Bioactive Proteins and Peptides
Essential, functional and beneficial

Protein is needed to build and maintain muscles, repair muscle damage, maintain fluid and electrolyte balance, provide energy, boost the immune system and maintain hair, fingernails and skin. It is also required for production of red blood cells, enzymes and hormones.

 Proteins act as functional ingredients in food formulations by contributing properties such as whippability, emulsification, foaming, stabilizing, water binding, gelation and texturization. Proteins and their hydrolysates also contribute to flavour generation and browning in foods.

Moving beyond conventional nutritional benefits and functionality is the discovery that bioactive proteins and peptides derived from many food proteins have a positive impact on the health of cardiovascular, immune, nervous and gastrointestinal systems.

Bovine milk and eggs are the most important sources of protein and bioactive peptides in human diets. They can also be derived from fish and plants such as soy beans, peas, chickpeas, flax, brown rice, corn, wheat, oats and potatoes. This wide array of protein sources enables industry to reduce the potential allergenicity of a food.

Health Benefits

Many proteins and peptides have anti-hypertensive properties, opioid activities, immuno modulatory activities, mineral sequestering properties, and antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. Soy protein plays a role in reducing the risk of coronary heart disease by lowering plasma cholesterol and triglycerides. Soy and pea protein can aid in controlling insulin fluctuations.

 Some proteins found in milk, soy and peas have positive effects in the areas of satiety, weight management and sustained energy.[These effects are likely due to the slow digestion of proteins which prolongs the feeling of fullness.

Whey proteins such as alpha-lactalbumin and bovine serum albumin have been researched extensively in the prevention and treatment of cancer. Whey protein supplementation has also shown benefits in exercise performance and enhancement.

Ref.www.agr.gc.ca  under Fact Sheet: Proteins and Peptides