Every food commercial, advertisement, and packaging in the US is currently protein obsessed. I just bought 3 burritos, and the most noticeable thing on the entire package is its protein content. TV commercials about waffles are advertising that they have X amount of protein per serving. The products in my jobsite’s vending machine have protein all over every package.

Did America have a protein thing recently?

  • Ephera@lemmy.ml
    4·
    3 days ago

    Just to note 1.2g per kg per day is a highly contested number. To my knowledge, the usual recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of most countries sits at around 0.8. As it says in that link, this was the RDA in the US, too, before the Trump bros recently increased it.

    And the RDA covers the needs of 97.5% of the population. So, per definition, most people need less than that.
    At the same time, with an average Western diet, you can easily get 1.5g per kg bodyweight per day. There’s cases where folks can’t deal with excess protein due to a kidney failure, and actually getting them to not eat excess protein can be quite the challenge.

    Source for that second block is this podcast/video where a nutrition professor is interviewed: https://zoe.com/learn/podcast-should-i-eat-more-protein

    • RobotToaster@mander.xyz
      3·
      3 days ago

      The RDA issue is addressed in the article I linked

      For adults, the US Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for protein is 0.8 g/kg/d.[2] However, a more appropriate statistical analysis of the data used to establish the RDA suggests this number should be higher: 1.0 g/kg/d.[3]

      Note that, contrary to popular belief, the RDA doesn’t represent an ideal intake. Instead, it represents the minimum intake needed to prevent malnutrition. Unfortunately, the RDA for protein was determined from nitrogen balance studies, which require that people eat experimental diets for weeks before measurements are taken. This provides ample time for the body to adapt to low protein intakes by down-regulating processes that are not necessary for survival but are necessary for optimal health, such as protein turnover and immune function.[4]

      An alternative method for determining protein requirements, called the Indicator Amino Acid Oxidation (IAAO) technique, overcomes many of the shortcomings of nitrogen balance studies.[5] Notably, it allows for the assessment of protein requirements within 24 hours, thereby not leaving the body enough time to adapt. Studies using the IAAO method have suggested that about 1.2 g/kg/d is a more appropriate RDA for healthy young men,[6] older men,[7] and older women.[8][9]