Protein is one of the most essential nutrients required by the body. The amino acids found in protein are responsible for the formation of muscles and bones. These amino acids also help in the production of various enzymes and hormones in the body. Your body has a certain protein requirement per day to function properly. Your daily protein requirement or protein intake per day depends on how much you weigh.
The recommended protein requirement per day is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. This means if you have a sedentary lifestyle then you should eat about 56 grams of protein per day. Foods such as eggs, chicken, and many dairy products are great sources of protein. This blog will tell you more about protein, protein requirement per day, and how much protein is needed per day for males and females.
What is Protein?
The 2018 study, “Protein for Life” published by National Library of Medicine, emphasised on how protein intake should be increased as we descend to an older age. To know the importance of protein, one has to start off with understanding what exactly is protein. Proteins are complex molecules in the body which are made from their building blocks called amino acids. Amino acids are molecules that combine and form protein. There are three types of amino acids – essential amino acids, non-essential amino acids, and conditionally essential amino acids. There are 20 types of amino acids that can make protein. The 9 essential amino acids which are responsible for the formation and repair of muscle tissues are – alanine, arginine, asparagine, aspartic acid, cysteine, glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, proline, serine, and tyrosine. The daily protein requirement of an individual depends on their body weight. One should try to consume foods that are rich in protein to meet their protein requirement per day.
Why is Protein Important For Your Body?
So now that you know the answer to how much protein is needed per day for males and females let’s now take a look at why it’s important to complete your protein intake per day.
Protein is one of the most vital nutrients for the human body. Protein helps in the proper functioning of the body. From tissue repair to helping in the production of hormones your body is dependent on protein and that’s why it is important to fulfill your protein requirement per day. There are a lot of reasons why completing your protein intake per day is important for the body, some of which are mentioned below.
- Can Help in Weight Loss
- Can Help To Prevent Weight Gain
- Can Help To Gain Muscle and Strength
- Speedy Muscle Recovery After Exercise
- Can Help Maintain Muscle Mass
- Responsible For Biochemical Reactions
1. Can Help in Weight Loss
Foods high in protein will not only complete your protein requirement per day but also make you feel fuller. If you are on a weight loss journey then consuming enough protein can make you feel fuller for longer because protein takes more time to digest. This can help you to eat less food and not feel hungry frequently and help to complete your protein intake per day. When you consume protein to fulfill your protein requirement per day, your body also has to digest and absorb it and it requires energy which is called the Thermic Effect of Food (TEF). Protein has a higher thermic food effect which means your body burns some protein calories while metabolizing it. Eating good amounts of protein can meet your protein requirement per day and also increase the metabolism of the body. This means your body will be burning more calories while at rest and doing activities. This boost in metabolism can be helpful in weight loss. Also, protein-rich foods with exercise can help you boost your metabolism a lot more and in that case your daily protein requirement will be more.
2. Can Help To Prevent Weight Gain
Weight gain is often the result of overeating or an unhealthy lifestyle. Gaining weight is easy but losing it is a really hard task. People living an unhealthy lifestyle do not pay attention to their daily protein requirement. Here is how protein can help to prevent weight gain and ensure that you are meeting your protein requirement per day or protein intake per day.
Consuming protein can make you feel fuller for longer. Digesting protein takes some time which can reduce your appetite and make you less hungry. This can help you to consume fewer calories which will eventually prevent weight gain. Many protein-rich and Low calorie foods such as eggs are low in calories which will help you to complete your protein requirement per day and won’t affect your weight loss progress. You can combine various protein sources to complete your protein intake per day.
3. Can Help To Gain Muscle and Strength
When you do weight training or any resistance exercise your muscles suffer from wear and tear. The muscles require the right nutrition to repair the damage and that nutrition is protein. Protein helps to repair the muscles after a workout and meet your protein requirement per day. This leads to the muscles getting bigger in size which eventually helps you to gain more strength. Hence, ensuring good protein intake per day with the help of Protein Rich Foods can make you stronger.
