Protein may feel like a done deal, our culture’s hottest nutrient. But health professionals are still hotly debating it.
At one of the biggest nutrition conferences, hundreds of doctors, dietitians, and researchers packed massive ballrooms to discuss (and sometimes outright argue over) how much protein we actually need and whether the trend has gone too far.
“We have protein everywhere. It’s in vapes, it’s in Peeps, it’s in water, it’s a protein-palooza,” sports dietitian Leslie Bonci said during one presentation.
“It’s not that protein isn’t important. It’s taken on a life of its own, and that isn’t necessarily in the best interest of the people we work with on a day-to-day basis.”
While the debate still rages, four key points can help you make the most out of your protein choices to build muscle and even boost longevity.
More protein does help, up to a point
There’s no debate that protein is an essential nutrient for building and maintaining muscle and supporting a healthy metabolism.
Evidence suggests it can aid weight loss, help manage blood sugar, and crucially, preserve strength and stability as we age.
For all of those goals, the “sweet spot” seems to be about the same: about 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight for most people. It’s about 0.6 to 0.8 grams per pound, which means 84 to 114 grams per day for a 140-pound person.
That’s true whether you’re an athlete looking to make gains or a busy dad just trying to keep up with life, according to researcher David Church, who has done both roles.
A strength coach turned University of Arkansas professor, Church specializes in healthy aging, and said performance can be lifting heavy, or moving around your house pain-free.
“We don’t need everyone to become a bodybuilder,” he said in a presentation on optimal protein intake.
You’re most at risk of missing out on protein if you’re eating less: on a diet, or due to lack of appetite from meds like GLP-1s, illness, or normal aging. If that’s the case, Church advocates for a “protein nudge” — aiming to get an extra two grams of protein for every 100 calories you eat until you’re in the right range.
Quality matters as much as quantity
A growing consensus among nutrition researchers is that it matters where you get your protein.
All protein is made up of building blocks called amino acids, some of which we need for our health but can’t make on our own. While we can mix and match protein sources to get the right combo of amino acids, some foods pack more of a punch than others.
Church recommends getting at least one serving a day of foods high in essential amino acids, like eggs, chicken, fish, or soy. Then you can round out your diet with other foods that are good for you, but lower in amino acids: trendy chia seeds, beans (a superfood staple), and whole grains, for instance.
Whole foods like chicken breast may seem basic, but they’re staples for a reason: they contain nutrients you need, without extra additives.
“The chicken breast isn’t as sexy, it doesn’t have the ripped abs and tree trunk biceps, but we’re getting a lot more out of it,” Bonci said.
Don’t ignore other nutrients (and exercise)
The problem with protein is that its popularity is starting to eclipse other parts of a healthy diet, according to Bonci.
“People say ‘I had all this protein, and now I’m too full to have the other things I need,” she said. “It’s making people feel inadequate or subpar because they’re not getting 200 grams of protein a day. Honey, it’s OK, you don’t need to.”
In fact, protein is less effective on its own. If your goal is to cut fat and build lean body mass, you also need to pay attention to your carbohydrate intake.
“Nowhere would we say that protein is the be-all, end-all,” said Heather Leidy, a nutrition professor at the University of Texas who studies topics like protein timing, hormones, and weight management.
Cutting back on refined carbs and adding more high-fiber whole grains to your diet can be as important for a healthy weight as protein, she said.
More protein by itself won’t lead to more muscle gains, either. You also need to exercise — specifically resistance training — and many people aren’t, said Wayne Campbell, a Purdue University professor with three decades of experience in nutrition research.
“The broad messaging of more protein doesn’t help the general population going about their business,” he said. “If protein anabolism were really that effective, we’d have a lot more people walking around as blobs of protein, but we don’t.”
There’s a lot we still don’t know about protein
The biggest question that remains around dietary protein is: how much is too much? And what, if anything, is the “optimal” amount of protein?
“I hate the word optimal because what is it optimal for? We know a lot about muscle, but we don’t know a lot about everything else,” Campbell said.
We don’t yet understand how different amounts of protein affect the immune system or heart health, for instance.
Finally, context is key. We don’t eat protein in isolation. We eat foods, which are part of meals, which are part of habits that we repeat over days, weeks, and months.
Over time, those habits can lead to very different results. Too much red meat, for instance, can raise the risk of heart attack, while too much processed food, even if it’s high protein, is linked to cancer.
That final question — how does protein fit into a pattern of healthy eating — is perhaps the most complicated of all to answer. For now, the bottom line is to approach protein with “yes, and,” according to Bonci.
“It is not just one nutrient floating around all by itself. It is all of them together that are important,” she said.
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