No one doubts that cottage cheese is a healthy product. It is used in both dietary and sports nutrition. Here are just disputes about when and how to eat it properly, nor do they calm down for a moment. And the number of ingenious arguments to the account of each version is just off scale. So let's figure out if the cottage cheese is healthy at night or not.
Types of cottage cheese
Fat percentage is a classic measure of cottage cheese separation:
Fatty - 19-23%;
· Bold - 4-18%;
· Nonfat - 2-3.8%;
Fat-free - less than 1.8%.
Of course, any kind of cottage cheese fatter than 4% will be harmful at night for the waist, muscle topography and even for the stomach. Therefore, if you want to maximize the benefits of an evening snack, you should carefully approach the issue of choosing a product.
The use of cottage cheese at night
Cottage cheese is a natural animal protein from which the body can get the amino acids it needs. During the diet, cottage cheese is considered one of the available alternatives to meat, fish and eggs. It costs several times cheaper, and in terms of protein content it is practically not inferior to its competitors.
1. Curd contains casein - a slow protein known for its ability to be absorbed for a long time. This is what justifies the usefulness of cottage cheese for the night. Indeed, for 6-8 hours, while you sleep peacefully, amino acids from cottage cheese will continue to nourish the muscles. And this is an important point, if not you do not plan to lose weight only by reducing muscle mass.
2. Cottage cheese is low in calories (of course, when choosing a product with minimal fat content). And from the point of view of losing weight, cottage cheese at night is much more useful than a piece of boiled beef or even a serving of buckwheat porridge.
Harm cottage cheese at night
If protein food is recommended before bedtime, how can cottage cheese be harmful at night? Nutritionists explain their point of view as follows. In the process of sleep, the body produces growth hormone - somatropin. It is he who assumes the responsibility of splitting fat cells while you sleep peacefully. But cottage cheese inhibits the production of somatropin, preventing the whole process of losing weight.
Many people are familiar with the concept of glycemic index of products - an indicator of the amount of insulin released into the blood when they are consumed. But few people are interested in the insulin index of food consumed, believing that it is one and the same. And this is not entirely true. It turns out that a sharp jump in insulin in the blood can cause not only simple carbohydrates, as we used to think, but also a number of protein products. And some of them give such an insulin splash that our cakes, in comparison with them, may seem like fresh porridge to the body.
In simple words: the level of insulin in the blood can increase without significant changes in glucose.
And here is the paradox: low-fat cottage cheese with a relatively low glycemic index and minimal carbohydrate content provokes a strong release of insulin, which prevents night weight loss. And cottage cheese for the night is harm.
Scientists think that the thing is lactose, which interacts with amino acids. Other luminaries of medicine and biochemistry refute this opinion, but do not provide their version of what is happening.
Curd holds water: proven theory or myth
It is believed that dairy products, including cottage cheese, have the ability to retain fluid in tissues. And this fact is also not in favor of cottage cheese for the night. Is this really so?
A sharp jump in insulin in the blood after a portion of cottage cheese contributes to the production of aldosterone - the hormone of the adrenal cortex. This mineralocosticosteroid hormone removes potassium from the body while retaining sodium. Ultimately, there is a fluid retention in the tissues and its accumulation in the intracellular space. Here is a scientifically proven explanation for the lack of changes in body volume with proper nutrition.
Although most scientists are skeptical of this assumption. In their opinion, swelling is not provoked by cottage cheese, but by completely different reasons:
· The lack of a sufficient amount of fluid in the body and, as a result, a violation of the water-salt balance;
· Lack of potassium and magnesium in the body;
· Urological diseases, including infectious ones;
· heart diseases;
Taking certain medications (oral contraceptives, pain medication, antidepressants);
Excessive use of salt and sugar;
Caffeine abuse
Illiterate weight loss with the help of diuretics and laxatives;
· Temporary swelling of tissues under power loads;
Interval workouts that exert a high load on the heart.
Surely most bodybuilders or losing weight recognize themselves in these points. So blaming only cottage cheese for water retention does not make sense.
How to choose and eat cottage cheese
Cottage cheese at night will be in favor only if it is properly eaten. We have already talked about the percentage of fat content of this dairy product. But it will not be amiss to mention the quality of the protein dinner.
1. When buying cottage cheese, pay attention to its price. Especially if you take the product in the supermarket already in packaging. To prepare 1 kg of cottage cheese, 2.5 liters of cow's milk will be required. Therefore, the cost of quality cottage cheese can not be lower than the price of raw materials.
2. Cottage cheese and curd masses are not a full-fledged alternative to classical cottage cheese. Firstly, they have a high percentage of fat content. Secondly, they contain oil and a large amount of sugar. Already this item makes them unsuitable for weight loss. Not to mention all kinds of chemical additives.
3. Dry low-fat cottage cheese is not the most pleasant taste. In order for weight loss to be effective, no sweet fruit, cream or sugar is considered a flavoring seasoning. The maximum that is suitable for healthy cottage cheese for the night is greens and a little garlic.
4. Do not forget about the portion size. For high-quality assimilation of protein, its amount should not exceed 30 g per meal. The rest will be digested already in the lower intestines, causing gas formation and bloating. 100 g of cottage cheese contains 16-18 g of protein. Accordingly, a portion of more than 180 g of cottage cheese at night to the detriment of the body.
Whether there is cottage cheese for the night or not is everyone's personal business. If a portion of this fermented milk product is well absorbed, the daily calorie content of the diet remains within the normal range, and the weight loss process is proceeding at the planned pace, then there is no point in denying yourself a protein snack a few hours before bedtime.
