The perfect protein comparable to animal protein is actually eaten frequently

Many fitness people who dream of having eight-pack abs will have this confusion. They run, lift weights, and eat a lot as their coaches tell them to. They eat a lot, and their muscles grow, but their body fat also goes up. People who want to lose weight are also very troubled. The weight they lose by starving themselves will rebound after a few days of indulgence. The elderly are even more upset. They know that they should supplement their nutrition, eat and drink well, but their gastrointestinal tract becomes worse and they cannot digest fish and meat at all.

1. Causes of Nutritional Confusion among the Population

Whether you want to shape your muscles, lose fat, or have nutritional problems with the elderly, the main reason is that you don't choose the right ingredients, which leads to an unreasonable dietary structure and various troubles.

The trouble for people who want to shape their body is that they make unreasonable choices of food proteins. For example, although beef is good for increasing muscle content, due to the different "muscle distribution" of beef fat in different parts, if you choose the wrong high-fat parts such as beef brisket and sirloin, you will inevitably consume more fat. If people who want to lose weight blindly "control their diet", their body fat will decrease while their muscle mass will also be lost, which will lead to a decrease in metabolism. Not only will they feel weak, but their weight will also rebound quickly. The gastrointestinal function of the elderly is weakened, and their ability to absorb nutrients is already poor. If they choose foods that are difficult to digest, it will only make things worse.

When people are following the trend and chasing after all kinds of weight loss and health ingredients, they don’t know that there is a low-key but nutritionally "powerful" ingredient around us. It is often overlooked by people, but it can solve the dietary confusion of the above people. It is soybean.

2. Nutritional advantages of soybeans

Although soybeans are plants, their protein content is surprisingly high. Dried soybeans contain 35-40% protein, which is the highest protein content among plant-based foods. Their protein content is 3-5 times that of general cereals and much higher than that of animal foods such as beef*1. In addition to the high protein content, the amino acid ratio of soy protein is also close to that of "ideal protein", which is easily absorbed and utilized by the human body, making it very suitable for fitness people and the elderly.

Soybeans are rich in soy phospholipids, which can not only prevent vascular sclerosis and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, but also increase nerve function, improve memory, and prevent the occurrence of Alzheimer's disease. The plant sterols in soybeans are very similar to cholesterol. When digested and absorbed, they will "crowd out" the cholesterol in chicken, fish, meat and eggs, thereby playing a good role in lowering blood lipids and serum cholesterol. It is very suitable for the elderly with poor gastrointestinal function and high blood lipids. In addition, soybeans are also rich in soy isoflavones, which can regulate hormone metabolism, improve perimenopausal symptoms in women, and prevent the occurrence of osteoporosis*2.

In fact, in life, many people know that soybeans are good and want to eat them, but they are office workers who work from nine to five and it is not convenient to cook. Although they are greedy, they have to give up. If conditions permit, drinking soybean juice and eating tofu and bean curd skin every day are indeed great, but if conditions do not permit, a few spoonfuls of soy protein powder is also a very good choice.

With the development of the food industry, more and more nutritional benefits of soybeans, as a nutritious "field meat", have been researched and developed. Among them, the role of soybeans in reducing fat and weight has attracted much attention.

3. Fat-reducing effect of soy protein

1. The extremely high thermic effect of food makes it difficult to gain weight

The thermal effect of food refers to the extra calories consumed by the human body when eating. For example, an apple can provide us with 30kcal of energy. If the body wants to obtain the 30kcal of energy from the apple, it needs us to chew, digest and absorb it first. The extra calories consumed by these actions are the thermal effect of the apple. It can be said that for the same amount of calories, if the thermal effect of food is greater, eating will be more "tiring" and more calories will be consumed.

The food thermal effect of fat is about 0%-5%, and carbohydrates are only 5%-10%, while protein is far ahead, reaching 20%-30%*3, which is much higher than carbohydrates and fats. Therefore, ensuring a sufficient proportion of protein in the diet is beneficial to increasing energy consumption.

Because of this, soy protein has become a favorite food for people who are fitness enthusiasts or those who are trying to lose weight. The reason is simple: "you won't get fat if you eat it."

2. Regulate endocrine and promote fat burning

Numerous laboratory data show that supplementing with soy protein has a good obesity-inhibiting effect on overweight and obese people*4. The reason is that soy protein can promote the secretion of glucagon, which has the opposite effect of insulin. Insulin allows sugar to enter cells and convert into fat, while glucagon breaks down fat in cells to provide energy, thus promoting fat burning. In addition, soy protein has a very low glycemic index (GI) and can be safely consumed without causing a significant increase in blood sugar.

3. Excellent satiety, reducing intake of other foods

Soy protein has a strong sense of satiety and can easily make people feel "full", thereby reducing the intake of other foods and reducing overall calorie intake. It not only provides high-quality protein, but also does not create the psychological burden of "not being able to control your mouth".

4. Recommended methods of consuming soybeans

There are many healthy ways to eat soybeans. For those who need to shape their bodies and lose weight, you can drink a cup of freshly ground soybean milk every morning. While enjoying the aroma of soybeans, you can replenish the water lost at night and promote metabolism. Within 1 hour after exercise, you can take 2 spoons of soybean protein powder to promote muscle repair and synthesis. For the elderly, you can eat soft and tender tofu pudding, which is refreshing and easy to digest. In addition, tofu with scallions, tofu with scallions, fried bean curd with celery, and cold tofu skin are all good choices for obtaining soy protein. The human body needs to continuously enrich the source of protein intake, try new choices, and eat low-fat nutrition to gain a healthy and good figure.

※1/3Reference: "Chinese Nutritionist" by Ge Keyou

※2 References: Functionality of soybean and development of health food - Tian Xiuhong; Sun Lihui; Yan Feng; Liu Xinfeng; Yin Rulong

※4 Reference: "Research Progress on the Health Function of Soy Protein" by Du Zhenya; Chen Fusheng