I wonder how much that cdc data is averaged though… I definitely know way too many people who have completely bought into the protein fad, and they greedily lap up all of the ‘protein’ offerings from stores and restaurants believing it’s the ‘real way to lose weight!’
Well I could go on all day about this, but I think the vast majority of people overestimate how much protein (in the strict definition of the macronutrient made out of amino acids) is in meat products and underestimates how much protein is in plant products, especially grain products.
For example, the typical hot dog on a bun has nearly half the protein from the bun itself. Typical bun is 5g of protein, and typical hot dog itself is 6g of protein.
Same with things like deli sandwiches where the two slices of bread provide a substantial amount of protein and the cured meat and cheese in between is sometimes not substantial enough to really add a lot of protein.
Peanut butter sandwiches are a staple in my home and just regular bread and regular peanut butter makes a snack with 17g protein (more than 2 eggs).
To whatever extent processed food is substituting in protein, they might actually be reducing carbs and fat in a way that makes people consume fewer calories overall.
And frankly, some of the labels are just outright misleading about how much protein is in them. High protein pop tarts have as much protein as plain slices of bread (5g each).
I wonder how much that cdc data is averaged though… I definitely know way too many people who have completely bought into the protein fad, and they greedily lap up all of the ‘protein’ offerings from stores and restaurants believing it’s the ‘real way to lose weight!’
Well I could go on all day about this, but I think the vast majority of people overestimate how much protein (in the strict definition of the macronutrient made out of amino acids) is in meat products and underestimates how much protein is in plant products, especially grain products.
For example, the typical hot dog on a bun has nearly half the protein from the bun itself. Typical bun is 5g of protein, and typical hot dog itself is 6g of protein.
Same with things like deli sandwiches where the two slices of bread provide a substantial amount of protein and the cured meat and cheese in between is sometimes not substantial enough to really add a lot of protein.
Peanut butter sandwiches are a staple in my home and just regular bread and regular peanut butter makes a snack with 17g protein (more than 2 eggs).
To whatever extent processed food is substituting in protein, they might actually be reducing carbs and fat in a way that makes people consume fewer calories overall.
And frankly, some of the labels are just outright misleading about how much protein is in them. High protein pop tarts have as much protein as plain slices of bread (5g each).
And that’s not even getting into the bioavailability of protein powders. Your body isn’t absorbing all of the protein from your shake or whatever.