The Current - So many foods have added protein. How much do you actually need?

Episode Date: May 5, 2025

Food with added protein is big business these days, with companies putting it in everything from candy to water to dog food. We break down how the food industry has capitalized on the protein rush, and ask a dietitian how much of the supplement we actually need — and what’s the best way to get it.

1942, Europe. Soldiers find a boy surviving alone in the woods. They make him a member of Hitler's army. But what no one would know for decades, he was Jewish. Could a story so unbelievable be true? I'm Dan Goldberg. I'm from CBC's Personally, Toy Soldier. Available now wherever you get your podcasts. This is a CBC podcast. Hello, I'm Matt Galloway and this is the current podcast. Protein. Protein. Protein cookie dough. You can eat this as is to knock out the sweet tooth without the guilt. This is a protein coke float. It has been all over the internet lately. It's gone mega viral. If you mix diet coke with a protein shake, it's delicious and smooth and creamy.

We've been seeing these wild protein chips everywhere. We have buffalo flavor, have a lamping salt. High protein diets. Everybody needs protein. All over social media, people are loading protein into everything from cookies to coke. Food companies are adding protein to things like bagels, even chips. If you're a fan of the White Lotus, you know all about Saxon's obsession with protein shakes. The actor Patrick Schwarzenegger demonstrated the stomach churning recipe on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. This is whole milk. Whole milk?

Oh yeah, we go full fat here. Okay. Two bananas. Two bananas. Yes. Sometimes I throw in a little protein bar, just extra protein. Oh really? Yeah.

Little peanut butter, which helps the consistency. And then you just do a little bit of protein. Okay, just a little bit of protein. Yep. Yep. One scoop there. And then you'll do two scoops there. Yeah. You do a three scooper. All right, good then you'll do two scoop there.

Yeah, you do a three scooper. All right, good. Four scoops of protein, five scoops of protein. That's a lot of six scoops of protein. All right. And then just a half. All right, six and a half, perfect. You want some of this?

Yeah. Six and a half scoops of protein powder go into that shake along with a little protein bar for an extra boost. Yes, indeed protein is having a moment. You might be seeing it around you when you look in the grocery store. How much protein do we actually need though? What is the best way to get that protein?

We're going to hear from a registered dietitian in just a moment. But first, Jesse Newman is a food and agriculture reporter for the Wall Street Journal. Jesse, good morning. Hi there. Did you put protein in your coffee this morning? Jesse Newman is a food and agriculture reporter for The Wall Street Journal. Jesse, good morning. Hi there. Did you put protein in your coffee this morning? I do have some whole milk, so I got some protein in there. Your piece starts off with mention of this guy,

Morgan Gates, who he begins his day eating six eggs, then has a smoothie with Greek yogurt, protein powder and berries, and then for dinner has a pound of red meat. Why is he somebody that you thought you could start a piece about protein with? Well, it turns out that this gentleman, Morgan Gates, is not all that atypical. Most, you've got a lot of American consumers these days who are pretty fixated on protein. I guess the one difference between

Morgan Gates and some of the other folks that we spoke to are that he is getting most of his protein from pretty basic foods versus a lot of the packaged products that are now packing protein in there and selling it to consumers. So a lot of consumers are getting their protein through processed packaged food. Why do you think added protein is having a moment? I will say protein is sort of a long running trend, right? So in the food world, you've got things that are more of what we think of as fads and they're sort of like flash in the pan, they're around for a minute and then they sort of dissipate. Protein has been,

it is having a moment, but people have been onto protein for a while. This is one of the longer running trends in food and protein is by and large good for you, so that helps. But I also think that right now food companies are noticing that American consumers and others around the world are very, are very fixated on protein and so they're sort of putting it into everything and and so it's sort of this self perpetuating, self perpetuating cycle and I think people see labels that say protein and it does have sort of a health halo. They think, oh okay, this is going to be healthy for me. You think it means different things to different people. Some people think of it as a way to

get full and feel full faster or with fewer calories. Some people see it as a way to get energy before or after working out. Protein obviously is big among people who go to the gym. Obviously, there's the GLP-1, the weight loss drugs, which are adding a who go to the gym. It's also, obviously there's the GLP-1, the weight loss drugs, which are adding a new element to the conversation. These are folks who definitely are focused on getting enough protein as they lose weight. So it's kind of coming from all corners.

