Protein for A Healthy Kidney

Here's another informative article by Dr. Donald K. Layman on protein intake and kidney health.  Read and enjoy.

 

This week I presented two talks about protein for fitness and physical performance at the American College of Sports Medicine conference. ACSM is a professional organization for university faculty and students in kinesiology (exercise science) and practicing trainers and physical therapists who are all interested in muscle health and physical performance. While these trainers and therapists recognize the importance of protein for muscle health, they encounter clients or patients who have been told by doctors or nurses that high protein diets will damage the kidneys. This is a common warning from the medical community. This warning is largely based on assumptions and extrapolations and actually contrary to the research, but the concern persists. Because METABOLIQ is a “higher” protein diet, let’s look at how the kidney works and the origins of these questions about protein.

The kidney is the organ that filters the blood and removes salts, minerals, vitamins, urea, and water to keep your body in proper balance. Everything you eat or drink must eventually leave the body in some way – your breath, sweat, the stool, and urine. Everyday you must eliminate the equivalent of everything you eat or drink or eventually even vitamins, minerals, and water would accumulate and become toxic. If you exercise more vigorously you have to exhale more carbon dioxide; if you eat more fiber the stool will be larger; and if you drink more water you visit the bathroom more often. That same logic applies to protein. If you eat more protein then your kidney eliminates more urea. So just like eliminating water, the kidney is doing its job.
But let’s go farther yet. Just like water, protein is actually good for your kidneys. When you eat more protein, your kidneys actually get a little larger and that increases the capacity of the filtering process. The kidneys become more efficient.

Back in 2002, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) of the National Academy of Sciences reviewed all of the research studies on the topic of protein and kidney health; and they concluded that there was no evidence that higher protein diets were harmful to the kidney and recommended that protein was safe up to at least 35% of daily calories or 3.0 g/kg body weight. These levels translated into daily intakes up to at least 250 grams of protein. That’s in the range of 35 ounces of meat per day! That’s a lot of capacity. The IOM went a step farther and stated that low protein diets actually reduced kidney functioning during aging.
 
So why does the concern about protein persist within the medical community? The basis for the concern comes from patients who already have kidney failure. The most common cause of kidney failure is long-term poor management of diabetes. High blood sugar damages the small blood vessels throughout the body and one of the most sensitive organs is the kidney with its elaborate filtering system. When the filtering system is damaged the kidney slowly loses its ability to clean the blood. When kidney function is reduced to less than 20% of normal, it is essential to reduce the load on the kidney and maybe begin dialysis. This means restricting everything that is filtered by the kidney including sodium, potassium, minerals, water, and also protein. The important point here is there is no risk from protein unless the kidney is already damaged by some other problem. Once the kidney has been damaged, then medical care is focused on reducing urine load including restricting water, salts and protein. Protein is not the cause of kidney problems but kidney problems will affect protein metabolism. So the medical community has associated protecting the kidney with reducing protein intake, but the association is not true for healthy kidneys.

So how much protein is acceptable?  Protein experts generally agree that there is a very wide range of safe and acceptable intakes for protein from a minimum requirement of about 60 grams each day up to an upper limit around 250 grams (and this is a very conservative high end). Currently, average daily protein intake in the United States is only about 70 grams for women and 90 grams for men. METABOLIQ is a “moderately” higher protein diet with a goal of 110 to 130 grams per day. METABOLIQ also has the added benefit that it distributes the protein throughout the day with the Shakes, Bars and METABOLIQ meals so that the body sees a constant supply of protein instead of a single, very large protein meal at dinner. Getting protein right in your diet is good for every part of your body – and that includes your kidneys.

How To Practice Balance And Moderation In Your Diet

I have to be honest and tell you that more than 50 percent of the exercise required to stay fit and firm as you age involves a fork and knife. No amount of exercise can compensate for poor dietary habits. I believe in finding a healthy eating plan that works for you, that you can live with for the long-term.
 
