Guest guest Posted September 22, 2006 Report Share Posted September 22, 2006 Amino Acid Content of Vegetarian Foods JoAnn Guest Sep 21, 2006 20:35 --- The Egg Protein Index By Gary Null, Ph.D., Hillard Fitzkee, Steven Null and Martin Feldman, MD. http://gnhealth.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=1116 Note: The information on this website is not a substitute for diagnosis and treatment by a qualified, licensed professional. Introduction Overview ===================================================================== Americans' desire to have quality and quantity protein sources is paramount in their food selection process. However, we seem to have gone overboard in our enthusiasm for protein in that we're consuming far more animal protein than what is healthful. In point of fact, there have been more than 250 scientific studies published in recent years showing that our propensity toward: (1) a high percentage of animal fats in our diets; (2) a high proportion of total calories consumed from saturated animal fats--more than 40%; and (3) excess amounts of protein from animal sources, are all contributing to a heightened risk of heart disease, cancer, and other degenerative conditions. On the other hand, numerous studies (see bibliography) confirm that a properly balanced vegetarian program provides more than adequate amounts of protein, while such a regimen's lower fat content reduces the risk of various diseases. The findings of these studies have not been widely implemented, though, partly because of some outdated assumptions that are, unfortunately, still extant. The Old Thinking on Protein For a long time, the prevailing assumption about protein, put forth in virtually all major health and nutrition texts, was that only proteins from animal sources were complete, i.e., contained all of the essential amino acids. Non animal foods were hardly considered protein sources at all. They were called incomplete and were to be used only adjunctively. So while grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, vegetables, tubers, and fruits were acknowledged as important bearers of vitamins, minerals, and fiber, their significant protein contributions were downplayed or ignored. The New Thinking If you look at the dietary habits and the morbidity and mortality statistics of other cultures, you can see that the old protein assumptions are at least partially incorrect. For instance, people in Japan and China today, and for some time, have lived longer and healthier lives than the average American, and this is while they've been without benefit of all our medical advances and technology. A careful examination of these cultures' diets, in comparison to ours, suggests that they consume a reverse ratio of animal - to plant - source protein. That is, while 80% of the average American's protein intake comes from animal sources, the Japanese and Chinese figure is 20%. This is true for many other cultures of the world as well, in which, provided that individuals are getting adequate calories and a wide enough selection from different food groups, vegetarian diets are providing people with adequate protein. What's more, these people are not suffering from the same level of degenerative diseases -- diseases in part attributable to diet -- that we do. The good news is that today, many Americans are finally coming around to acknowledge the true protein picture. For instance, the newest thinking on protein is exemplified in a position statement on vegetarian diets of the American Dietetic Association. This group's journal, in its November 1993 issue, reported that the organization feels that " vegetarian diets are healthful and nutritionally adequate when appropriately planned. " More important, the report goes on to explain some of the health-promoting aspects of vegetarianism, as well as of lowered protein consumption. And it states that " plant sources of protein alone can provide adequate amounts of the essential and nonessential amino acids, assuming that dietary protein sources from plants are reasonably varied and that caloric intake is sufficient to meet energy needs. " Furthermore, the ADA now holds that conscious combining of foods within a given meal -- the old complementary protein dictum -- is unnecessary. " Additionally, " says the ADA, " soy protein has been shown to be nutritionally equivalent in protein value to proteins of animal origin and, thus, can serve as the sole source of protein intake if desired. Vegetarianism's Virtues With the American Dietetic Association getting on the vegetarian bandwagon, it almost seems as if a real paradigm shift toward an acceptance of vegetarianism is at hand in the U.S. This would be a welcome development, considering all the benefits of vegetarianism. To summarize these, there are, first, the health benefits. As the ADA puts it in its report, " A considerable body of scientific data suggests positive relationships between vegetarian diets and risk reduction for several chronic degenerative diseases and conditions, including obesity, coronary artery disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and some types of cancer. " Indeed, meat is one of the major contributing factors in colon and prostate cancer. Research has shown that in those cultures