Flashback Friday: The Protein-Combining Myth

The myth that plant proteins are incomplete, necessitating protein combining, was debunked by the scientific nutrition community decades ago.

Thanks for watching. I hope you’ll join in the evidence-based nutrition revolution!
-Michael Greger, MD FACLM

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Image thanks to Mikhaylovskiy via Adobe Stock.

[nevadaxtube]

Myths die a slow death. I recently read an article in a "health" magazine in which the myth was repeated by a registered dietician. "Where do you get your protein?" should be replaced with "Where did you get your education?"

[cookiesnbubbles]

The protein myths are so ingrained culturally even I need a reminder once in a while why they are false. Thanks Dr Greger!

[davidsgardell]

Imagine if this video went viral. It would save people from tons of frustration and it would change the way people look at plants and not think they “need meat”. As a vegan of 15 years, I’ve heard about this more times than I can count. And the vast majority of them don’t even know what protein is! 🤦‍♂️

[paulaaquino]

I don't care about protein, rice and beans are a Brazilian staple and eating the set brings me a sense of home. Plus, delicious!!!

[walkingmonument]

It’s amazing how I didn’t really understand this guy when I started listening to him a few years back and now it’s all as clear as a bell

[sharit]

The only thing better than a good debunk...a good re debunk! I remember this 'protein combining' stuff from when I was a kid; my parents even had a book on amino acid content of foods. Thanks for doing the research and re posting!!

[yangtse]

So annoying I carried this in my head for so long from veggie diet info in the 80s... Not that I ever took much notice of it in nearly 40 years as a very careless vegan.
My only diet-related issue has been insulin resistance through getting fat in recent years - empty vegan calories were so much more difficult to obtain back in the day... Thankfully I started cycling to work 30 years ago which kept diabetes at bay.

[CalebGod]

My wife is becoming a nurse and is currently taking a class on diet and nutrition and I was furious when i saw that in order for her to get certain questions on tests and homework right she has to acknowledge that plant proteins are incomplete and inferior to animal proteins. Should this not be illegal? Forcing someone to acknowledge false information in COLLEGE should be illegal right? They also want her to make examples of a "balanced" and "moderation" style meal plan that can't be vegan because then it's not balanced because there's no dead animal or cows milk... I tried helping her study but all of the information was so outdated that looking at it just made me mad. How is it possible that our government acknowledges the healthfulness and wholesomeness of a plant based diet but the education system does not? And why is a concept introduced in Vogue magazine being taught in college in the first place?...

[jhunt]

The complete plant protein thing got spouted by a doctor on the BBC the other day saying that plant milk isn't as good as Cow milk... his other reason was the "natural iodine" in cows milk, which comes from the industrial cleaner they use on Cows and in the milk tanks.

[fannys]

You're awesome, and so funny, Dr. Greger! Your work is a blessing for humanity!

[pooldg]

es increible la cantidad de mitos que uno asume tácitamente sin cuestionarse su Dr Greger

[anambivalentenemy]

Dr Greger, i would like a video about protein for vegan athletes.
Covering the daily RDI of protein for an average person, who doesnt exercise is easy.
What about those who train intensely and often, especially resistance training?
How to structure their protein intake, even at times they are on a cut, trying to lose fat but maintain their muscle mass?
How much protein powder is best consumed daily, if any?
Is seitan a good source, or is it most likely an allergen?
Thank you before hand 🙌

[RabbitFoodFitness]

Thanks for the wonderful video today. This is such a pervasive myth that it was actually even taught in a nutrition class that I took. Thanks for setting the record straight for everyone. Your videos always inspire me to keep posting on my channel.

[ujean]

Thanks for settling confusion I have experienced since visiting a "nutritionist" way back in the early 1990s.

[AmanBansil]

Wow this is so timely for me. I’m listening to an audiobook/lectures “The great courses: Nutrition made clear” and it said that many plant proteins can be incomplete vs meat proteins.

[Urzl]

Woah. We studied that plant protein is incomplete in medical university a couple of years ago.... Shame

[AK.]

But does this apply perfectly to weight lifters that are growing kind of fast? I'm leaning toward no since muscles are more in need of glycogen from complex carbs than protein especially if our bodies are smart enough to keep pools of it around..

[winniebananab]

Thank you for the wonderful video today 🙏🏻💕🍏

[cornishwrestling]

Thanks. Maybe this will help me break the decades-old habit of making sure I have a grain with my legumes! I love your videos.

[GreenLittleRobot]

It's not that plant proteins are incomplete, it's the ratios of amino acids are not optimal for max absorption. Sure if you eat enough rice you'll eventually get enough protein. If you ate rice and beans though you'd get the same amount of protein actually absorbed in your body while eating less. This is why herbivores eat all day long. They eventually get what they need from grass but they need to eat tons of it. A lion on the other hand can eat once every few days.