One of the easiest ways to incorporate a healthy eat plan into your life is through balance and moderation in the foods you eat everyday.You can eat any food you desire as long as it is in moderation and balanced it with the rest of the foods you consume. For example, I love brownies, so when I have a brownie for dessert I only have one. I also balance the carbohydrates and sugar in the brownie by not having bread with my meal.

The first step to learning balance and moderation in your diet is knowing how to classify foods into their basic source of protein, carbohydrates, and fats as well as how they are used in your body. The second step is mastering portion. Knowing how many calories you consume from each food source and what your serving sizes are will enable you to balance your meals. Eating this way can be easily incorporated into your lifestyle - it’s a plan you can stick with over time.

So let’s begin by seeing how foods are broken down into their basic components of protein, carbohydrates, and fats and how your body uses them. In this post we'll talk about Protein.

Protein

Protein is a necessary part of every living cell in your body. Next to water, protein comprises up the greatest portion of your body weight. Protein substances make up your muscles, ligaments, tendons, organs, glands, nails, hair, and many vital body fluids. It is essential for the growth, repair, and healing of your bones, tissues, and cells. In addition, the enzymes and hormones that catalyze and regulate your body processes are comprised of protein. So, you see the proper amount of protein in your diet is vital for your health and wellbeing.

Protein is composed of building-block chemicals called amino acids. There are approximately 28 commonly known amino acids that your body uses to create all the various combinations of proteins needed for survival. These 28 commonly known amino acids are further classified as essential and nonessential amino acids. Nonessential amino acids can be produced in your body, while essential amino acids cannot be produced in your body and must be obtained from the foods you eat.

The sources of protein in your diet are classified as complete or incomplete. Complete proteins contain all the essential amino acids and are mostly from animal sources such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, and dairy products. Incomplete proteins lack one or more essential amino acids that your body cannot make itself. Incomplete proteins usually come from plant- based sources such as fruits, vegetables, grains, and nuts. You must eat incomplete sources of protein in a combination that contains all the essential amino acids in order for your body to use them.

As mentioned, you must get your essential amino acids from your diet because your body cannot make them itself. Some of the best animal sources of protein are fish, poultry, lean cuts of meat, and low-fat dairy products. Some of the best vegetable sources are beans, nuts, and whole grains.

So, now you must be thinking how much protein should be in your daily diet? According to research on this topic, there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Recommendations range from a minimum of 10 percent of your daily caloric intake to 30 percent. However, results from scientific research are now revealing that people who consume higher amounts of protein (20 to 30 percent of their daily caloric intake), while cutting back on their carbohydrate intake, tend to lose weight faster and stay leaner than those people on low-fat diets.

The reason higher protein, lower carbohydrates diets are more conducive to weight loss and maintenance is interesting. First, high-protein foods slow the movement of food from the stomach to the intestines, meaning you feel full longer and don’t get hungry as often. Second, protein has a leveling effect on your blood sugar which means you are less likely to get spikes in your blood sugar that lead to cravings for carbohydrates. Third, your body uses more energy to digest protein than it does to digest fat or carbohydrates. (3)

Over the years, I found that eating about 30 percent of my calories from protein works great for me to maintain my weight and muscle mass. Here’s how to calculate how many grams of protein that equates to 30 percent of your daily caloric intake. First, you must have an idea of how many calories you consume daily. I suggest you keep a food journal for at least a week in which you write down everything you eat and drink and the corresponding quantities. Next, you have to calculate the total calories you eat each day from your journal. You can do this by finding the nutritional data for foods from different sources. For example, the USDA’s National Nutritional Database can be found at www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/.

Once you know how many daily calories you are eating it’s easy to calculate how much protein you should be consuming. Let’s say the result from above calculations show that you are eating approximately 1800 calories per day. So, 30 percent of 1800 calories equates to 540 calories that should be consumed from protein. Next, you convert the calories from protein to grams by dividing the 540 calories by 4 which equals 134 grams of protein.

Now that you know how much protein you need in your diet here are some good sources of protein listed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help you with you serving sizes.