eating a high-fiber diet rich in fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes, and low in animal products, colon and prostate cancer are rare. In countries such as ours, though, where a lot of fatty, fiberless foods, often of animal origin, are eaten, these cancers are common. Equally important is the heart disease issue. Since the main source of cholesterol in the American diet is the saturated fats contained in meat and other animal products, converting one's eating habits from a diet centered on these products to one that is mainly vegetarian may be an important step in preventing coronary and artery disease. There is also the matter of the contaminants found in animal foods. Antibiotics, hormones, pesticides, and fungicides are administered to livestock or included in their food, and all of these end up being consumed by meat and dairy eaters. Even though the antibiotics are present in sub therapeutic dosages, they can still present serious health risks for the consumer. For one, bacteria can adapt to a specific antibiotic and develop into " super germs " as they grow resistant to it. Another possible problem is that an individual may be allergic to a particular antibiotic and not know it, or not know that he or she is receiving a continued dosage of it via his food supply. Also. antibiotics kill off not only harmful bacteria but " friendly " bacteria as well, thus destroying the natural bacterial balance of power within our digestive systems. Economically, vegetarianism is a wise dietary choice because, ounce for ounce, plant foods cost less than meat. And on the global economic scale, vegetarianism makes sense too, as an aid in the conservation of natural resources. The breeding and slaughter of animals, as well as the subsequent processing of meat, use an inordinate amount of land, water, energy, and raw materials. Consider, for instance, that cows consume approximately 16 pounds of grain to yield just one pound of meat. That's grain that could go to feed people. With this sort of equation in mind, many people today are opting for vegetarianism as a personal contribution to the preservation of our ecosystem. Taste considerations may seem like a potential problem in going vegetarian. But for many, the taste for meat is an acquired one; it's not due to a natural craving for protein, and it disappears when meat is replaced with a variety of plant-derived foods. This is especially true when one learns the easy art of creative vegetarian cooking with herbs. A more important consideration for many people who choose vegetarianism is their respect for all living creatures, with no cutoff drawn after their own species in these people's desire to prevent cruelty. Creation of the Egg Protein Index It was with all these factors as motivating forces that we created the Egg Protein Index (EPI). What this project involved was a protein analysis of the major foods, both animal and plant. We analyzed the exact amino acid structure, percentages, and quality of each, and came up with some highly interesting results. In fact, we believe that our findings should offer new insight, and hence direction, for dietitians, nutritionists, physicians, and public health educators. What we found was that all non animal foods, particularly grains and legumes, contain all eight essential amino acids. We found that vegetables, sea vegetables, and fruits also contain the essential amino acids, but in varying qualities and percentages. As a result of these findings, we have been able to show how, by combining a variety of plant foods in normal serving sizes, people can obtain all of the amino acids -- and hence protein -- that they need, without the use of any animal sources whatsoever. Function of the EPI Once we came to the knowledge that all 8 essential amino acids are present in non animal food, it became necessary to employ an unbiased rating system that would allow us to compare all foods. What we mean by unbiased is that the criteria for deciding that one food was better than another was not based on subjective factors such as taste or flavor. Instead the obvious criteria upon which the EPI was founded is the essential amino acid composition of the food in question. Although this new rating system would assign a unique number to each food or food group reflecting it?s quality, the real function of the EPI is to use these assigned numbers for comparative purposes. For example let?s say that carrots was assigned a 6 rating and black beans was assigned a 5. Since the lower the number the higher the quality (which will be explained shortly) we can say that black beans are better than carrots. Now lets see just how a single number, viz. the EPI, can adequately portray the essential amino acid composition of a food. The real secret to the EPI that allows us to use it in comparing foods is that the EPI itself reflects a comparison. You see the number assigned by this rating system tells us how the food itself compares to a standard. The standard that we have decided to use is the egg, hence the Egg Protein Index. If the essential protein structure of a food were to match exactly that of the Egg then the EPI would be zero. The poorer the match the higher the number. Thus in our example since black beans compare closer or more