Pune: India continues to face a major challenge when it comes to meeting daily protein needs. While carbohydrates make up a large part of everyday meals, many people across age groups still fall short of their required protein intake. To raise awareness and offer practical solutions to this issue, the Almond Board of California hosted a panel discussion in Pune on \u201cAddressing India\u2019s Protein Gap: Better Nutrition for a Healthier Tomorrow.\u201d
The event, held at Ramee Grand Hotel and Spa, Pune brought together well-known personalities including actress Soha Ali Khan, fitness expert Yasmin Karachiwala, and Ritika Samaddar, Regional Head – Dietetics, Max Healthcare, New Delhi. The panel focused on the importance of protein in addressing India\u2019s nutritional gap.
It highlighted the role of small dietary changes \u2013 like a handful of almonds, in improving protein intake for people across all age groups.
Protein is essential for growth, health, and strength. Children need it for overall development, teenagers for energy, and adults for muscle repair and holistic well-being. Yet, Indian diets often miss the mark. For example, a bowl of dal has about 18 grams of protein, which may not be enough for those with active lifestyles or higher nutritional requirements in the family.
The panellists emphasized that it doesn\u2019t demand one to overhaul their entire diet to include more protein. Small dietary changes like adding almonds to meals or snacks make a big difference. Almonds are a natural, plant-based source of protein, offering about 6g of protein in a 30g serving. They also provide essential nutrients such as magnesium, vitamin E, and zinc for immunity and wellness.
Soha Ali Khan said, \u201cWhen I plan meals at home, protein tops the list \u2013 especially for my daughter who\u2019s growing and active. Almonds have been an easy and reliable source of nutrition for us. I enjoy snacking on them in between shoots. They keep me going without making me feel heavy. For my daughter, I add almonds in fun ways like mixing them into her breakfast or tossing some into her salad. It\u2019s a small but meaningful step towards making sure we\u2019re getting enough protein every day.\u201d
Yasmin Karachiwala said, \u201cAs a fitness professional, I often talk to people on the importance of protein for energy, recovery, and strength. Almonds are my go-to because they offer good-quality plant-based protein, which is especially great after exercise\/ post-workout. They help keep you full, which makes them a smart snack choice. I carry them with me all the time whether I\u2019m training clients or heading to a shoot. It\u2019s a simple way to give your body the right nutrition.\u201d
Ritika Samaddar said, \u201cMany people in India unknowingly fall short of their daily protein needs. One way to fill this gap is by adding protein-rich foods like almonds to the diet. I recommend them often because they\u2019re easy to include, especially for families.
Almonds offer protein along with other nutrient requirements, and they\u2019re far better than most packaged snacks. A handful a day goes a long way in improving nutrition.\u201d
Organizations such as ICMR and FSSAI have also acknowledged the nutritional value of almonds. In the Eat Right During COVID-19 guidelines, almonds are recommended as a good source of plant protein, along with key nutrients such as vitamin E and magnesium. ICMR further encourages including nuts regularly as part of a balanced daily diet.
Getting enough protein isn\u2019t complicated or expensive. Everyday choices such as snacking on almonds may prove to be a meaningful way for families to take impactful steps toward better health for all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Pune: India continues to face a major challenge when it comes to meeting daily protein needs. While carbohydrates make up a large part of everyday meals, many people across age groups still fall short of their required protein intake. To raise awareness and offer practical solutions to this issue, the Almond Board of California hosted […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20704,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46,80,44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food","category-health","category-pune"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20703"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20703\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20705,"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20703\/revisions\/20705"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesofpowerandvoice.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}