As you mentioned, and I mean, Morgan Gates is atypical because he's eating real food, if I can put it that way, that has protein in it. There are companies in the food industry that are adding protein to just about everything. Where is additional protein turning up? What are some of the things where we find extra protein now in the grocery store, Alex? I mean, really, pick your poison. It's in everything.

There's a protein chip that you can buy that's made from chicken breast, egg whites, and bone broth. You can get protein candy. You can get protein ice cream. There is protein soda, protein water, protein coffee, protein popcorn. I mean, the list just goes on and on. And this is beyond, I would just mention, this is beyond sort of the typical places where we've always seen added protein. So in cereals or in snack bars, the food companies have figured out how to get it into just about everything. Pet food as well, apparently? Pet food, baby food, yep.

So the baby needs more protein and my hound needs more protein as well. That's what the food companies would have you believe. This is big business, right? I mean, the food companies have latched on to something. I think, I do think that, you know, like we said, I do think that their protein has a health halo and so the food companies have decided that protein sells. You know, one of the interesting things, which I'm sure your other guests can talk about is the extent to which we actually need more proteins in our diet. In the Western world, we aren't at a protein deficiency. The one thing we

do need more of is fiber. And yet, as folks said to me, fiber is a little bit trickier to sell. Fiber makes you think of older people and waste and metamucil, and it's just not as easy to sell. So yeah, food companies see a winner in protein. How much of this has to do with social media? Some of the viral videos that we just heard driving this and people thinking, yeah, if that video shows the benefits of drinking protein coke, then I should get the protein coke as well. I think social media is a huge factor, as you say. There are viral things's these, there's a viral, there are viral, things go viral on TikTok,

like the protein diet Coke. You know, there's a lot of, there's a lot of content for folks who go to the gym. So, you know, you've got the Joe Rogan's of the world on the podcast, you know, pushing protein. So I do think that's a big driver. Is your sense that, I mean, this is being sold to people, do you have a sense as to who's buying this product? Who's buying protein water or protein flavored chips?

You know, I do think it runs the gamut. So I think that what we noticed was that this did, you know, this started off a lot of these protein products, started off as for regular gym goers, but it's kind of moved into the mainstream. I mean, I know I get targeted with a lot of ads for protein for women and to maintain health as they age. For kids, I mean, there's just added protein in everything for kids. I can see that from for purchasing food for my five-year-old.

So I think it really runs the gamut. And again, like we talked about the, you know, any weight loss drug users, this is a population that is looking, that is definitely looking to increase their protein intake in order to offset lost muscle mass as they are losing weight. So, you know, I think it's in the same way that protein is pretty ubiquitous across the grocery store, consumers really vary. That's really interesting, the ozempic factor. I mean, we talk a lot on this program about all of the different ways that those weight

loss drugs, the GLP-1 drugs have started to influence and shape society. And this is one of them, right? Yep. It's such an extra part of this. What is, when you look at health halos, where do you see this going in the future, do you think? You know, it'll be interesting. I mean, like we've said, the protein has been around

and it only seems to be gaining staying power. I think one of the things that will be interesting to see is whether more science comes out that begins to look at, you know, whether you can have too much of a good thing, whether there is such thing as too much protein. I wonder, you know, if we do begin to see more studies, if that has any effect on sort of the protein craze. But I mean, it's definitely got staying powder

and so I wouldn't expect it to go anywhere anytime soon. Jesse, thank you very much for this. Yeah, thank you. Jesse Newman is a food and agriculture reporter for the Wall Street Journal. She is in Chicago. Have you ever finished a book and just needed to talk about it immediately

or wanted to know the wildest research an author has done for a book? Or even what book talk books are actually worth your time? Hi, I'm Morgan Book. Yes, that is actually my last name. And this is Off the Shelf, my new podcast that covers everything related to books. Each Thursday I chat with other bookworms and authors, or sometimes it's just me rambling about my latest book obsession. From book to screen updates, to hot takes on new releases, and and of course our monthly book club discussions, I've got you covered. So get

your TBR list ready and listen to Off the Shelf wherever you get your podcasts. Carla Prado is a professor and Canada research chair at the University of Alberta in the Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Science, also director of the Human Nutrition Research Unit. She is in Edmonton. Carla, good morning to you. Good morning, thank you for having me. What do you make of this eruption in popularity of adding protein to just about everything?

