Lifestyle

Did You Know About These High Leucine Foods?

• By All That Trending
• 10-06-2021
• 11.86K

Amino acids are the building block of protein, some of it can be naturally made by our bodies, but it needs to obtain others through the food we eat. These are called essential amino acids, and leucine is an essential amino acid. Leucine is necessary for repairing and building muscles and also helps in managing blood sugar levels. Leucine manages your blood sugar levels by facilitating glucose uptake into your body cells and improving insulin response. A recent study by the World Health Organization stated that healthy adults must consume 39 mg per kg of body weight per day, which means that a person with a weight of 80 kgs must consume 3.1 grams of leucine per day. Apart from the prevention of muscle loss, leucine also helps in weight loss as it increases the body's response to leptin, an appetite-regulating hormone.

Here is the list of leucine-rich foods

Chickpeas

Chickpeas are literally a superfood containing a high amount of protein, fibre and iron. You can add them to your soups, salads, curries or even make the hummus dip.

Pumpkin seeds

Pumpkin seeds contain a lot of plant compounds and are a rich source of protein, unsaturated fatty acids, magnesium, zinc, copper and fibre. 28-gram of dried pumpkin seeds contain 0.7 grams of leucine. You can add them to your trail mix, toss them while baking breads and cookies.

Eggs

Eggs are known to have vitamin B, phosphorus, choline and protein. One extra-large egg contains 0.6 grams of leucine and is a high protein snack. You can cook n number of dishes with egg, including scrambled eggs, baked egg muffins and waffles.

Oats

Compared to any other grains, oats contain the most amount of protein and fibre. They also have a specific fibre called beta-glucan which benefits in maintaining heart health. 1 cup of cooked oats contain 0.5 grams of leucine. You can add oats to your smoothies or ground them into flour to make oats bread.

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