Buzz
Allow me to share a brief rant—don’t worry, I’ll keep it informative and full of facts. I’m honestly tired of seeing articles pop up every few months that claim we’re all eating 'too much' protein. These articles often misrepresent how our bodies actually use protein and unfairly criticize healthy meals that happen to be high in protein. It’s about time we set the record straight.
While it's true that many of us consume more protein than the RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance), this is not a bad thing, as the RDA is simply a baseline. Yes, protein-enriched foods are trendy, and they may not always be the best dietary options in the long run. Also, it's possible to maintain a healthy diet without much meat, though meat isn't the only source of protein. Let’s dive into what we truly understand about protein’s role in a healthy diet, and how to determine if you're consuming too much or too little.
Which foods are rich in protein?
To refresh your memory, protein is one of the three macronutrients that provide calories—along with fats and carbs—that make up the majority of the foods we consume. Proteins consist of amino acids, which are essential for the growth, repair, and proper functioning of our body.
Protein is available from a wide range of sources. Meats are particularly rich in protein, with a chicken breast containing around 35 grams of protein. Other animal products like milk and eggs also provide a good amount of protein. While plant-based foods generally offer less protein compared to animal products, it's still easy to meet or exceed protein needs, even on a vegan diet. For example, beans, grains, and soy products like tofu are all great protein sources.
If you’re looking for a quick guide on how much protein you should consume based on your activity level, you can find one here. This is a great starting point to challenge the myth of 'too much protein,' because before we can claim that someone is eating 'too much,' we first need to determine how much is 'enough.'
The RDA is intended to be viewed as a minimum requirement.
The government provides nutrient targets to encourage us to maintain a healthy, balanced diet. These targets are used for the '% daily value' labels found on packaged foods and to shape the nutrient content of school lunches. The RDA, or Recommended Daily Allowance, is defined as 'the average daily dietary intake level sufficient to meet the nutrient requirement of nearly all (97 to 98 percent) healthy individuals in a group.'
To put it another way, if 100% of us followed the RDA for protein, at least 97% of us would be consuming enough protein—we would be meeting the minimum necessary to maintain health. This number represents a minimum requirement to avoid malnutrition, not the maximum amount or a recommendation for optimal health.
Curious about how that number is calculated? For protein, it’s based on nitrogen balance. Our bodies break down proteins and excrete nitrogen as part of daily metabolic functions. If you consume enough protein (which contains nitrogen), the nitrogen you excrete will either match or exceed the nitrogen you consume. Essentially, if your body isn't breaking down its own proteins in excess of what you're eating, it means you’re consuming sufficient protein.
In this perspective, the RDA serves as the baseline for maintaining health. Consuming more is perfectly fine, but eating less may indicate that you’re not getting enough. For certain nutrients, there’s also an UL (upper limit) that indicates how much is too much. This is the case for vitamins and minerals; however, no upper limit has been established for protein.
Thus, there is no official definition for what constitutes 'too much' protein. If someone consumes more than the RDA, they are not overdoing it; they are simply eating beyond the minimum requirement. In fact, you’re meant to consume more than the minimum.
What is the RDA for protein, and how does the average American's intake compare to it?
The RDA for protein is set at 46 grams per day for a 125-pound woman and 56 grams per day for a 154-pound man. This is based on an RDA of 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, which equals 0.36 grams per pound. So, for a 200-pound individual, the protein requirement would be 72 grams per day.
This USDA report shows that most adult men consume between 90 and 100 grams of protein per day on average, though men aged 70 and older tend to consume only about 80 grams per day. For women, the average intake is around 70 grams per day, with those aged 70 and up averaging 62 grams.
Exceeding the RDA? Sure. Is that too much? There’s no clear argument for that. Before you point out that this is nearly double the recommendation, let’s do some quick math. The RDA values are for people weighing 125 and 154 pounds. However, the averages we’re looking at are based on real people, not ideal numbers. The average American man weighs 200 pounds, and the average American woman weighs 171 pounds. So let’s compare the figures:
For a woman weighing 171 pounds, the RDA would be 62 grams per day. (However, women typically consume 70 grams of protein per day.)
For a man weighing 200 pounds, the RDA would be 72 grams per day. (Men typically consume 90 to 100 grams of protein per day.)
Once again, there’s no need to limit yourself to the minimum—going 8 grams over, or even 28 grams over, is perfectly fine. It may even be better to exceed the minimum than to just meet it, especially since many of us might not be consuming enough. Let me explain why.
A large number of older adults don’t consume enough protein.
