Like the structural steel of buildings and the metal meshwork in concrete, proteins provide the framework for every cell of the body. Just as workers at a construction site need a steady supply of building materials, tissues undergoing repair and those that are growing need a steady supply of protein to build and rebuild organs, muscles, antibodies, hormones, and enzymes – every kind of cell in the body. At eight months or eighty years, bodies need protein.
Protein is a reasonably worry-free food. Unlike fat or sugar, it’s nearly impossible to overdose on proteins, especially in children’s diets. And for most Americans, getting enough protein is not a problem. Also, unlike with fats and carbs, there’s no such food as an unhealthy protein.
