Subway serves up sub sandwiches and soup, leading many consumers to believe it's healthier than burger and fried chicken fast food restaurants. In some instances, this is true, but in other cases Subway's food contains staggering amounts of fat and sodium. The roast beef sandwich at Subway is one of your better choices, and it supplies a good amount of protein without being alarmingly high in saturated fat. The sandwich does contain a huge amount of sodium, though, making it an occasional lunch item rather than something you eat every day.
Protein in the Roast Beef Sandwich
A 6-inch Subway roast beef sandwich contains 24 grams of protein. That's 52 percent of the 46 grams of protein that women need each day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It's 43 percent of the 56 grams of protein men should aim for each day. If you have the foot-long roast beef sandwich, you'll double these numbers.
Function of Protein
Protein is essential for your survival. It's present in your cells, tissues, muscles, skin, hair and bones, and helps each of these body parts function normally. Protein supplies you with energy, and might help you maintain a healthy weight by filling you up so you eat fewer calories. If you eat a diet that includes meat, such as roast beef, it's easy to get all of the protein you need, and it's fairly uncommon for people who eat a healthy and well-balanced diet to become deficient in protein, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A 6-inch Subway roast beef sandwich supplies 5 grams of dietary fiber, which is 20 percent of the 25 grams women require each day and 13 percent of the 38 grams recommended for men. The same sandwich also provides 8 percent of your vitamin A needs and 20 percent of the vitamin C you should have each day. The sandwich contains 30 percent of your calcium needs and 25 percent of the iron you need on a daily basis, too. It also contains 700 milligrams of sodium. You should limit your intake of sodium to 2,300 milligrams or less per day, according to MayoClinic.com. The roast beef sandwich has 30 percent of that limit, and 47 percent of the 1,500 milligrams you should limit yourself to if you have heart disease or if your doctor has recommended a low-sodium diet.
Eating at Subway
The roast beef sandwich at Subway is on the 6 grams of fat or less menu that the restaurant offers, so it's among your best choices if you're going to have a sub sandwich. Ask for half the meat and hold the cheese to cut the sodium content of the sandwich. Order a roast beef mini sub instead. The smaller sandwich still contains 14 grams of protein, but the sodium content is reduced to 410 milligrams.