The Official Aminogen Blog

High Protein Diet and Bone Health

A study published in the Journal of Nutrition reports that animals fed a high protein diet had reduced body fat while increasing mineral bone content.

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has also reported studies in humans concluding that protein may actually have an overall positive effect on bone health.

Training (and Taming) Your Appetite

Ever notice that if you are accustomed to eating at the same time everyday, you will get hungry at that same time each day... like clockwork?

Scientists have discovered there are cells in your stomach designed to tell time.  These cells function as part of your circadian clock, your body's internal way of keeping vital processes "on schedule."

Food-entrainable oscillators (FEOs),  researchers explain in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, are stomach cells that stimulate the release of grehlin, the hormone of hunger. 

It seems these cells can adjust to your daily habits.  Want to eat mid-morning, after exercise, or eat an earlier dinner?  After a few days of changing your schedule, your hunger cues may change with you. Your FEOs may stimulate ghrelin release to coincide with your new routine.

Knowing when you will get hungry means you can be prepared with healthy snacks and meals.

One caveat: lack of sleep elevates ghrelin, so inadequate rest might cause you to eat more.

Training Tip: Eating your meals and snacks at the same time everyday and getting plenty of rest may help you regulate the hormone of hunger.  Also, remember your protein when you want to keep hunger in check.  Protein has been shown to increase satiety and lower ghrelin levels more efficiently than carbohydrates and fats.

 

Protein Around the World

If you take Aminogen, you probably put a lot of thought into to the quantity and quality of your protein intake.

But have you ever wondered what other people are eating?  Ever sneak a peak into someone else's grocery cart? 

Time Magazine offers a glimpse of weekly groceries from around the world in their slideshow What the World Eats.  From junk food to fruits, vegetables and meats, it's interesting to see what other people are eating.  Note the breakdown of macro nutrients and calories for developed and developing countries.

So what kind of protein and how much of it do people in other nations consume?

According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, or FAO,  the average daily intake of protein around the world is 75 grams per person per day. 

As for individual countries, take a look at some of the highest and lowest protein consumption rates:

                                                       United States                  114                                                  

      Italy                              113

                                                                       Australia                         111

                                                                       Japan                               91

                                                                        Russia                              91

                                                                       Brazil                                85

       China                                 81

                                                                        Chad                                 65

                                                                        Haiti                                 48      

         

What does this look like in terms of real food?  Take a look at the protein content of some common ones:

                                                      One 8 oz. chicken breast                       48-56 g

                                                      One can of tuna                                          32 g

                                                      Average protein drink*                            25-30 g

                                                      Two whole eggs                                        14 g

                                                      One cup milk                                            8-9 g

 

*Aminogen can be found in CytoSport's Monster Milk, which actually delivers much more protein at 50 grams, and 500 mgs of Aminogen.

To find recipes and protein dishes from around the world, check out this site.               

Egg Protein and Weight Loss

The high quality in eggs may help you lose weight, according to researcher Donald Layman.  Presenting his findings at a recent conference, Layman highlighted the importance of amino acids, and described how they might improve the body's metabolism.

While National Egg Nutrition Month has passed (check out last year's post on egg nutrition), there are aalways plenty of ways to benefit from the protein goodness found in eggs. Take a look at the nutrition content of eggs and you'll agree they are all they are cracked up to be.  Then, make your own high quality protein meal.  The American Egg Board provides an impressive collection of egg recipes.

And of course, remember that Aminogen helps your body to make the most of your dietary protein for optimal weight loss and improved body composition.

 

Going Lean

... requires resistance exercise and a healthy protein intake, especially as we age.

Lean muscle mass plays an important but often-overlooked role in our health , and it's never too soon to start taking care of it.

 

For a Good Cause

Each year between the ages of 30 and 60 the average person can expect to lose one-half a pound of muscle, a process known as sarcopenia.  At the same time, the average person will also gain one pound of fat.

As the years go by, this shift in body composition really adds up. At some point between the ages of 50 and 75, an average person may have lost some 25 percent of their lean muscle mass. 

