Hello and welcome back to our weekly mini episode of Dishing Up Nutrition, Ask a Nutritionist.

I'm Melissa Krati, a registered dietitian here with nutritional weight wellness.

If you have ever thought to yourself, I know I should be eating more protein,

but I cannot stand chewing meat at each meal.

This episode is for you.

Today we will discuss how you can get in the right amount of protein for you in a way that you enjoy.

We will briefly walk through why eating enough daily protein and in particular animal sources of protein matters. How much daily protein is enough? What

challenges come from relying on mostly plant protein?

How to eat enough daily protein if you're sick of meat.

And how to make eating animal protein foods enjoyable.

So, first, why is protein worth all this effort in the first place? In short, protein is what makes up all the tissues in our body.

Protein supports bones, tendons, muscle tissue, ligaments, skin, hair, and nails.

It is an important component to your overall health and feeling good in your day-to-day life.

For adults, eating enough high-quality protein-rich foods is vital to help protect lean body mass,

preventing the loss of muscle and strength associated with aging.

Adults who eat higher protein diets, about 30% coming from protein, tend to feel

more satisfied, which may help prevent overeating and support maintaining and or achieving a healthy

body weight. When you plan and prepare a meal or order a meal out to eat, start with asking yourself,

where is the protein?

Now, why emphasize animal protein foods in particular?

All proteins are made up of amino acids.

You must obtain nine of the 21 amino acids from food because your human body is unable to make them on its own.

...