COMPLEMENARY PROTEINS
Meat is a complete protein. It's the only source of complete protein. Dairy products are near perfect and eggs have the most usable protein of any food. Soy products are close to being complete since soy has the largest of total protein of any food(40% of soy is protein). Quinoa is also almost complete. The rest of the plant proteins are incomplete. This means that these other plant foods do not have the 8 essential amino acids we must eat to combine with the other 14 amino acids synthesized by the body to total 22 amino acids necessary to sustain human life. Non-meat protein sources are divided into four groups-grains, legumes(peas and beans), seeds & nuts, dairy.
Complementary Proteins
· Combining one plant food that provides four of the 8 essential amino acids with a different food that provides the other four gives you all eight. Together, they provide complete protein. Selecting two or more sources that, together, provide the eight essential amino acids is a practical diet. It is the essence of a vegetarian diet. Most ethnic(poor people) cooking around the world fits this pattern.
· This is NOT complicated. It turns out ANY two foods, from different groups, provide complete protein. At one time it was thought they had to be eaten together but later studies show that it's fine just to eat the two foods in the same 24 hour period.
By far, the grain-dairy and grain-legume combination's are the most common but there are standard examples of all combination's.
Other reasons why non-meat protein sources are good
· Plant sources are plentiful, cheaper than meat, and store well. Meat is expensive and hard to store. Hence, plant proteins are what the church suggests we store for our long term food storage program which include dried legumes, grains, & fat or oil.
· Furthermore, non-fat dry milk as an animal product is suggested as a food storage item because of its high amount of usable protein which is almost complete and complements other incomplete plant sources of protein such as grains.
· Plant sources also provide much needed fiber while meat provides little or none. While too much fat is bad, some is essential. Meat is a good source of fat, and if it is restricted, one needs another source. Dairy, seeds, and nuts provide fat and so do many beans.
EXAMPLES OF COMPLETE PROTEIN COMBINATION'S
Grain and Dairy
· Bread and butter(not margarine)
· Hot or cold cereal with milk
· Eggs and toast or Yogurt & toast
· Pizza (bread & cheese)
· Macaroni & cheese or Spaghetti with grade cheese
· Anything with noodles or rice and a cheese sauce
· Egg salad sandwich
· Cake and milk
· Quiche(egg pie)
· Any whole grained bread/sandwich with a glass of milk
· Rice, whole grained bread or tapioca pudding made with milk
· Any sandwich(whole grained bread) with a slice of cheese
Grain and Legume
· It is common to put some peas in a noodle dish
· Chili over rice - sprinkle some cheese on top and you have three groups
· Peanut butter sandwich -peanuts are peas(legumes). They are NOT nuts.
Grain and Seed
· Rolls with poppy or sesame seeds
Legume and Dairy
· Chili topped with cheese
· Green bean casserole made with milk
· Any serving of beans topped with butter or cheese
Dairy and Nut
· Custard(milk/egg) dessert with nut topping
It is very important to note that a person undertaking the above combination's from a plant source diet should read the following book from which this information is designed.-"Diet For a Small Planet" by Frances Lappe. For example, a 170 lb man needs 64 grams of protein a day.
CWG: Comp Proteins(R 2-14-11)
