The benefits of protein are not limited to building muscle and boosting strength. It also plays an important role in strengthening immunity, maintaining metabolic health and helping the body repair and recover. Although many think high-protein foods are expensive or hard to follow as a diet, protein intake can easily be increased with a few simple changes to everyday cooked meals.
Indian nutritionist Probalika Londe suggested five easy ways to increase the amount of protein in daily meals in a report in The Indian Express, as follows:
1. Add lentils, sprouted chickpeas or roasted chickpeas to your regular meals. For extra nutrition, mix sprouted chickpeas into salads and sandwiches. Adding an extra bowl of lentils to lunch or dinner is also an easy way to boost protein.
2. Include the right amount of paneer, yogurt or milk in your daily meals. Paneer can be added to paratha, vegetables, pulao or sandwiches. Yogurt is rich in protein and calcium and helps keep the gut healthy, and even a cup of yogurt or milk can help raise daily protein intake.
3. Another good option is to make food multigrain using protein-rich flour. Adding gram flour, ragi, soybean flour or sattu to wheat flour when making bread increases its nutritional value without much change in taste.
4. Add nuts and seeds to morning and afternoon snacks. Peanuts, almonds, sesame, flaxseed and pumpkin seeds can be sprinkled on yogurt, smoothies, oats or salad, and peanut chutney or peanut powder with meals is a healthy option too.
5. Include more eggs, chicken, fish or soy products in meals. A boiled egg can be eaten as an afternoon snack, while soy can be added to curries or fried rice. These foods are affordable and rich in protein.
Londe said home food could be made healthier and more balanced through some simple everyday changes. Protein-rich food helps boost energy and recovery, keeps you full for longer and supports the overall wellbeing of both children and adults, she said, though she advised consulting a nutritionist about portion control.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report