Most Americans get plenty of protein from their diet. Since most Americans haven't had protein deficiencies, dietary guidelines for Americans have refrained from including protein as a separate topic. However, high-protein diets, high-protein drinks, vegetarian diets and vegan diets have become popular in modern times, so the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans included a separate section on protein and health. These guidelines recommend that you consume good quality protein and refrain from exceeding protein requirements.
Protein Quality
Protein is made up of 20 amino acids, and nine of these amino acids are essential, meaning you only get them from food. Your body does not store amino acids for very long, so you must consume complete proteins every day. Complete proteins come from foods that provide you with all nine essential amino acids in sufficient amounts and quality. Animal products are the only food sources that provide you with these proteins. 3 oz. of lean meat or poultry provides 25 grams of complete protein, and 1 cup of milk or yogurt provides about 13 grams of this protein.
Plant foods are incomplete proteins because they lack one or more of the nine essential amino acids. Vegetarians and vegans need to consume a variety of plant foods with complementary amino acids to consume complete proteins each day. A meal of rice and black beans would provide complete proteins. One serving of cereals, grains, nuts or vegetables provides about 2 grams of incomplete protein.
Children, Youth and Adolescents
Children should consume protein from animal products instead of plant products, according to the 2010 dietary guidelines. Kids will not be able to consume the necessary combinations of plant foods to get the required amount of protein each day. Not all kids require the same amount of protein each day. The recommended daily allowance (RDA) for children ages 1 to 3 is 1.05 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. The RDA for those that are 4 to 13 is 0.95 grams of protein per kilogram per day, and the RDA for adolescents that are 14 to 18 is 0.85 grams of protein per kilogram per day. One kilogram is equivalent to 2.2 lbs. Therefore, a 10-year-old child that weighs 70 lbs. would require 30 grams of complete protein each day.
Adults, Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers
The protein requirements for adult men and women that are 19 years of age and older is 0.80 grams of protein per kilogram per day. For example, an adult that weighs 150 lbs. would require 54 grams of complete protein per day. Pregnant women and lactating mothers require more protein: the RDA for pregnant women is 1.1 grams of protein per kilogram per day, and the RDA for lactating mothers is 1.3 grams of protein per kilogram per day.
High-Protein Diets
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans don't recommend high-protein diets for losing weight, maintaining a particular weight or for any other reason. A high-protein diet means that you're consuming less than 45 percent of your calories from carbohydrates and more than 35 percent of your calories from protein. High-protein diets are not safe or effective when you're trying to lose weight or maintain your weight. To lose weight, the 2010 dietary guidelines strongly recommend that you consume 10 to 35 percent of your calories from protein, 45 to 65 percent of your calories from carbohydrates and 20 to 35 percent of your calories from fat.
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