The same cannot be said of harness-racing horses, whose physical activity is especially intense but whose diets do not include vitamin supplements. Or at least, it couldn't be said until recently. A new study published in the Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition announced that racehorses may benefit from taking specially designed dietary supplements.

Researchers from Vienna's Institute of Animal Nutrition at the University of Veterinary Medicine came to this conclusion after testing a number of cellular protein pathways in horses. Essentially, the team determined that horses' muscles burn large amounts of protein during intense races.

The authors noted that, as with humans, consuming a protein-based vitamin supplement might help these animals recover from vigorous physical activity.

Multivitamins can also replace critical minerals and nutrients that the human body uses up over the course of any given day.

In the first, scientists tried to determine whether drinking one large protein shake or 10 small protein "shots" affected the way that muscles rebuild themselves after a workout. In the latter instance, the team wanted to mimic the way that one protein, casein, is gradually taken up by the body.

That said, the large serving of protein contributed to more protein synthesis than the small, sip-sized servings.

In the second experiment, researchers gave members of the U.S. Armed Forces protein shakes after exercise. Some of the beverages were fortified with leucine, while others were not. The team found that people synthesized one-third more muscle proteins after consuming the leucine-infused shake.

Scientists at the University of Missouri found that eating a high-protein breakfast can reduce subsequent yearnings for snack foods. Their results, which appear in the journal Obesity, were confirmed using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Researchers had participants eat either a protein-rich breakfast or a normal one, while a third group was asked to skip breakfast every day. After three weeks, MRI scans revealed that individuals who ate a protein-based meal every morning showed the greatest amounts of neurological activity indicating satiety and feelings of fullness.

The team concluded that eating protein at breakfast may reduce the cravings that lead to snacking and weight gain. For those who want to start the day right, adding a dietary supplement to such a meal may ensure adequate daily levels of vitamins and minerals.

A study conducted at Norway's National Institute of Nutrition and Seafood Research found that vegetables like corn may naturally replace 70 percent of salmon's dietary fish oil and 80 percent of their protein intake.

Scientists at the institute said that a produce-based diet still yields fish with high levels of vitamins and omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for cardiovascular health.

They also noted that the meat of wild fish may contain industrial pollutants, something farm-raised salmon are largely unexposed to.

As a test, the group fed pregnant mothers farm-raised salmon fillets twice a week for three months. They found that after birth, these women and their children had healthy doses of omega-3s in their blood streams.

Lean protein and omega-3s are both important parts of a gestational diet and contribute to brain and nervous system development, according to the American Pregnancy Association.

Researchers found that the majority of children with myoclonic-astatic epilepsy who switched from a modified Atkins diet to a ketogenic diet reduced their seizures by at least 10 percent.

The ketogenic diet is similar to the Atkins regimen. Both consist primarily of protein-heavy meals, eaten with little or no carbohydrates.

The ketogenic diet simply has more restrictions on the types of fats, proteins and fluids that an individual may consume.

The study's authors concluded that its stringency may make the ketogenic plan impart a "higher dose" of epilepsy therapy per meal.

A diet almost exclusively of protein and fat forces the body to replace glucose with other energy sources, a switch that may ameliorate seizure activity. It is often suggested by physicians after a patient has not responded to multiple courses of prescription drugs.

The concept of a ketogenic diet has existed for more than two millennia. Ancient Greek physician Hippocrates wrote about its effect on epilepsy around the year 400 BC, according to Stafstrom and Rho's Epilepsy and the Ketogenic Diet.

Engineer Peter Eisner of the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging said the legume can act as a meat substitute in sausages, which tend to have a high fat content.

Italians and Greeks have consumed lupin seeds as a traditional food for millennia, according to the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine. They are a part of the pea family and can be consumed whole or ground and used as a protein filler.

Lupin protein is very similar to meat protein on the cellular level, Eisner said.

The seed can also be used in non-dairy ice creams and cheeses. It contains no cholesterol or lactose and has high levels of polyunsaturated fats.

The engineer reported that lupin seeds can easily provide the daily allowance of protein recommended by health authorities. Adult men and women require 46 and 56 grams of protein per day, respectively, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Eating processed lupin seeds also has the potential to facilitate weight loss, since it contains very low levels of saturated fat.

Lean protein is a healthy part of a weight-loss regimen, the CDC reports.

In the recent study, researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine reported feeding individuals with CKD two diets consecutively, one based on meat and the other on vegetables. Both regimens contained the same levels of dietary protein and phosphorus.

They found that the vegetarian diet tended to have lower levels of phosphorus in the blood compared to meat-rich meals. High levels of phosphorus in the bloodstream can lead to severe heart disease in those suffering from CKD.

The team theorized that while both diets contained dietary protein, which the body metabolizes into products including phosphates, the forms of phosphate contained in vegetables may not be as readily digested by the body as those found in meat.

The researchers concluded that vegetables and whole grains provide adequate nutrition while preventing buildup of phosphates in the blood.

Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables boosts heart health and is a valuable part of any weight-loss regimen, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The news source reports that more than just a potential source of bio-fuels for cars, algae may be a suitable source of omega-3 fatty acids, protein, vitamins and minerals.

Bioproduct production companies are currently using algae to make everything from baby formula to milk and cookies, which the business media website adds may be more heart healthy than Santa’s traditional fare.

Algae can be dried and pounded into a form of flour that contains a protein- and fiber-rich oil, which may be used to replace oil, butter or even eggs when making holiday cookies.

The food source is already heavily consumed in Asian countries, particularly China and Japan, which use dozens of algal varieties to produce food products and nutritional supplements.

The website concludes that algae’s antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties may improve heart health while reducing the fat and calorie loads in most holiday meals.

During a recent study, a total of 18 rat litters were divided into three groups of six, and were fed a high prebiotic fiber, high protein or a normal diet. The researchers continued feeding the animals these diets until they were 14 weeks old, and then switched them to a high-energy diet consisting of fats and sugars for six weeks.

The results showed that after consuming a high-protein diet, this group of rats experienced an increase in weight gain and body mass. Furthermore, this protein-based diet had a higher energy intake when compared with the animals that were given the fiber-based regimen.

The team concluded that further research will be needed to determine other long-term effects on future food consumption after following diets that are enriched with protein or sugar.

Raylene Reimer , lead researcher of this study, stated that these findings suggest that "a long-term diet high in protein, when mismatched with a high energy challenge, has negative effects on body mass and hormones and genes involved in glucose and lipid metabolism." She added that "however, a fiber-enriched diet may provide some protection."

Those who wish to increase their fiber intake can benefit from adding apples, nuts, soy, watermelon and whole grains to their dietary regimen. 

A team of researchers from the Institute for Aging Research of Hebrew SeniorLife in Boston enrolled 946 elderly participants in the Framingham Osteoporosis Study, which examined the effects of consuming higher amounts of protein.

The results of the study showed that individuals who had the lowest protein intake were 50 percent more likely to suffer from hip fractures.

While other studies have found that protein intake is associated with an increase in bone mineral density, the researchers from this study stated that a higher intake of protein also builds strong muscles in the legs, which lowers the possibility of falling and suffering a hip fracture.

Marian T. Hannan, lead author and co-director at the Musculoskeletal Research Program at the Institute for Aging Research, stated that "[the] study participants who consumed higher amounts of protein in their diet were significantly less likely to suffer a hip fracture."

People who wish to add more protein to their daily diet can benefit from consuming fish, leaner meats, dairy products, as well as different types of beans, which are all high sources of protein, according to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.