I know it’s been 10 years.... but this is so weird.... I was just about to write the very same thing!!! Thanks for stealing my thunder Bill! PS : ghost BCAA is garbage.. i don't know how you sleep at night even bringing it up. You would have to be a robot to sleep!

Red meat is only one source of protein, so a person will not be protein defficient just because they don't eat that. One could eat all kinds of protein food sources and if they have trouble absorbing it, then it will not make a difference. I don't know all the ins and outs of protein absorption the way I do for some other things like calcium and iron. Iron is something that is in red meat, but it's also in lentils, kidney beans, (most other beans too) quinoa, nuts, dark leafy greens, raisins and prunes, etc. If a kid is a finicky eater, then the real battle is to make sure he gets a variety of foods, that's very important. My mom used to ply us with dried fruits, nuts, and cut up veggies to snack on. There's nothing wrong with a little organic soy. But I wouldn't go overboard on it. If folks are subbing soy products for milk and meat and not eating a varied diet, then I could see it becoming a problem. Soy supplements and processed soy products are not the same thing as whole soy. Rather than try to get your son to eat a particular supplement, can you try to get him to eat more kinds of healthy foods like others have mentioned? Set out a bowl of dried fruits and nuts for him to snack on, make a broccoli forest for him to devour with a healthy cheese dip or something. Mixed grain healthy chips and bean dip. Make sure he gets lots of beans and grains, those are very healthy overall. Smoothies made with real fruit, yogurt, some nut butters and wheat germ taste good and have all the good stuff the commercial products do. Also, I can't emphasize enough the importance of greens. Most kids don't eat enough of them--sneak them into turkey or chicken burgers, we love them that way, or in pasta or serve crackers and spinach dip. Try to find a way to get him to eat salads. My brother is extremely picky but he's always liked salads.

Barb, here is Alton Brown's recipe, you could easily leave out the salt and any of the flavorings you don't like. The brown sugar adds a nice flavor, but it'll make the sausage stick if your meat is too lean, so watch it carefully. I often use dried herbs, although the fresh are very good used like this the dried ones are good too. If you don't want to grind your own meat, just get ground pork or ground chicken and use that. I like it with chicken a lot. Breakfast Sausage Alton Brown 2 pounds pork butt (2 1/2 pounds with bone), diced into 1/4-inch pieces 1/2 pound fat back, diced into 1/4-inch pieces 2 teaspoons kosher salt 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage leaves 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves 1 tablespoon light brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes Combine diced pork with all other ingredients and chill for 1 hour. Using the fine blade of a grinder, grind the pork. Form into 1-inch rounds. Refrigerate and use within 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months. For immediate use, saute patties over medium-low heat in a non-stick pan. Saute until brown and cooked through, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Recipe courtesy Alton Brown Ruthanna that's a great idea with flavored butters, CC could use unsalted butter and add things her husband likes. I love your Tomato Basil Butter, that's good on a lot of things. Annie

I'd have to ask how are you going to use it, and how often? As well as what other sources for protein do you already have in your diet? Most people actually consume more protein than what they need, and additional protein (unless you are into weight-lifting and extreme sports) can have some negative aspects from over-consumption of protein. I use unflavored whey protein isolate in some my gluten-free recipes as a substitute for high-glycemic flours/starches, but I don't use a lot of protein powders of any kind because they are highly inflammatory - whether whey, rice, soy, etc. According to a certified sports food coach I know, he doesn't encourage the use of a lot of protein powders. Often a sports fanatic will include large amounts of protein powder in their diets and will think muscular inflammation is from their workouts, while it can actually be from the protein powder (as well as lean, boneless, muscle meat they also eat in abundance). The reason I use unflavored whey protein isolate --- it's the short ingredients list: 100% whey protein isolate and lecithin. PLUS, it's high on the Biological Value Chart (which is the measure of a protein's ability to be used by the body). Whey protein powder is 100-159, eggs - 100, milk - 91, beef - 80, chicken - 79, beans - 49. So if you are needing to consume high amounts of protein (after surgery, as an example) then choose a type of protein that is high on the BV Chart. As an aside - I mentioned above how lean, boneless, muscle meat is inflammatory unless you also balance it with gelatin (which is collagen -- either naturally occurring gelatin found in bone-in meat, or in homemade bone broth, or dry unflavored gelatin). For this reason I make pan sauces with bone broth when serving lean boneless meat, or will start the meal with a cup of bone broth because the gelatin (collagen) in it balances the inflammatory protein makeup of muscle meat. I also make "healthy" gelatin desserts with dry unflavored gelatin or I'll add Collagen Hydrolystate (which is gelatin that doesn't gel) to cold/hot beverages for some pure protein that is quickly absorbed by the body. There are many health benefits from consuming bone broth and unflavored gelation. -Grainlady