Sarcopenia can affect our immune systems, our risk of injuries and our ability to recover from them. It can also play a role in chronic conditions like diabetes and osteoporosis.

As we age it's important to resist this physiological entropy by maintaining and building our reserves of lean muscle and fighting off the fat.

Reduce, Re-use, Recycle

 

Losing lean muscle can slow fat burning and muscle protein synthesis, therefore leading to further lean muscle loss. 

Lean muscle affects our metabolism in at least three ways:

 

Reduce 

Lean muscle is the largest location in the body where lipid oxidation, or fat burning, takes place.  Scientist think that less muscle can result in a diminished capacity to get rid of fat.

Re-use  

Muscle tissue is also the primary depository for glucose disposal. Once they fill to maximum capacity - around 250 grams of glucose for an average person - glucose then must be stored in the liver and in fat cells.  Exercise uses the glucose stored in muscles and in doing so helps to promote healthy glucose metabolism.  This is important in the preventing or minimizing chronic conditions like diabetes, macular degeneration, and perhaps even Alzheimer's.

Recycle

Recent research confirms that blood plasma levels of essential amino acids help to regulate protein synthesis. Low levels of these amino acids result in lower rates of muscle protein synthesis. What's more, the body needs amino acids for a number of important jobs in addition to muscle building. If there are not enough amino acids available in the blood,  it will break down lean muscle and use amino acids stored there for these other functions.

 

You Can Make a Difference

Scientists believe that our slowing metabolism and decreased ability to oxidize fat is a result of the typical decrease in lean body mass, rather than simply a function of age.

In order to prevent lean muscle mass as we age, experts recommend resistance exercise coupled with sufficient, quality protein intake. 

In fact, in his report for the U.S. Dairy Export Council on sarcopenia and whey protein, Dr. Paul J. Cribb states:

"An individual's habitual protein intake may prove to be one of the more important variables that influence the size of human muscle mass since recent work has confirmed that the concentration of EAA [essential amino acids] in the blood (plasma) regulate protein synthesis rates within muscle."

 

If I could turn back time..

OK, so you may not have wanted a Cher song stuck in your head for the rest of the day, but you will want to know about this study.

Researchers were looking at the connection between exercise, aging and muscle loss.  They wanted to know to what extent strength training could affect the progression of sarcopenia.

They had two groups of male and female subjects -those younger than 25 and those older- participate in six months of leg strength training.  The exercise had tangible results for the older subjects.  Their leg strength increased by 50 percent.

What the researchers discovered next, however, was even better news.  It turns out that the strength training improved function on a genetic level in the older subjects, in effect making some of their genes perform like those in the 25 years and younger group.

Exercise Influences Genes

 

Scientists suspect that sarcopenia is related to mitochondrial dysfunction within skeletal muscle cells. Mitochondria are tiny organells within cells that convert certain chemicals into functional energy. Energy distribution is fundamental  to physiological processes like muscle exertion, building and repair.  

So the researchers in this study took muscle biopsies in order to take a closer look at the effects of strength training on a genetic level. They found that there were 596 genes expressed differently in older versus younger subjects.

Amazingly, the expression of 179 of those genes was positively affected by the exercise.

In other words, the strength training literally 'turned back the clock" on those genes, so that they acted a bit more like the gene of the younger adults. Cellular repair was improved and mitochondrial damage was lessened.

 

Strength training made subjects younger, to a degree, on a genetic level.

 

Should Dietary Protein Guidelines Be Changed? Part II

In my last post  we looked at two reasons why Donald K. Layman believes protein dietary guidelines should be changed.   

Today, we'll take a look at two more:

 

Amount of Protein in an Individual Meal Matters

 

In other words, in order to benefit from protein in certain ways, you have to absorb a certain amount of protein in a certain period of time. 

How protein is distributed throughout the day is also important. Layman says that the amount of protein in each meal becomes a factor in building and maintaining lean muscle, especially as we age.

He explains that in children and young adults, muscle protein synthesis is stimulated by insulin and dietary energy.  Later in adulthood, however, muscle protein synthesis becomes increasingly dependent on the essential amino acid leucine.  Remember, leucine helps drive dietary energy away from fat cells and into muscle cells (and Aminogen increases leucine levels by 230 percent).