favorably (EPI = 5) to the Egg than carrots (EPI = 6) this enables us therefore to say that black beans are better than carrots. Assumptions in Defining the EPI As with any rating system there are certain inherent rules or assumptions. These assumptions define what data is used and how it is used. Since a mathematical model will be the representation of these assumptions and the mechanism whereby we implement the EPI assumptions we will now explain, step by step, each assumption and show how it is incorporated into our mathematical model. You will recall that we previously stated that the EPI itself was a comparison of a food?s essential protein to that of the Egg?s essential protein. In statistics when we compare real life data to that of a hypothesis or model, we perform what is called a ?regression analysis?. The common technique used to perform the regression analysis is known as the average mean squared error1,2 or least squares method. In this method we evaluate, point by point, how close the actual data are to the model or predicted values. For our application we evaluate (by differences/ residuals) the protein content for each of the eight essential amino acids. Our equation then becomes where FOODi is the protein content of the ith amino acid of the food in question or being evaluated and EGGi is the protein content of the ith amino acid of the Egg. Now that we have a framework let?s begin to apply our assumptions. (a) Compare ?like? amounts (unit of measure) of food. The amount of essential amino acid that we will use in our analysis for each food is listed in Table 1 (MASTER LISTING). For the ?Essential Amino Acids? portion the values are listed in mg per Gm of N2. The ?Total Protein? is per unit of measure (the unit of measure varies by food type, viz. 3 oz., 1 cup, etc.). This assumption, i.e. (a) above, precisely defines FOODi & EGGi used in equation (1) above. Note that the column titled ?% Essential? shows what portion of the (unit of measure) protein used for comparison, that is essential protein. Hence for the egg, of the 31.3 grams of protein in a one cup serving, only 48.8% or 14 grams are essential protein. One extreme food in this category is AMARANTH, in which 90.7% of the protein is essential or for all practical purposes we could say all it's protein is essential. whereas, at the other extreme, PAPAYA and SPIRULINA contain only 14% essential protein or just 1/7 of the total protein, available in these two foods, is essential protein. Continuing with our assumptions (b) Each essential amino acid is of equal importance. To implement this assumption we simply drop (set each wi equal to 1) the weighting factors. We then have To further refine our formula two subtle transformations will now be made. Instead of calculating differences based on actual amounts of amino acids we will use percentage values. This allows us to hold to the importance of a preferred proportion (viz. that of the Egg protein) and additionally we will take the logs of these percentages in order to minimize extreme variances3. Our transformed formula looks like this where Pi = the percentage content of the ith-amino acid of the food or foods to be rated, and Ei = the percentage content of the ith egg amino acid. One final massage yields rather than compute the average, the final value is multiplied by 1000 for convenience of comparisons. Results To summarize then, we will say that a food (or combination of foods) is of the " highest " quality if each of its essential amino acids is present in the same percentage contribution as that of the egg. Again, we are only analyzing the part of each food that is essential or complete protein. If a food were to be " identical " in quality to our ideal, we would say that-it has a zero EPI. Therefore the computed EPI shows the closeness of match, in quality, to our ideal in that the smaller the EPI, the closer that food is in quality to our ideal or the " better " the food! In comparing rated foods by EPI'S, comparisons should be made with like or same combinations. Compare pine nuts and cowpeas with beets and sweet potatoes, i.e. two foods are compared with a combination of two other foods. Similarly, a three food combination would be compared with another three food combination, not a two food combination. To compare just broccoli with say rice, beans, and onions would be difficult to interpret, since in general, the more foods used in combination, the lower the EPI. To reemphasize, the EPI is not a rating system to tell how much essential protein is present. It is a system to match, in proportion to each of 8 essential amino acids, one food or group of foods to an ideal food. An example of this important distinction was revealed in the original analysis. Two food groupings received equivalent EPI rating values, as illustrated in Table 2. (listed with total protein and essential protein). One of the food groupings had almost twice as much essential protein as the other combination. The reason that they matched as equal, was due to the way in which each of the combined 8 amino acids compared, in proportion, to that of our ideal food. APPLICATION It should be clear by now that the EPI is sensitive to both the amount of each food in a grouping and the other foods with which it is combined