| What are protein supplements suppose to do?
Step into any health-food store and you are likely to see stacks upon stacks of protein packed powders and bars, often accompanied by pictures of people with action figured bodies. The message is clear - if you want to trade in your relatively normal body for Mr. (or Ms.) Olympiad, you can't live without products like Ultra Body Building Protein Powder and Promax Bars.
After all, it takes protein to build muscles, so mega doses of protein must result in mega muscles, right? Before buying into that premise, take a closer look at the facts. In the end, you may not lose your normal body, but you won't lose your money either.
How much protein does an athlete really need?
It is true that weight lifters and other high-powered athletes need more protein than the rest of us. Recent studies suggest that a 200 pound athlete should eat between 120 to 180 grams of protein every day. To put this into perspective, a shot putter could reach his maximum daily requirement by filling his plate with these items: eight ounces of firm tofu, one broiled pork chop, and one cup each of roasted peanuts, cottage cheese, chickpeas, oat bran, and ricotta cheese.
Of course, athletes also need more calories than non-athletes. A weight lifter or a football player can easily go through 4,000 calories per day, compared with the roughly 2,000 calories a moderately active person burns. In the U.S. it would take a real effort to consume 4,000 calories without getting 180 grams of protein. The typical American eats 50 to 70 percent more protein than necessary, and almost all athletes get their daily requirement in what they eat.
Whether you want to lose weight, gain weight, or hold steady, the Mayo Clinic recommends that you stick to the same formula: 55 to 65 percent of your calories should come from complex carbohydrates, 25 to 30 percent should come from fat, and 12 to 15 percent from protein.
Do Protein supplements help build muscle and strength?
Scientists have recently put protein supplements through rigorous tests, and the results have fallen far short of the promises. Two studies described in the February 1999 issue of the scientific journal, Sports Medicine tell the tale of truth concerning protein supplements. In one study, six inactive men and women and seven highly trained athletes spent 13 days on a diet that included a whopping 2.4 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight (over double the protein research tells us an athlete needs), or roughly 218 grams of protein. They gained weight no faster than when they ate just 0.86 grams of per kilogram.
An earlier study of 12 beginning bodybuilders, all men, produced similar results. During four weeks of intensive training, the subjects who got 2.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight each day didn't gain muscle or strength any faster than those who got only 1.4 grams of protein per kilogram.
After reviewing these studies, physician Richard B. Krieder of the University of Memphis reached the following ant for conclusion: "Although it is important for athletes to get an adequate amount of protein...consuming additional amounts of protein does not appear to promote muscle growth."
Are protein supplements dangerous?
A little extra protein won't do you any harm, so feel free to have a protein bar or shake every now and then. But you can definitely over do it. According to a recent report in the journal Clinical Pharmacy, a protein overload can cause stomach trouble, dehydration, gout, and calcium loss, as well as damaged to the liver and kidneys. There is no clear cut line between safe and dangerous amounts, but expert agree on this: no matter what kind of physical training you do for your sport, it is better to get your protein from a balanced diet, rather than from a supplement.
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