Vilified Foods

by Kris Pitcher

Remember when fat was a vilified food group? Carbs are under the gun now, but each has had it's moment under the spotlight of nutritional shame.

These cycles of marketing follow trends of one sort or another. A diet book, a "new" way of eating, the next greatest magic way to lose weight once and for all. We've combined our foods, banished certain foods, and for often unfounded reasons we spread bad information like butter.

The topic I love, especially because I am a competitor, is protein. Even amongst ourselves we tend to spread the notion that protein is hard on our kidneys and we are taxing our systems.

The truth is that for normal healthy exercising adults without renal compromise protein consumption in "high" levels does not tax the kidneys. Yet we hear from our doctors that it does. I've yet to meet a doctor, no offense, who knows anything about exercise science or nutrition.

Yes we need to be drinking water, everyone needs to be drinking water. Protein does need to be broken down and processed, as do all nutrients. The difference for the athlete is we are using the protein we are ingesting.

Our needs in building and repairing are greater than the sedentary adult thus the requirement for more protein. But protein isn't a villain here. And we shouldn't be spreading false information based on studies done on patients with renal failure.

Of course people with compromised renal function are taxed by protein, they are taxed by everything passing through their kidneys. Learn about information before parroting it, find the source and decide if it's relevant to you.