in that grouping. Without attempting to enumerate all potential applications, it should be noted that some of these areas are not just limited to the purest. For societies and cultures where food selections are curtailed, appropriate factoring of current food combinations will improve the quality of the diet. Additionally, introduction of supplemental foods or food additives would also improve quality. These kinds of applications will no doubt increase as more knowledge is accumulated in medicine and other fields of scientific investigation dealing with health in diet. Applying the EPI to RICE The EGG PROTEIN INDEX (EPI) is a rating system that ascribes a single number to either a single food or a combination of foods, such that we can either compare single foods or combinations of foods in regard to their qualitative value. To generalize, the EPI will allow us to determine which foods are better and by how much. Rice computes an EPI of 31.14. This places it in the grouping of animal proteins such as veal cuts, beef cuts or chicken. Good, but still a distance from foods like whole milk (EPI = 16.81). Since the proportion of essential amino acids is a key criteria, a " balancing " portion of selected amino acids can be added to make rice identical to the egg. Specifically 448 milligrams of 7 of the 8 essential amino acids would be needed per 100 grams of rice. This precision is not necessary however to obtain desirable results. Only 180 milligrams of 4 of the essential amino acids could improve rice's EPI from 31.14 to 4.52. Not identical to the egg but almost 4 times better than whole milk. Thoughtful attention must be given to the following, When we improve the quality of RICE, as stated above, we are improving the essential protein portion. We are not producing more protein in the 100 grams of RICE nor are we making all of the Rice's protein complete. Nevertheless the RICE now has a higher nutritional value. White Rice Formula (to be added to every 100 grams of rice) Tryptophan Threonine Isoleucine Leucine Lysine Methionine Phenylalanine Valine 32 mg 57 mg 109 mg none 139 mg 76 mg 38 mg 17 mg REFERENCES 1. Hamming, Richard W., Numerical Methods for Scientists and Engineers, 2nd Ed, p. 429, McGrall-Hill Book Company, N.Y., 1973 2. Crow, Edwin L.; Davis, Frances A.; Maxfield, MargaretW., Manual, p. 183, Dover Publications Inc., N.Y., 1973 3. Dixon, Wilfred J.; Massey, Frank J. Jr., Introduction to Statistical Analysis, 3rd Ed., p. 324, McGrall-Hill Book Company, N.Y., 1951 © 1996-2006 Gary Null & Associates, Inc. (GNA). . Some of the articles and materials that appear herein are reproduced with the permission of the copyright owner(s). No reproduction or duplication allowed without the written permission of GNA. The statements contained herein have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Nothing contained herein is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The materials contained on this website are for educational purposes only, and GNA does not endorse or express any opinion as to the validity of the information or advice contained on this website. Consult with your knowledgeable health care provider to determine which and what amounts of vitamins, minerals, food supplements, dietary plans, or exercise programs would be beneficial for your particular health needs. If you are using any medications, you must consult with your physician and pharmacist to determine if any vitamin, mineral, nutrient, chemical, phyto-chemical, herb, botanical, juice, drug, or food may be counter-indicated. Disclaimer The information on this website is presented for educational purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for the diagnosis, treatment and advice of a qualified licensed professional. Throughout this website, statements are made pertaining to the properties and/or functions of nutritional products. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and these materials and products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. --- Vitamin B12 in the Vegan Diet -- The requirement for vitamin B12 is very low. Neither plants nor animals make vitamin B12. Bacteria are responsible for producing vitamin B12. Animals get their vitamin B12 from eating foods contaminated with vitamin B12 and then the animal becomes a source of vitamin B12. We store between 2 and 5 micrograms of vitamin B12 and only excrete a very small fraction of this each day. Bacteria in the large intestine of humans produce vitamin B12. -- References 1. Institute of Medicine, Food and Nutrition Board: Dietary Reference Intakes for Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B-6, Folate, Vitamin B-12, Pantothenic Acid, Biotin, and Choline. Washington, DC: National Academy press, 1998. 2. Lesaffre Yeast Corporation. Vegetarian Support Formula. http://www.lesaffreyeastcorp.com/nutritional/consumer/veg.html. Accessed October 19, 2005. 3. Nature's Path. Cold Cereals. http://www.naturespath.com/products/cold_cereals. Accessed October 19, 2005. 4. Messina V, Melina V, Mangels AR. A new food guide for North American vegetarians. J Am Diet Assoc 2003;103:771-5. 5. Armstrong BK. Absorption of vitamin B12 from the human colon. Am J clin nutr 1968; 21:298-9. 6. Callender ST, Spray GH. Latent pernicious anemia. Br J Haematol 1962;8:230-240. 