Abstract: In recent years, more and more people have become vegetarians, some for religious reasons, and some for environmental protection and health. When most people hear about being vegetarian, their first doubt is whether they can get enough nutrients, especially the most abundant protein in meat, but vegetarians cannot eat it. In fact, it is not difficult to supplement protein from a vegetarian diet. You can get enough protein without eating meat.

Keywords: plant protein, soy products, pea protein, meat, nutrition

Related products for this article: Plant protein

What is plant protein?

As the name suggests, plant protein is the protein contained in plants. In a common vegetarian diet, plant-based protein mainly comes from cereals and beans, but the average protein content of cereals is only 8-16%, and it lacks lysine (Lysine), nutritionally incomplete, and is also called incomplete protein. The protein of beans is a complete protein, and the composition of amino acids is similar to that of the human body. It is the best source of protein supplement for vegetarians.

In addition to vegetarians, the person who want to reduce their calorie intake can also consider vegetarian protein. Since meat is rich in protein, it also contains a lot of fat and cholesterol. It often eats a lot of calories while ingesting animal protein. In contrast, vegetarian protein with lower calories and a higher proportion of protein becomes a vegetarian protein. A better choice.

Plant protein recommendation (soy protein vs pea protein)

So what are the vegetarian proteins? As mentioned earlier, the amino acid composition of legume protein is the closest to that of the human body. Therefore, the best vegetarian protein powders are made from legumes. The most recommended by nutrition experts are soy protein and pea protein.

Soy protein

Soy protein is a protein product that is made from soybeans and is defatted and removed (part of) carbohydrates. According to different protein content, soy protein powder is divided into three types:

1. Soy flour: The protein content is about 50-65%.
2. Soy protein concentrate: The protein content is about 65-90%.
3. Soy protein isolate: The protein content is more than 90%, it is the purest soy protein, and the trypsin inhibitor in soy is removed, and the burden on people who are sensitive to gastrointestinal tract and flatulence is relatively low.

Although soy protein is a plant protein, its amino acid composition is similar to milk protein. It is a nutrient-rich complete protein and is one of the most nutritious plant proteins. It is worth noting that the soy protein hydrolysate added in many foods is only a part of the amino acid in the soy protein, which is not equal to the soy protein, and the nutritional value is much lower than that of the soy protein.

Protein can provide a higher sense of satiety than carbohydrates, and the fat and carbohydrate content in soy protein is low, which will not cause a sudden increase in blood sugar. Soy protein is rich in linoleic acid and flavonoids, but not much cholesterol. Soy protein is not only popular with vegetarians. In recent years, many people who want to manage their weight have begun to pay attention to the benefits of soy protein. As described earlier, if soy protein is used as a meal replacement to replace the usual calorie intake, soy protein can indeed help weight management.

However, soy protein is a potential allergen, and people who are allergic to soy should avoid taking it.

Pea protein

Pea protein powder is a high-purity protein extracted from peas using a low-temperature and low-pressure technology, it’s rich in amino acids and vitamins. In addition, pea protein is a hypoallergenic food, which is not easy to cause allergies. The flatulence problem of using soy protein is not common in pea protein. If the adaptation to soy protein is not good, pea protein is the best substitute.

Pea protein has the same effect on weight loss as soy protein. If appropriate to replace the general diet, as a source of calories, it can help manage weight, but it is not recommended to use pea protein as the sole source of nutrition. Weight management emphasizes health, and exercise should be combined with a balanced diet, which is the most effective way.

However, pea protein does not contain as many amino acids as soy protein, and because the development is relatively late, the production technology and product types are not as mature as soy protein.