Well, there's the good and the bad side. The good side is that protein is very important for health. As you've mentioned, it's one of the macronutrients along with carbohydrates and fat. And it has very important for health, as you've mentioned. It's one of the macronutrients along with carbohydrates and fat. And it has a very important role in our bodies. You've discussed the importance of building muscle, absolutely very important. It also supports our immune system and a variety of other things in our body like enzymes and hormone production, supports healthy aging.

This is another side of things as well. I think that longevity, the longevity science is really also putting a spin on that. So protein is important and some populations are not getting enough, like older adults, people with illness or injury. You know, that's very important for us to discuss that. And as Jesse mentioned, yes, the majority of healthy adults who are not especially most sedentary are getting enough, but some of the populations are not getting enough. So I think that there is two sides. People are listening more, understanding more of the importance of protein. Very active

individuals obviously do need more. But importantly, high protein does not equal high quality. So it's very important for people to be choosing healthier choices in this trajectory. So let's unpack a lot of that. First, I mean, just basic science 101. What does protein do for our bodies? So protein, it builds and repairs muscle mass. It's essential for recovery, especially after exercise and illness.

It also helps with our bodies to make antibodies, so to fight disease and also helping with enzymes and hormones production, which really controls everything from digestion to mood in our body. So we have to think of, we can think of protein like giving us, so carbohydrates will give us energy, protein will give us the material it needs to maintain and rebuild itself, like a bricks for a house, for example. How much protein do we actually need? And we, I mean, we're all different, but broadly, how much protein do we need? Absolutely. This is a very interesting question because as Jesse mentioned, we really need

more research to determine that. Most adults will need, the minimal recommended, that's very important, is 0.8 grams per kilogram body weight per day. So we can do a quick calculation, and this recommendation usually gets confused as the destination where we want people to get, but this is really, again, it's the minimal. So- What does that translate into?

If somebody, and again, if you have 80, yeah, people are trying to figure what the math is. So what does that work into? So like I should say, usually you can have like an adult that is like, maybe 70 kilograms, I would say. So that would be 56 grams per day, more or less, and of protein overall.

And this is, again, a minimal recommended. It's not a destination for us to support optimal health or muscle maintenance. So people like older adults or even as an injury, we need higher levels of protein. So we'll multiply that. So it'll be like 1.2, 1.5 more or less, but very important. And one thing that I think that the mistake that we make is that some studies suggest that there is a plateau of protein intake and especially for populations who are not in need of more protein.

So beyond, for example, 1.6 grams per kilogram per day or beyond this plateau, if you eat more, simply what's gonna happen, it's not going to be used for any of these benefits that we've mentioned. It's gonna be either used for energy or storage of fat or it's gonna be excreted by the body. So eating more protein than you need is like sending bricks to a building site where construction is already finished. The body doesn't store it. It's gonna burn or dump it.

If somebody needs, on average, you're saying 52 grams of protein, where would they find that? I mean, what would that come out to? Is there something that you could eat or something that you could imagine in terms of food that might be in front of somebody that would capture that amount?

Yeah, and there are very easy user-friendly ways of understanding the food portion. So that's what we're talking about. What does that translate in terms of food portion? And one important thing is divided protein intake. So don't eat a huge amount of protein just for dinner. It's very important to divide it breakfast. Usually we neglect eating breakfast. But if you have, for example, if we add eggs to your breakfast and if you ensure that you have protein source, and I'm going to mention some

protein sources for lunch. And again, portion sizes that usually we say if it's meat is the size of the palm of your hand? So it depends on the food. So the quantity really varies in terms of how much grams of protein that's giving you, and it matters if it's coming from animal sources or plant sources. But in terms of meeting, it's always better to meet it with real food. As Jesse mentioned, real food is going to also give you fiber. It's going to give you the other nutrients that are very important for health because our body cannot just survive out of protein, right? So meeting recommendations

with real food is always important and I can give you some suggestions if you want. Yeah, please do. So lean meats, dairy, legumes, tofu, eggs are really ideal sources. And you know, we don't rely, there is no need to rely on powders or bars and plan ahead if that's the issue is a convenience. It's always, you know, this is one of the things actually positive that we see on social media is how to plan ahead and actually pack protein sources that are from real food and always thinking that quality

