Protein boosting is a craze, but how much do you really need?
‘Protein is a girl’s best friend,” reads the caption on an Instagram post. The image shows a model posing in a bathroom wearing a black cocktail dress, martini in one hand. In the other is a large bag of Khloud Protein Popcorn. The latest commercial venture of influencer Khloé Kardashian, the popcorn comes in five flavours and promises seven grams of protein per three-cup serving, thanks to the kernels being coated with “Khloud dust”, Kardashian’s proprietary blend of protein powder. The product (not yet available here) reportedly sold out within days of its US launch. Likewise, the liquid “protein shots” recently released by self-help podcaster and author of The Let Them Theory, Mel Robbins. Protein is so hot right now.
Browse the supermarket shelves in Aotearoa and you’ll see the trend reflected. There are protein bars and powders, protein chips and crackers, protein hummus, protein cereals, protein-added peanut butter, protein pasta and protein+ yoghurt, all catering to a premise that we need to eat more of this nutrient.
“Protein is a massive trend at the moment,” says food scientist Sarah Walter of consultancy Beverage and Food Gurus. In the company’s Auckland laboratory, staff are hard at work devising new protein-rich foods and drinks. Walter doesn’t think the fad is new, but has evolved over time.
Such things often accompany societal shifts or lifestyle changes around health and wellness or weight management. “Then once that gets amplified by social media influencers, the manufacturers and brands start getting into that – to make it more available, convenient and great tasting. Then more and more jump on the bandwagon.”
It’s true that without protein, none of us would be here. Protein is the term for a group of molecules that are the building blocks of all life; they are present in every life form, from bacteria to bodybuilders. In humans, they’re essential in every bodily tissue including muscle, bone, skin and brain. Protein is made up of over 20 amino acid “building blocks”, nine of which are essential amino acids we can’t make in the body. We have to get them from food.
We tend to think of protein in terms of its muscle-building properties, but it “does so much more than just help repair muscle and bone tissue”, says Auckland registered nutritionist Mikki Williden. “It’s important for water regulation, for hormones and enzymes and neurotransmitters. And then, of course, the protein cascade [a sequence of chemical reactions] that affects our appetite regulation, mood and blood sugar stabilisation so much.”
Lack of protein leads to loss of muscle (known as sarcopenia), lowered immunity, hair loss and jaundice, among other issues. Sarcopenia is a particular concern for older people, because it tends to happen naturally as we age.
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Although protein is one of the three macronutrients found in food, unlike the others – fat and carbohydrate – it has never been demonised in the cycle of dietary trends and fads. But it’s never had main character energy, either, until recently.
The roots of the current protein trend can be traced back to the mid-20th century, when the sport of body building drew attention to protein-heavy diets. Later, a young Arnold Schwarzenegger was documented in his Mr Olympia days describing his diet: five meals a day aimed at hitting a target of 250g or more of protein for maximum muscle building.
With body building came the need for easily consumable, concentrated protein. Schwarzenegger was an early adopter of protein powder, a niche product in the 1960s and 70s. In the 80s and 90s, as the fitness and gym industries grew, protein began to appear as an ingredient in the meal-replacement shakes that were a popular diet fad of the era. It was a key component of the Atkins and Zone diets of the early 2000s, and through the low-carb, keto and paleo diet trends, protein persisted. Eventually, protein powders, shakes and bars moved from male-coded specialist body-building shops to the shelves of supermarkets and pharmacies.