink of health by boosting your intake of proteins with our personalized diet plan.

Sign up for a FREE consultation with Health Total experts to get more tips on enriching your diet with proteins to enjoy improved health and manage weight or managing any other health condition. Call toll-free at  1-800-833-171709 and Book Free Consultation!