Eating for Injury – Tip 4

Follow our food quicktips each month to help eat your way to less pain and better performance!

Tip 4

Eat a palm sized portion of good quality protein with most meals.

The Why

Protein is one of the most important factors which affect healing [Guo, 2010].

Healing is heavily reliant on the production of collagen (the main protein in your muscles, ligaments and tendons) but a deficiency in protein impairs both the growth of the cells that make collagen and the collagen remodelling process [Arnold, 2006].

Put simply, not getting enough protein will ​severely limit your body’s ability to heal.

How much protein do I need?

Around 1.5g per kilogram of body weight has been suggested as an adequate intake during recovery.

This recommendation is in line with the recommendations of The American College of Sports Medicine, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and the Dietitians of Canada and the International Society of Sports Nutrition [Thomas, 2016. Jager, 2017].

Practically, this equates to around 3-4 palm-sized servings of high-quality protein per day.

Top protein sources:

• Meat
• ​Fish​
• Eggs
• ​Dairy

You can get protein from other sources but these contain the most bioavailable forms of protein.

If you are vegan, or simply cannot meet the requirements through whole foods, consider adding a good quality protein shake with or between meals such as Organic Hemp Protein Powder or Biomedica Protein complete.  

Related articles

• Eating for Injury – Tip 3
• Supplements for Injury (Part 1)
• Supplements for Injury (Part 2)
• Statins and Muscle Pain

References

• Guo, S., & DiPietro, L. A. (2010). Factors affecting wound healing. Journal of dental research, 89(3), 219-229
• Arnold, Meghan, and Adrian Barbul. “Nutrition and wound healing.” Plastic and reconstructive surgery 117.7S (2006): 42S-58S.
• Thomas DT, Erdman KA, Burke LM. American College of Sports Medicine Joint Position Statement. Nutrition and Athletic Performance . Med Sci Sports Exerc. (2016)
• Jäger R, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: protein and exercise . J Int Soc Sports Nutr. (2017)

---

This post was written by Steffen Toates. Steffen is a chiropractor at Dynamic Health Chiropractic in Jersey, Channel Islands. For more information about Steffen click here.

---