Protein is absolutely essential for growth and repair, in other words, without a full complement of amino acids every 48 hours your body has no capacity for repairing day-to-day damage or grow new cells to replace old, worn out ones.

Every type of tissue in the body including organs, bones, skin and muscle is made up of protein, and it is also used to make hormones, enzymes, antibodies and neurotransmitters and to help transport substances around the body. What makes each of these parts different is the way that these proteins are made up. The building blocks of protein are called amino acids – these are referred to as the building blocks of life.

Amino acids are combined in many different ways to form the many different structures. There are 20 amino acids, 10 of these are considered essential; in other words it is essential that we get them from our daily diets. Our need for protein is increased during childhood, pregnancy, convalescence and during periods of heavy exercise or manual work.

The best source of dietary protein is eggs with a medium egg yielding 12g of protein, other sources include: chicken, red meat, fish, red lentils, quinoa, Brazil nuts, tofu, chickpeas, pumpkin and sunflower seeds and cottage cheese. An adult should get .8g of protein per kilogram of weight.

Are you getting enough? If not, look for a good quality protein powder that you can have as a snack between meals to boost your daily protein intake. Check out www.NutritionMission.co.uk/shop for some good protein powder supplements, if you need any help deciding which one is the best one for you please contact us at info@NutritionMission.co.uk.

Debi-Ann Wrigglesworth Dip CNM MFNTP MBANT