1 ounce meat, fish, poultry equals 7 grams of protein

1 large egg equals 6 grams of protein

4 ounces milk equal 4 grams of protein

4 ounces low-fat yogurt equals 6 grams of protein

4 ounces soy milk equals 5 grams of protein

3 ounces tofu, firm equals 13 grams of protein

1 ounce cheese equals 7 grams of protein

1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese equals 14 grams of protein

1/2 cup cooked kidney beans equals 7 grams of protein

1/2 cup lentils equals 9 grams of protein

1 ounce nuts equals 7 grams of protein

2 tablespoons peanut butter equals 8 grams of protein

1/2 cup vegetables equals 2 grams of protein

1 slice bread equals 2 grams of protein

1/2 cup of most grains/pastas equals 2 grams of protein

I hope this helps you start to understand how to balance your meals.  In my next post I'll talk about carbohydrates.

In the Beginning, Hire A Personal Trainer

Image via WikipediaI recently read an article that offered inexpensive alternatives to hiring a personal trainer.  The article mentioned places where you can get "how to" fitness information online.  While, you can find a lot good fitness information and excellent exercise routines on the web, you will also find some information that's not worth following.  Therefore, you need to have enough knowledge about health and fitness to distinguish the good information from the bad.  So, if you are new to exercise and thinking of beginning a fitness program, I suggest you hire a good nationally certified personal trainer.  A personal trainer can assess your physical characteristics and lifestyle and custom design a program just for you.

I also think you should at least have a trainer custom design a program for you even if are going to workout on your own.  They can teach you the proper form and technique to use for each exercise, so when you are working out you can be confident you are doing the routine properly.  I can't count the number of times I've seen people following some exercise routine they've downloaded and doing most of the exercises incorrectly and  consequently injure themselves.

In addition, a personal trainer can also educate you about health and fitness, so when you do search for new exercise routines on the web you can distinguish the good ones from the not so good.  This alone is a good reason to invest in hiring a personal trainer.

Exercise Of The Week; Vertical Knee Raise

Vertical knee raises strengthens and develops your abdominal and lower back muscles. Position yourself on the machine to where your weight is resting on your elbows and your lower back is firmly press against the back rest. This is your start position. Exhale while slowly bringing your legs towards your chest and keeping a slight bend your knees. Lift your legs to a little higher than parallel to the floor and inhale while slowly returning to your start position.

This exercise is more of an advanced movement, so make sure you've been doing your other core exercises regularly before attempting to do this. Then when you are ready, I suggest you start by performing 3 sets of 15 repetitions.

Exercise of the Week; The Dumbbell Row

The dumbbell row is a good alternative to the seated row that I mentioned in one of my earlier posts. It it is a great exercise to strengthen and develop the muscles of the upper back.

Hold a dumbbell in one hand, and place the opposite knee on a bench. Lean forward, and place your other hand on the bench. Step to your side with the other leg bending your knee slightly. Proper form is very important on this exercise, so be careful that your lower back is not rounded. Hold the dumbbell fully extended beneath your shoulder. This is your starting position. Now, slowly pull the dumbbell to underarm height, squeeze your shoulder blade toward your spine and return slowly to the start position. The breathing pattern is to exhale as you pull the dumbbell toward you and inhale as you return to start.

I recommend that beginners do 2 sets of 10 repetitions of this exercise and those who are more experienced do 3 sets of 10 repetitions.

Sitting Is Hazardous to Your Health

I just got back from an annual weekend Fitness Symposium where I learned many interesting things. However, the most shocking fact was the health care cost of inactivity is approximately $150 billion per year. That is the cost of not moving enough to see any kind of health benefits associated with regular exercise. Sitting Is Hazardous To Your Health!

The 2007 Physical Activity Guidelines from the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Association for men and women under the age of 65 is:

• Moderate cardiovascular activity 30 minutes per day, 5 days each week, OR
• Vigorous cardiovascular activity 20 minutes per day, 3 days each week, AND
• 8 - 10 strength training exercises (8-12 repetitions each), 2 times each week.