7. Herbert V. Vitamin B12: Plant sources, requirements, and assay. Am j clin nutr 1988;48:852-858. 8. van den Berg H, Dagnelie PC, van Staveren WA. Vitamin B12 and seaweed. Lancet 1988;1:242-3. 9. Mozafar A. Enrichment of some B-vitamin in plants with application of organic fertilizers. Plant and Soil 1994;167:305-11. 10. Mozafar A. Is there vitamin B12 in plants or not? A plant nutritionist's view. Vegetarian Nutrition: An International Journal 1997;1/2:50-52. --- JoAnn Guest mrsjo- www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Diets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 22, 2006 Report Share Posted September 22, 2006 What about the bioavailability of essential aminos from vegetarian sources? Moreover, no single vegetarial source contains all the essential aminos. By contrast, animal source contains all the essential aminos in one place. True we should not overdo protein but this holds true for vegetarian protein. In no meal should we go beyong 30 gms, ideally staying at 20 gms of mixed vege and nonvege protein. Total not more than 90 gms per day. More than that and the body becomes acidic to neutralize which the body tries to become alkaline by leaching out calcium from bones. True. Ratan. --- JoAnn Guest <angelprincessjo wrote: > Amino Acid Content of Vegetarian Foods > JoAnn Guest > Sep 21, 2006 20:35 > --- > > The Egg Protein Index > By Gary Null, Ph.D., Hillard Fitzkee, Steven Null > and Martin > Feldman, MD. > > http://gnhealth.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=1116 > > Note: The information on this website is not a > substitute for > diagnosis and treatment by a qualified, licensed > professional. > Introduction > Overview > ===================================================================== > Americans' desire to have quality and > quantity protein > sources is paramount in their food selection > process. However, we > seem > to have gone overboard in our enthusiasm for protein > in that we're > consuming far more animal protein than what is > healthful. > > > In point of fact, there have been more than 250 > scientific studies > published in recent years showing that our > propensity toward: (1) a > high percentage of animal fats in our diets; (2) a > high proportion > of > total calories consumed from saturated animal > fats--more than 40%; > and > (3) excess amounts of protein from animal sources, > are all > contributing > to a heightened risk of heart disease, cancer, and > other > degenerative > conditions. > > On the other hand, numerous studies (see > bibliography) confirm that > a > properly balanced vegetarian program provides more > than adequate > amounts > of protein, while such a regimen's lower fat content > reduces the > risk of > various diseases. > The findings of these studies have not been widely > implemented, > though, > partly because of some outdated assumptions that > are, unfortunately, > still extant. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 23, 2006 Report Share Posted September 23, 2006 We can neutralize the tendency for excess flesh and eggs protein to be acidifying to the body by using undenatured whey, which is actually slightly alkalizing, and if we do use excess flesh and eggs, by supplying calcium. Magnesium and potassium are also useful for neutralizing acidity. I agree that bioavailability counts in this argument; body builders often use 120 grams or so of whey powder daily to build mass more quickly, and body builders who switched to soy protein from whey and/or eggs lost muscle mass. I also agree that veggies do not contain enough essential amino acids; traces hardly count, although this theoretical argument is often used by vegetarians, who are mainly emaciated and deficient. Duncan Crow , psych doc <psych_58 wrote: > > What about the bioavailability of essential aminos > from vegetarian sources? Moreover, no single > vegetarial source contains all the essential aminos. > By contrast, animal source contains all the essential > aminos in one place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 30, 2006 Report Share Posted September 30, 2006 , psych doc <psych_58 wrote: > > What about the bioavailability of essential aminos > from vegetarian sources? Moreover, no single > vegetarial source contains all the essential aminos. Hi Ratan! With all due respect, the preceding statement is a total fabricated myth!! Whole grains Quinoa, Millett and Bulgur contain all of the essential amino acids which are present in the animal proteins! This includes one of the important aminos, lysine, as well! The foods we consume have 20 different amino acids.We can make 11 of them in our body. These are called non-essential amino-acids. The other 9 are called essential amino-acids (E.A.A.) and these we must derive from our daily diet. All of the plant proteins including organic eggs, cooked dried beans, raw nuts and organic whole grains contain all of the E.A.A. Protein quality depends on how well i.e. how " easily " a particular protein is digested and " broken down " into its individual amino- acids. Plant proteins are about 85% digestible and those based on animal proteins are about 95% digestible and that is a small difference. Regards, JoAnn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.