In our quest to achieve a healthy body and healthy life we will do almost anything. We need essentials like vitamins, carbs, fats, and proteins, but our desires may be all for nothing. Muscles require many essentials to grow in size an remain healthy for instance, including rigorous training, consistency, and protein. While the perfect combination has been debated between fitness experts and veterans every person is different and will get different results. All the exercise and working out in the world will go to waste without protein though. Protein is the main necessity for muscle growth and can be found in many different food sources. More recently people have started to venture into using supplements such as protein powders to meet their protein needs thinking that more protein is better. With so many different types of protein supplements out there it has been debated if they are good for you and if they are necessary to be healthy or to live with a healthy diet.

The dictionary definition of healthy is showing good health or not to be ill. For many athletes, exercise enthusiasts, and serious lifters, protein is a staple in their diets and without it they aren’t living a healthy life. Muscle growth requires protein and most people think they aren’t getting enough of it in their diets to grow. While in some cases this might be true and supplements are needed for the average person protein powders are unnecessary. Kaplan University says that A healthy adult needs 0.75g of protein/kg of body weight. This equals out to 45 to 56 grams per day. That number is easily achieved by eating whole foods by a person with a clean diet. There is no need for protein powders unless there is no way of getting protein rich food.

Athletes on the other hand need around 1.5g of protein/kg of body weight. to achieve their muscle-building goals. When trying to build muscle people associate more with better. More weight, more reps, more protein. While that is debatable do know too much protein is bad for you. Livescience.com says that protein supplements are not necessary unless you are a professional-level athlete, ill from starvation, or have a wasting disease. Protein companies will give consumers what they want even if it can be harmful. if one scoop of protein can be anywhere up to 27 grams of protein and a person takes that twice a day along with having a protein rich diet they could do some serious damage to themselves.

People unaware of these calculation will keep buying protein supplements to try to be “healthy” and gain muscle mass. More is better is a very common way to think but too much protein can lead to dehydration, liver damage, kidney damage, and osteoporosis. Supplements are beneficial to some and for specific reasons but the average person trying to be healthy is just going to end up hurting themselves. Living healthy can be achieved without the use of supplements easily.

Works Cited

Etcheverry, Paz, Ph.D. “Protein Supplements: The Good, The Bad, and & The Ugly….”KAPLAN UNIVERSITY: Protein Supplements: The Good, The Bad, and & The Ugly…. 2011 Kaplan Higher Education Corporation, n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

Nall, Rachel. “How Many Grams of Protein Can Your Body Absorb in One Sitting?”LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 29 Aug. 2013. Web. 09 Apr. 2014.