And for men and women over age 65 and over:

• Moderate cardiovascular activity 30 minutes per day, 5 days per week, OR
• Vigorous cardiovascular activity 20 minutes per day, 3 days per week, AND
• 8 - 10 strength training exercises (10-16 repetitions each) 2 to 3 times each week, AND
• Balance exercises, if at risk of failing.

Where in both cases Moderate equals activities that reasonably accelerate the heart rate, such as a brisk walk, and Vigorous equals activities causing a rapid increase in heart rate, such as jogging.

Now the benefits of adhering to the above exercise guidelines are:

• Reduced stress, depression and anxiety
• Lowered risk of stroke
• Lowered incidence of breast cancer in women
• Reduced blood pressure
• Increased function and mobility with less pain in arthritis sufferers
• Improved total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels
• Enhanced cardioprotection of cardiovascular disease
• Improved body composition and weight management
• Increased bone density for a reduction of risk of osteoporosis
• Improved blood triglycerides and HDL levels
• Better management of diabetes
• Lower incidence of colon cancer.

Most people know the benefits of regular exercise, and still the majority of our population spend 75 to 95 percent of their day seated. According to the Center for Disease Control, 25 percent of Americans report no physical activity during leisure time and 50 percent do not accumulate 30 minutes of moderate activity on most days of the week.

After seeing these facts, my advise to everyone is to get off your seat and start moving. Sitting is indeed hazardous to your health.

When You Feel Over-Whelmed, It's Okay to Take a Mental Break

Image via WikipediaI got an early morning text from a client saying that life was really busy for her this week, and she needed a break from her workout session. Part of my job as a personal trainer is to motivate my clients to stay on track to accomplish their fitness goals. And another part of my job is knowing when a client is over-whelmed by the things of life, and giving them the okay to skip a session and to not feel guilty about it.

Sometimes as a personal trainer I have to discern the best road to take for the long-term health and fitness of my clients. If I convince my clients to keep their appointments if they are feeling over-whelmed by life, when it would be more beneficial for them to take a mental break, then I am adding to their stress.

When the things of life get in the way of your fitness plan it's okay to take a session or two off as long as you pick-up your workouts when you get your focus back. Let's face it, we all have days that we just don't want to get out of bed, and that's s sign that we need a mental break. My advice is to take one.

Your Choice, Your Health, It's That Simple

Image by Vook tv via Flickr

Getting healthier, losing weight, feeling better, and getting fit is not complicated. It’s about the daily choices you make. Choice is a powerful thing. You can choose daily habits that promote a healthy lifestyle or not. That choice is completely yours.

Many of the aliments that we associate with aging are the results of many years of making poor lifestyle choices. I’m 51 years old and I hear people my age complaining of the aliments of "getting older." I don’t know what they are talking about, because I feel as good as I did when I was 25.

The only difference is I choose to live a healthy lifestyle. I eat a healthy diet, I exercise on a regular basis, and I fill my mind with positive thoughts.

Here’s an example of the power of choice. I was sitting in a coffee shop a few weeks ago, and across the room I noticed 2 women sitting together. One woman was extremely over-weight and the other woman looked very fit. The over weight woman was eating a big cookie and drinking a latte, while the fit looking woman was eating a health breakfast wrap.

Now, I’m pretty sure that over-weight woman did gain those extra pounds by eating a cookie and drinking a latte just one time. Most likely, her extra weight is from years of choosing to eat cookies and drink lattes, or something similar for breakfast. No one forces her to make that decision. And on the other hand, no one forces the fit looking woman to eat the way she eats. It’s all about personal choice. While an occasional mocha latte and a big cookie for breakfast won’t make you over-weight, choosing to have them everyday probably will.

It’s your choice, it’s your health. You and only you are responsible for your health and well-being. Choose healthy eating habits and healthy lifestyle activities and you become a healthy person. It's that simple.