matters over quantity. So whole food proteins will come from fiber, vitamins, healthy fats, you know, it's going to take another generation for people to not be scared of fats or fat in our food. And also very interesting tips, for example, roasted chickpeas, like having things that are ready on the go. You could have protein, peanut butter, for example, or hummus with celery sticks or apple sticks or peanut butter, cottage cheese and fruit. So those are very easy things and easy, you know, is next idea as well that you can pack

protein within it. You said something really interesting, which is a quality is more important than quantity in some ways. We were talking with Jesse about all of the things that are being sold now that have extra protein in them. Soda, cereal, chips, candy, ice cream. What do you make of that? To some people that might just sound like junk food

that's been laced with protein. Correct, many of these products the protein cookies protein chips protein bars They still contain a lot of added sugar salt and refined starches So is the same stuff found in regular junk food, right? So the protein is just added on top of that. So this ultra processed high protein foods are certainly not Recommended for you. And I think that that's very important for us to be aware of. But not all ultra-processed protein foods are bad.

Very important, especially when you're talking about people who are older adults or who have illness and injury who need extra protein. And my example here is oral nutritional supplements. So those are the medical protein shakes that play a very, very important role for clinical care, especially for vulnerable populations. So this is an exception, you know, they complement the diet, they're not replacing real food, but physicians and dieticians really use them

and it's based on medical nutrition evidence. But you said there's no need to rely on supplements or powders. So for the average person who sees those supplements or hears them being hawked on the podcast that they're listening to or what have you, what should they make of that pitch? So correct.

So if they are the average person that doesn't need the extra amount of protein, they can't get enough through their food alone. And it takes planning their diet, it takes preparing it the day before, for example, so that you're not relying on quick, easy snacks. But we, like, I think that that's the bottom line is that you can get food first. Choosing food first is always our recommendation. And also looking at the nutrition facts box when you're purchasing a product. In Canada, it's very easy for us to look for a product, always look for products that are

giving you less of what we want, less of what you don't want. So in the nutrition facts box, we have something called the percentage daily value. So it's the percentage DV. And it's a very easy rule for us to use, the 5-15 rule. So if you have – and I can explain the daily value if you want – but if you have the 5% of daily value or less, it means a little of that nutrient. 15% of daily value or more means a lot of that nutrient. Which nutrients are we looking for?

Protein, sugar, saturated fat, sodium, and fiber. So looking at those boxes will help you choose the adequate product, the adequate food that when you are at the grocery store. You've hinted at this, but who is it that needs more protein in their diet? So as I've mentioned, and especially in my exception, older adults, the majority of older adults

may not be meeting their protein requirements, actually. It's even in North America. We know that from evidence that they need more protein, and also people with illness or diseases, people with cancer, for example, this is one of the areas of my research in our team. So they need more protein. They have an external, like their immune system is being activated in a different way.

So we need more protein in those conditions, but also athletes and people who exercise and very active individuals, they need more protein as well. Growth, you know, different trajectories, pregnancy, breastfeeding, so those are some of the exceptions to the general population. So, for the person who hears this and they wonder, well, am I getting enough? How do I know that I'm getting enough? How do I ensure that I get enough and that I get it in a healthy way? What's the bottom line bit of advice that you would give somebody? Is the best way to get enough protein in your diet?

Dr. Maria Zanon-Gonzalez The best way to get enough protein in our diet is, again, including it in all of your meals and snacks. So, it's trying to think ahead and including them breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks, healthy sources like I've mentioned before, and obviously in special conditions, talk to your healthcare provider to ensure that you're eating enough. Registered dietitians are a wonderful resource. And we also have government endorsed websites or recommendations that people can look at to even calculate their protein needs and try to estimate. Nowadays, we have a number of apps that you can take pictures or even try to type in what you're eating so that it will give you a rough idea of how much you're consuming.

For people who are older adults, for example, the range that we've talked about, 0.8 grams per kilogram per day bumps up to 1.2 to 1.5 grams per kilogram per day. So then they can work with that number and then try to understand what type of food portions of the foods that they are eating are bringing that in. But we have amazing healthcare professionals who can support people in special phases of their life. And eat real food, not the junk food. Always, always, unless again, there is the need, right,

for the supplementation for the special cases where we've discussed before. Carla, thank you very much for this. This is really helpful. Thank you for having me. Carla Prado is a Canada research chair in integrative nutrition, body composition, and energy metabolism at the University of Alberta

in the Department of Agriculture, Food, and Nutrition Science. She's also director of the university's human nutrition research unit and was in Edmonton.