4. Speedy Muscle Recovery After Exercise
Soon after your exercise your muscles tear and need the right nutrition to repair themselves. The amino acids present in protein help to repair the muscles also fulfilling your protein requirement per day. Recovery after exercise is important as it repairs the muscles and makes them ready for the next workout. Completing your daily protein requirement will ensure that your muscles recover a lot faster while you sleep. Also, the protein required in a day for you will increase as gain more muscle mass. There are many protein-related products like Nutrabay Products which are convenient and time-saving and can easily fulfill your protein requirements.
5. Can Help Maintain Muscle Mass
As we grow older we start to lose muscle mass from our body. Usually, when people grow old they don’t care about the protein required in a day for their body. Consuming protein daily and taking care of your daily protein requirement can lessen the loss of muscle mass from the body which can eventually provide strength to the body to do daily activities.
6. Responsible For Biochemical Reactions
Protein is responsible for causing a lot of biochemical reactions in the body. Enzymes are basically proteins that cause various biochemical reactions within and outside of the cells. Therefore, it is important to take care of your daily protein requirement and protein intake per day.
How much Protein is Required in a day?
If you are wondering how much protein do i need per day, we will unfold the answer for you. It is responsible for the formation and repair of muscles in the body. Your body needs protein for its proper functioning.
A lot of people struggle with the question- how much protein is needed per day. The amount of protein requirement per day will depend on what you weigh and how active you are. This means each and every one of your family members will have different protein requirements per day according to their weight and activity levels. If that sounds confusing then worry not, a Protein Calculator will make it easier for you.
Protein Required per day for Men
If you are dwelling on the plight of how much protein do i need per day, we are here to pay heed to your questions. The protein intake of an person depends substantially on thier lifestyle and health conditions. If you have a sedantary lifestyle, the daily protein intake should be 0.8gm to 1gm. For men who are juggling with an active schedule, the daily protein intake should be 1gm and for atheltic men or men who indulge in intense workouts the protein intake should be around 1.5gm to 2gm daily. The more you weigh the more daily protein requirement your body will have. An increase in physical activity in a day will increase the amount of protein required in a day. The daily protein intake of the body may ideally decline to 0.7gm after hitting 30 to 40 years of age as the protein absorption of the body reduces by then.
Protein Required per day for Women
The daily protein requirement of women is more or less same as that of women. The ideal protein intake per day should be equal to your body weight. For women with sedantary lifestyle, the daily protein intake should be 0.8gm to 1gm. For women who have a slight active schedule, the daily protein intake should be 1gm and for atheletes or women who indulge in intense workouts the protein intake should be around 1.5gm to 2gm daily. For pregnant women, the protein requirement exceeds to 1.2gm per day. Now you know how much protein is needed per day to help you stay strong and healthy.
What are the factors that impact Protein Requirement per day?
We are often stuck at the doubt of how much protein do i need per day along with what all factors impact our protein requirement. The standard protein intake of an average human body per day is equal to that of one’s body weight. However, protein requirement per day isnt one size fits all. The amount of protein required by every body may vary depending on various factors such as, age, body weight, calorie intake, lifestyle, training & exercises, etc. Below mentioned are some of the factors that significantly impact protein requirement per day.
- Training or Exercise
- Gut Health
- Protein’s Quality
1. Training or Exercise
People indulging in hardcore training often juggle with the question of how much protein do i need per day.For people who do hardcore or intense trainings, their protein requirements automatically increases as they require more amino acids to recover from the intensity they exert during thier workouts. Failure to this can lead to the state of overtraining which might counter-attack by negatively impacting your body health. Intense workouts can make the body sore and fatigue, thus protein consumption helps in recovery of those tissues and muscles.
2. Gut Health
Gut health can also be a minimal factor that impact one’s protein intake. People who suffer from constant bloating, frequent gas, or abdominal pain should get a comprehensive check-up, so as to have better knowledge of daily protein requirement. In case of poor gut health or conditions of chronic constipation, protein intake is suggested to be reduced than normal. However, since protein is imperative for one’s body health, even during gut health conditions the protein intake is reduced only for a brief time, till the condition wears out.