Let’s take a look at older adults. As people age, protein intake tends to decrease, and older individuals become more prone to problems caused by muscle loss. On average, people lose 3-5% of their muscle mass every decade starting at age 30. However, incorporating strength training and maintaining adequate protein intake can help preserve muscle mass and possibly prevent or slow this decline.
The Dietary Guidelines highlight that 'Around 50 percent of women and 30 percent of men aged 71 and older don’t meet the protein food recommendations.' In addition, a study found that older adults who fall short of these recommendations 'are more likely to experience limitations in activities such as stooping, crouching, kneeling, standing or sitting for long periods, walking up stairs, preparing meals, and walking a quarter mile.'
Even though it’s true that the average adult consumes more protein than recommended, there are still many older individuals who don’t meet these requirements. These individuals are the ones who struggle with basic daily tasks. While it's unclear whether the functional decline is a cause or effect of their dietary changes, it's evident that they are not a group who should be consuming less protein.
If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, you require more protein than the standard RDA.
Another group that clearly benefits from more protein, rather than less, includes those who are pregnant or lactating. Instead of the typical 0.36 grams of protein per pound of body weight (which is 62 grams for someone weighing 171 pounds), the RDA for pregnant or lactating individuals is 0.5 grams per pound, which amounts to 86 grams of protein per day.
Pregnancy also comes with higher calorie needs, which makes it easier to meet the higher protein requirements. Nevertheless, it's more practical to focus on ensuring you get enough protein rather than stressing over whether you’re getting too much.
Diets rich in protein are beneficial for maintaining healthy muscle mass and supporting exercise performance.
You saw this coming (I mention between sets of squats, wiping protein shake off my lips): If you exercise, you should be getting more protein than the RDA.
While some of the alarmist 'too much protein' articles might mention that bodybuilders or elite athletes require more protein, they often dismiss this as a concern irrelevant to regular people. But it’s worth taking a closer look—and honestly, this applies to a lot more people than just a few elite athletes.
There is no official RDA for athletes; people who engage in exercise can avoid malnutrition by sticking to the same 0.36 grams of protein per pound as the general population. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean the RDA is the best target for athletes.
The International Association of Athletics Federations, which oversees track and field competitions, suggests that most athletes who are either maintaining or increasing their weight should consume between 0.59 to 0.77 grams of protein per pound of body weight daily. That translates to 101 to 131 grams for a 171-pound woman, and 118 to 154 grams for a 200-pound man.
A variety of organizations, including the American College of Sports Medicine, largely agrees, recommending a range from 0.54 to 0.9 grams per pound for athletes who are either maintaining or gaining weight. This includes endurance athletes like distance runners and strength athletes who focus on weightlifting. In those cases, the range can reach as high as 153 grams for the 171-pound woman, and 180 grams for the 200-pound man.
You don’t need to be an Olympic-level athlete to fit into this category. If you’re training for a half marathon, you’re doing a lot of distance running and should adjust your diet accordingly. Similarly, if you're “just” lifting weights but doing so seriously and consistently, your nutrition should reflect these ranges as well.
Diets higher in protein help promote healthy weight loss.
Weight loss dieting is not only a widespread hobby in America, but it’s also arguably beneficial for some aspects of your health. If you’ve recently gone on a diet or are planning to, you’re someone who should aim beyond the standard RDA.
Studies indicate that protein intake (and strength training—they go hand in hand!) is essential to preserving muscle mass while losing weight. After all, your goal is to lose fat, not watch your muscles dwindle away.
For instance, this study discovered that diets ranging from 0.48 to 0.72 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight (which is 82 to 123 grams for a 171-pound woman, 96 to 144 grams for a 200-pound man) led to less weight regain after dieting, helped maintain muscle mass, and made people feel fuller during the diet.
And if you’re not just losing weight, but also exercising? The IAAF suggests that athletes “undertaking high-quality weight loss” should consume at least 0.72 grams of protein per pound of body weight, and possibly as much as 1.09 grams per pound. This means 186 grams for a 171-pound athlete, or 218 grams for a 200-pound athlete. While most won’t need such high levels, it’s useful to see just how high the range can go.
In the end, weight loss is widely recognized to be more successful and yield healthier outcomes when paired with higher protein intake rather than lower. When people focus solely on eating less without considering the nutritional quality of their diet, protein often gets overlooked. But research supports increasing your protein intake as you cut back on overall calories.
Can consuming excessive protein lead to fat gain?
This is a common claim in discussions about “excess” protein, and while it holds some truth, it doesn’t entirely mean what you might think it does.