Exactly how much leuciene and other amino acids from protein are needed to promote muscle protein synthesis?  Layman cites studies that say the answer is 15 grams of essential amino acids.  This would be around 30 grams of whole protein.  He also reminds us that the typical adult breakfast contains less than 10 grams of protein.  For an average adult, inadequate protein intake at breakfast may cause the body to break down muscle, in order to obtain the amino acids it needs and is not getting from the diet.

From this we can see that in order to take in enough protein to maintain healthy lean mass, we have to consider not only how much protein we eat in total for one day, but how much we are absorbing each time we eat.

 

Most adults benefit from protein intakes above the minimum Recommended Daily Allowance

 

This is Layman's conclusion after reviewing scientific studies. Of course, no one should make changes to their diet or increase their protein intake without consulting their physician first.  But Layman is suggesting that experts consider the benefits of protein and the important functions of specific amino acids that a growing body of research supports.

 

Among the health benefits of protein Layman lists:

Body compostition

Weight loss and satiety

Cardiovascular health support

Dietary support possibly benefiting conditions such as metabolic syndrome and sarcopenia

 

It will be interesting to see further studies on these effects and whether such research does eventually lead to new dietary guidelines. I will certainly keep you updated here!

Should Dietary Protein Guidelines Be Changed? Part I

Yes, says a convincing treatise from Donald K. Layman of the Food Science and Human Nutrition department of the University of Illinois.

Layman presents four emerging concepts in protein nutrition that he thinks should be reflected in updated dietary guidelines:

Protein is a critical part of the adult diet

Protein needs are proportional to body weight; not energy intake

Adult protein utilization is a function of intake at individual meals

Most adults benefit from protein intakes above the minimum RDA

Let's take a look at the first two of these suggestions today.

 

Importance of Protein

 

Layman suggests that the current Recommended Daily Allowance for protein (0.8 g/kg of body weight) is based, in part, on the premise that "once substrate requirements for essential amino acids are met, then the need for protein is satisfied."  In other words, this is the idea that increasing amino acid levels above and beyond what is needed to replenish basic stores is unnecessary, and may be dangerous.

But Layman points out that the danger of increased protein appears unfounded except for in cases of pre-existing kidney disease, and goes on to cite evidence that increased protein can improve adult health in some cases. Even the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academies may have taken this into consideration when it established an Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Range for protein of 0.8 g/kg to 2.5 g/kg and no identifiable Upper Limit risk.

It seems that dietary protein, and specific amino acids from this protein, may be of benefit in a number of conditions, including:

Obesity

Osteoporosis

Type 2 diabetes

Heart disease

Sarcopenia

What Layman is emphasizing here is that protein requirements should consider more than protein's role as a macronutrient.  Research shows that protein plays a specific role in some metabolic and chronic illnesses.

So protein above and beyond minimal energy requirements may benefit certain conditions and serve therapeutically, rather than only as sustenance.  It is known, for instance, that some whey protein fractions can lower blood pressure.

Interestingly, adding Aminogen to protein, which triples the rate of absorption, has also been shown to produce cardiovascular benefits by lowering C-reactive protein by 10 percent. 

 

Protein Needs are Proportional to Bodyweight

 

The government's MyPyramid suggests macronutrient guidelines in percentages of energy intake:

Carbohydrates       55%

Fats                         30%

Protein                    15%

While this may satisfy the minimum RDA requirement for some people, Layman argues that when energy intake is reduced - as it is when dieting or as people age - the need for protein increases. He suggests protein need is actually inversely proportional to energy intake, driving an increase of about one percent for every 100 kcal decrease in energy intake below 2000 kcal/day.

That dieting and ageing may both increase dietary protein needs may not be surprising to you, as I have discussed this before.  But Layman presents some excellent supporting evidence worth discussing further.