Additionally, the daily protein requirement increases for people who are on dialysis along with those who are under recovery or post-op. Lactating mothers are also recommended to enhance their protein intake.
3. Protein’s Quality
As we ask ourselves how much protein do i need per day, lets huddle back on the topic of the quality of protein we consume. In order to fuel our body with the best of protein benefits, its important to consume essential aino acids. There are total 9 essential amino acids, some of which include histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine. Egg whites, whole eggs, lean poultry are some of the food that consists of essential protein. One should try intaking the combination of foods that together makes up for whole protein, which would help in extracting higher benefits of protein intake.
There are also other factors like calorie and carb intake that affects one’s daily requirement of protein. Factors like age, weight or height also play a crucial role in determining the daily protein requirement of an individual.
How to add enough Protein as per Daily Requirement in your diet?
We all can agree that protein is really important for the body and the lack of it in our diet can cause a lot of health issues. People these days don’t keep track of their protein intake and are clueless about their protein requirement per day and don’t know how much protein is needed per day which can lead to protein deficiency in the body. The are a lot of ways in which you can complete your protein requirement per day or protein intake per day.
Include Eggs in Your Breakfast
You can add eggs to your diet which are cheap and easy to make and can be your source of protein required in a day. You can eat some hard-boiled eggs with your breakfast. Eating eggs instead of some sugary cereal in the morning can do wonders for your health and also complete your protein requirement per day. Eggs contain omega-3 fatty acids which are great for brain and heart health. Eggs are also low in calories which makes them a great food choice for people who are trying to lose weight as they can easily meet their daily protein requirement and protein intake per day without worrying about gaining weight.
Snack Smart
To meet your protein requirement per day you can have some healthy snacks. There are many protein-rich snacks that you can enjoy. To manage the protein required in a day you can snack on Cottage cheese, greek yogurt, and spiced chickpeas. These snacks are high in protein and also other nutrients as well. Picking these snacks instead of junk food made from refined carbs can benefit your health. These snacks require no cooking and will fulfill your protein requirement per day.
Eat More Almonds
We all know nuts are a great source of healthy fats that are really beneficial for your heart health and can also help with your daily protein requirement and protein intake per day. But did you know almonds also have a decent amount of protein in them? It is also high in magnesium. To meet your protein requirement per day you can add some chopped almonds to your smoothies. Other than almonds, cashews, and pistachios also have a decent amount of protein that one can consume for protein required in a day.
Have Some Greek Yogurt
One way to get your protein requirement per day is to eat Greek Yogurt. It is made by removing the whey and other liquids from your regular yogurt. Greek yogurt is high in protein and is also beneficial for weight loss as it releases gut hormones that reduce hunger and make you feel fuller for longer. You can add some berries with Greek yogurt to make it more delicious and complete your daily protein requirement and protein intake per day
Eat Peanut Butter Toast
Natural peanut butter is really healthy for the body and is a really easy way to make sure that your protein requirement per day is complete. Two servings of it contain around 8gm of protein. Apart from helping you to complete your daily protein requirement, peanut butter also contains many vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin B-6, Zinc, Phosphorus, and Magnesium. Always make sure to buy peanut butter which is natural and does not have any sugar or unwanted oils in it.
Benefits of intaking Protein as per daily requirement
As emphasised already, protein rich diet is essentially crucial for the well being of our overall health and body composition. Aside from being a great nutrient to maintain weight, there are various health benefits that comes along with intake of protein as per daily requirement. Below listed are some of those benefits:
- Helps with Bone Metabolism
- Improves Immunity
- Reduces Anxiety
- Maintains Sugar Levels
- Prevents Heart Related Issues
1. Helps with Bone Metabolism
The intake of required protein helps in increasing the calcium and magnesium absorption of the body which assists in maintaining the bone health and strength. The arisen strength further helps in quick recovery of bone fractures along with the bone-related problem of osteoporosis.
