How Much Protein? Take a Look

Vegetarian or not, there are several vegetables, nuts and dairy products loaded with proteins that you can include in your family's diet. Unfortunately, it is hard to figure out how much protein you can get from those ingredients. Well, not anymore. Here is a quite useful list:

Protein Sources and How Much You Are Actually Getting, by the Numbers

Beans, Nuts, Seeds

• 1 cup garbanzo beans 14.5 grams
• 1 cup pinto beans 12 grams
• 1 cup refried beans 15.5 grams
• 1 cup soybeans 28 grams
• 1 oz. cashews 4.4 grams
• 1 oz. peanuts 6.5 grams
• 1 oz. sesame seeds 6.5 grams
• 1 oz. pistachios 5.8 grams
• 1 cup tofu 22 grams
• 1 cup lentils 18 grams

Dairy

• 1 cup yogurt 13 grams
• 1 oz cheddar cheese 7.1 grams
• 1 egg 6 grams
• 1 cup cottage cheese 10 grams

Fruits and Vegetables

• 1 avocado 10 grams
• 1 cup broccoli 5 grams
• 1 cup spinach 5 grams
• 1 cup peas 9 grams
• 1 medium artichoke 4 grams
• 1 cup asparagus 5 grams
• 1 cup beet greens 3 grams

The require daily amount of protein intake varies by gender, size and age. According to Madelyn Fernstrom, director of the Weight Management Center at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center "As a general rule, between 10 percent and 15 percent of your total calories should come from protein. So, if you consume 2,000 calories per day, at least 200 should come from protein, or about 50 grams. You should try to eat around one gram of protein per one kilogram of body weight, or around 0.4 grams per pound. An easier way to figure this out in your head is to take your weight, divide it in half, and subtract 10. The total will be the number of grams of protein you should consume each day. So, if you weigh 120 pounds, you should eat about 50 grams of protein."

Sources: yahoo and msnbc