 

Dieting and Protein Intake

To quote Layman, "...long-term success with weight loss relates to maintenance of metabolically active lean tissues and research has proven that higher protein diets protect muscle and bone during  weight loss."  And of course, we know lean muscle is not only crucial for successful, long-term weight loss, but for everything from immune function and injury prevention to overall health and mortality rates.

Studies show that weight-loss diets high in carbohydrates and low in fat and protein can result in a 30 to 40 percent loss of lean tissue mass. Weight loss diets higher in protein reduced lean tissue loss to less than 15 percent, and when combined with exercise,  prevented lean tissue loss altogether.

 

Age and Protein Intake

It seems that ageing alters the efficiency of our metabolism, particularly when it comes to protein.  At younger ages, absorbing a certain amount of amino acids stimulates muscle repair and growth.  But as we age, it's as if our metabolic response becomes dulled and benefits from the same amount of amino acids are diminished.  

Layman states that although the need for total protein may not increase with age (in terms of proportion of the diet), our bodies require more essential amino acids in order to promote lean muscle growth and maintanence. Our bodies may need to take in more protein because of less efficient protein absorption and an increased dependency on amino acids - as opposed anabolic hormones - to stimulate muscle.

He explains, "After approximately age 30y, the anabolic drive is lost; basal levels of hormones become largely ineffective in stimulating protein synthesis in structural tissues; and diet quality and physical activity become the limiting factors for maintaining optimal protein turnover for repair, remodeling, and recovery."

The loss of lean muscle due to ageing, also called sarcopenia, is negatively associated with our ability to fight disease, recover from injury and live independently.  Researchers are now also uncovering the connection between muscle loss and bone loss, known as osteoporosis.  And while it was previously feared that increasing protein intake could promote bone loss, the most recent science says this is not the case.  In fact, Layman says that it is now understood that protein increases intestinal calcium and supports bone matrix turnover.

 

Aminogen

So how does Aminogen factor in when it comes to these issues?  Aminogen actually addresses several of Layman's concern's about protein intake, especially those linked with dieting and ageing, because it increases absorption of amino acids.  For example, we know that Aminogen significantly increases absorption of branched-chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine, by 250 percent.  Branched-chain amino acids are key to the muscle repair and growth that declines with age. 

In addition, Aminogen can  help with protein digestion and reduce or eliminate side-effects of incomplete protein digestion such as gas and constipation.  Since the amount of digestive enzymes we produce decreases with age, this is another important benefit. 

 In my next post we will look at the last two of Layman's recommendations for new protein guidelines.  Until then, let me know your thoughts on the first two.  Do you agree with Layman's assessment?

Many Americans Eating More Protein to Improve Diet

This one might not come as a surprise. 

A recent survey by the National Grocers Association found that two-thirds of Americans feel their diet could be healthier.  Fifty-two percent of people polled said their diet could be "somewhat healthier,"  and sixteen percent admitted their diet could be "a lot healthier."

Also reported in the survey was what Americans are doing to ensure their diet is healthy.

Some of the responses included:

 

83%     Eat More Fruits and Vegetables    

62%     Eat Fewer Fried Foods

47%     Eat Less Sugar

19%     Eat More Protein 

 

Of course, the health benefits of protein are well-covered territory on this blog. 

And a study just published in the Journal of Nutrition adds to the evidence.  The study looked at protein's benefits not just for weight loss, but for weight loss maintainence.

Compared to those subjects eating a conventional diet (defined as high in carbohydrates), subjects on the protein diet lost 22% more fat mass, and therefore greatly improved their body composition.  They were also more successful at maintaining their weight loss.

A word of advice when reading this study: don't be mislead by the title, which refers to the protein diet as "moderate protein."  The researchers go on to define moderate protein as "increased protein and reduced carbohydrates."

Better Results: Whey Protein Or Free-Form Amino Acids?

According to a study published in Nutrition Research, whey protein wins this one.  The researchers compared levels of the amino acid phenlyalanine in elderly men taking whey protein or equivalent doses of essential and non-essential free-form amino acids.  Phenlalanine levels improved only in the subjects taking whey protein.

Check out this post  from last week for more on the advantages of taking protein with Aminogen over taking amino acids alone.