When you consume more food than your body requires, it has the ability to convert it into fat. This applies to any kind of excess—whether it's protein, carbs, fats, or even alcohol. The protein you consume serves many purposes in your body. It can be used to create muscle tissue, assist in the growth and repair of cells, and more. Additionally, it can be used as energy by burning it for calories.
So, if you were following a balanced diet and then added an extra 100 grams of protein to your daily intake, a significant portion of that protein would be burned for energy, and any surplus energy would eventually be stored as fat.
However, if you increase your protein intake by replacing other foods in your diet, there will be no extra calories left to store as fat. The message isn’t about overloading on protein shakes on top of your usual meals; it's about strategically planning your meals and snacks to include more protein.
For instance, if your typical lunch consists of a turkey and cheese sandwich with chips, you could boost your protein intake by adding more turkey to the sandwich and swapping the chips for an apple. The calorie count remains the same, but the protein content increases. As long as your total daily calorie intake doesn’t exceed your needs, the “extra” protein won’t be converted into fat.
Is consuming excessive protein harmful?
Generally, high-protein diets don’t result in serious health issues. However, there’s an important exception: for certain medical conditions, you may be instructed to limit your protein intake to safeguard your health.
For example, individuals with chronic kidney disease are often advised to follow the RDA (0.36 grams per pound of body weight) as a maximum, not a minimum. Since your kidneys help process protein for excretion, reducing protein intake lessens the workload on damaged kidneys. On the other hand, when someone with chronic kidney disease begins dialysis, they might be recommended to increase their protein intake for better health now that their body has support in managing higher levels.
People with certain other conditions, such as phenylketonuria and homocystinuria, may also be instructed to follow a low-protein diet. If you have one of these conditions, it’s important to seek dietary advice from your healthcare provider (request a referral to a dietitian!) rather than relying on general online articles.
Wasn’t there a study that claimed consuming too much protein could be harmful?
Beyond well-established medical concerns, occasional studies on “excess” protein often become part of the “X is good for you/X is bad for you” media cycle. These aren’t comprehensive evaluations of protein’s overall effects on health but rather focused research questions that are still being explored.
For example, this study found that a high-protein (and high-fiber) diet slightly worsened one measure of insulin resistance. However, it also had positive impacts on metabolic health and body composition. The researchers concluded that the subjects' bodies were likely responding appropriately to the changes in nutrient content. A few years later, a study involving high-BMI women with insulin resistance showed improvements in insulin resistance with a high-protein diet.
In another case, a study earlier this year found a correlation between high-protein diets and atherosclerosis. But if you examine what the researchers were specifically studying, they were investigating how leucine (an amino acid in protein) influences the mTOR biochemical pathway in certain white blood cells. Notably, the mTOR pathway is involved in numerous bodily functions, many of which are beneficial, not just atherosclerosis.
So, are these findings intriguing and worthy of further investigation? Certainly. Should protein recommendations be changed based on these findings? Only if (1) this effect actually leads to negative health outcomes, and (2) it outweighs the known benefits of higher protein intake. The existing body of evidence doesn’t support reducing protein recommendations or setting an upper limit.
There’s no pressing health issue that would be solved by reducing our protein intake.
If protein is beneficial for us and most people aren’t really consuming “too much,” then why is there so much debate about us overdoing it?
I think part of the issue comes from misunderstandings (the writers often don’t have a background in nutrition, especially in sports nutrition), but more often, they’re addressing a completely different concern altogether.
Frequently, the “too much protein” narrative is really about the environmental impact of meat consumption or dairy farming. Those making this argument are attempting to take the double cheeseburgers from our hands while reassuring us that we’ll be fine. I don’t think criticizing protein is the right way to make this point, since plant-based proteins are a valid alternative. But I understand their perspective.
Ultimately, if the argument is that we’re consuming “too much” protein for our health, it’s hard to make that case without evidence showing that excessive protein consumption is negatively impacting our health on a large scale. And such evidence simply doesn’t exist.
To grasp that concept, take a look at the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This is the key document that outlines our recommended dietary intake and what government programs should prioritize. Its objectives include lowering heart disease and diabetes rates, as well as ensuring people get adequate vitamins. Among its Key Recommendations, there’s an emphasis on limiting certain nutrients—namely sugars, saturated fats, sodium, and alcohol. However, there is no suggestion to reduce protein consumption.
Corrected on 1/15/2025 to clarify that we lose 3-5% of our muscle mass per decade, not annually, without training.
