FAQ l Vegan Protein

Question

The absorption of vegan protein is poor against animal sources in the body . Is it a myth or fact?

Answer

Plant proteins are somewhere between 60-80% digestibility on average depending on the source, whereas animal-based sources have been consistently shown to have >90% digestibility.

So basically, plant based proteins have lesser bioavailability hence one depending on that would take a little longer in order to show results in terms of building muscle, repair etc. Whereas someone on concentrated protein sources would show a faster effect.

On a plant-based diet, we suggest increasing your protein intake up to 2.0-2.2g/kg to compensate for the lower bioavailability and essential amino acid content. Animal foods are the highest quality protein sources. Plant sources lack one or more amino acids, which makes it more difficult to get all the amino acids that your body needs. Plant protein sources need to be consumed in combination to manage the amino acid profile.

Bibliography:

1. https://thirdwavenutrition.com/blogs/news/a-guide-to-vegan-protein#:~:text=Plant%20proteins%20are%20somewhere%20between,to%20have%20%3E90%25%20digestibility.

2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6950041/

This FAQ is part of the online nutrition course at Institute Nutrition. For more details on the courses please visit: https://institutenutrition.com/all-courses/

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