2. Improves Immunity
Our body requires antibodies that helps in fighting the foreign particles which can cause infections and diseass in the human body. These antibodies are made up of proteins, thus intake of protein ultimately helps in fighting off these diseases by making our immune system strong. Milk and other dairy products are good source of protein and can provide a healthy boost to our immunity. Consumption of yogurt is also helpful for our digestive system as it consists of probiotic bacterias.
3. Reduces Anxiety
Dry fruits like almonds, cashews and walnuts provides the body with a boost of protein and magnesium which helps in improving the neurological system. This can eventually help in eliminating anxiety or depression.
4. Maintains Sugar Levels
The blood sugar level in the body is maintained throughthe hormone called insulin. Protein requires very minimal amount of insulin. Thus protein-rich diet utilises less insulin, further helping in maintaining the blood sugar. Diabetes patients are recommended to consume high-fibre, protein rich diets such as paneer, soy, chickpeas or lentils.
5. Prevents Heart Related Issues
Protein-rich diets helps with controlling obesity and keeping a check on cholesterol levels which adds up to maintaining heart health and keeping heart related issues at bay. Protein-rich diets are substantially helpful in preventing high blood pressure.
Expert Review on How much Protein is required per Day
Protein is one of the most essential nutrient that our body requires in order to retain its muscle strength, recover tissues, help prevent weight gain as well as assisting with weight loss, above all protein is a powerhouse of energy. Consumption of protein-rich diet can help with multiple benefits of maintaining weight, helping with controlled sugar levels, preventing heart related problems, improving the bone metabolism, building up muscle strength and so much more. Ideally, every individual should consume as much gram of protein as thier body weight. Depending on the changing lifestyle, health conditions, age, weight and height, the consumption of protein might be reduced or increased.
References
“,.” 2023. , – YouTube. https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full/10.1139/apnm-2014-0530.
“Protein for Life: Review of Optimal Protein Intake, Sustainable Dietary Sources and the Effect on Appetite in Ageing Adults.” 2018. NCBI. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5872778/.
FAQ’s
What is ideal protein requirement of an average person?
The ideal protein requirement per day of an average person is 0.8 gm of protein per kilogram of body weight. The protein requirement for a person will also increase and decrease according to the lifestyle they follow.
Do I need 100gm of Protein per day?
Different people have different protein requirement per day according to their weight and lifestyle but 100gm of protein per day for an average person is considered okay.
Do 2 eggs give me enough protein?
2 eggs contain about 10g of protein which may vary. It is not enough for an average person as the protein required in a day for an average man is 0.8 gm of protein per kilogram of body weight. More than 2 eggs will be required for you to fulfill your protein requirement per day.
How can I hit 80gm of Protein per day?
In order to hit 80gm of protein per day you can consume protein from various sources such as eggs, chicken, and dairy. You can also consume almonds which can help you meet your daily protein requirement.
Which Dal has the highest Protein?
Urad dal has the highest amount of protein per serving. It can contain close to 26g of protein per 100g serving. You can consume urad dal with other sources of protein for your protein required in a day.
How can I meet my protein requirement per day at home?
You can meet your protein requirement per day at home by consuming foods like eggs, chicken, and other dairy products which are cheap and easy to buy. Nuts such as almonds, pistachios, and walnuts also have decent amounts of protein and can fulfill your protein required in a day.
Is the protein requirement per day different for everyone?
Yes, your protein requirement per day will depend on factors like your age, gender, weight, and lifestyle. If you live a sedentary lifestyle then your protein required in a day will be less than a person who is more physically active.
What is the protein required in a day for kids?
Kids require 1g of protein per kg of their body weight for their overall development and growth.
How much protein needed per day with an active lifestyle?
People often juggle with the question of how much protein is needed per day if they have an active lifestyle? So, If you have an active lifestyle then you will be needing 1-1.5g of protein per kg of your body weight.
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