Protein - Know Food Items For It!

The body needs a balanced diet for its various functions. The proteins are the major building blocks and are required for optimal health of the muscles, hair and skin. The following are some protein-rich food items that you could choose, depending on your dietary preferences. The amount of protein required also varies depending on the age, sex and level of activity. An average male should consume about 60 to 80 g of dietary protein daily.

Mentioned below is a list of protein-rich food items that can be included in your diet:

1. Fish - Be it tuna, perch, salmon, snapper or cod, they are one of the richest sources of protein. Every 100 g of any of these fishes provides around 17 to 25 g of protein which is an extremely good quotient.
    
2. Meat - Be it chicken breast or turkey, meat is one of the best sources of protein. In fact, many people who want to build muscles go on to include meat in almost all meals. 
    
3. Poultry - This again packs about 30 g of protein per 100 g serving, which again is one of the most wanted protein-rich food items.
    
4. Eggs - Another protein-rich substance, an egg yields about 13 g of protein.
    
5. Dairy products - Low fat or skim milk, yoghurt, butter are amazing sources of proteins, especially for vegetarians. Include milk into your smoothies, milkshakes and various other beverages. A glass of milk yields about 6 g of protein.
    
6. Legumes - For the vegetarians, these are the best substitutes for meat/fish/chicken/pork/beef. The kidney beans, red beans, french beans all make excellent sources of protein and find their way in most dishes for vegetarians. Legumes are a few of the most important sources of protein, especially for vegans.
    
7. Dals - Most of the colourful dals come packed with a good amount of protein and should be included in daily diet.
    
8. Nuts and seeds - Walnuts, cashew nuts, peanuts, flax seeds, pecans including other nuts and seeds are also a great source of protein. They provide anywhere from 20 g to 35 g of protein per 100 g of serving. So, this is one thing which will get into the diet chart of anybody wanting to build body.
    
9. Soy - Whether in the bean form or the soya chunks, these are again small packets of protein. A good 17 to 20 g of protein is packed in 100 g of soy, which makes it a very good source.
    
10. Cheese - Cottage cheese and low-fat mozzarella cheese provide the most amounts of protein, ranging from 10 to 30 g. Fat-full cheeses contain fewer amounts of protein and are fattening, avoiding them is a safe bet.

Make sure your diet has a mix of these based on your dietary choices, so your body gets the essential amount of proteins. Since, proteins function as the building blocks for bones, muscles and blood; it is a wise choice to incorporate a modest amount of protein in your diet for the body to function well.