The United States is currently a bit “protein crazy.” Despite the fact that the average American gets well over their daily recommended intake of protein already, protein products are flying off the shelves. Everything from protein popcorn to protein pancakes has found a place in the average American’s kitchen.
While there are plenty of benefits to consuming protein—doing so can help you build muscle while sating your appetite, for example—the very idea of “high protein” isn’t really well-defined. This means that some people may be eating a product because they believe it has a lot of protein. In reality, they would likely be better off getting their protein from another source.
Now, TikTok user Adam (@biteswithadam) has sparked discussion with a protein rule he says you should follow if you’re reading labels at the grocery store.
What’s The 10-to-1 Rule For Protein?
In his video, Adam stands in the aisle of a grocery store holding a protein bar.
“A lot of people don’t know this, but if you’re trying to follow a high-protein diet, you want to make sure that anything you buy has at least a 10-calorie-to-1-gram-of-protein ratio,” he advises. “Anything else, even if it says ‘protein,’ is not actually high protein.”
“Don’t get fooled by the word Protein on the package!” he adds in the caption.
This “rule” isn’t unique to Adam. On Reddit, user Midnight_Fighter shared similar advice earlier in the year, suggesting that one should “Take the grams of protein per serving and add a zero to it. If that number is greater than or equal to the total calories per serving, it’s supposedly a high-protein food.” This is effectively the same advice as Adam’s, just arrived at in a different way.
So, Is This Advice True?
Well, as there’s no real rule for what defines something as high protein, there’s no way to prove whether it is or not. That said, one can look at the caloric information for known high-protein foods to determine whether this is an effective rule.
For context, a single gram of protein has 4 calories. This is in contrast to fat, which has 9 calories per gram. Whey protein powder, often regarded as one of the highest-quality supplements for protein, has 75 calories and 13 grams of protein in one 19.5-gram scoop on average according to the USDA. This more than meets this rule.
Similarly, a serving of fat-free cottage cheese has 80 calories and 13 grams of protein.
Other, non-high-protein foods should also be part of a balanced diet. However, if one is trying to find ways to add more protein to their diet, following this 10-to-1 rule can put them on the right track so that they’re not consuming more calories than they need.
@biteswithadam Don’t get fooled by the word Protein on the package! 🏷️💪#food #hack #groceryshopping #health #protein
Commenters Chime In
In the comments section, some users said that, while this was generally good advice, actually following it requires a bit of nuance.
“Lots of good protein sources wont meet this threshold, so if you get one or two really good staples that help you meet your daily goal at a low calorie count (for me it’s a 155-calorie protein coffee for 30g), it makes it a lot easier,” suggested a commenter.
“You also need some fiber for that high protein cus boyyyyyyyyyy,” noted another.
“Also you only need 0.8g of protein per kg of body weight,” suggested a third, noting the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of protein.
BroBible reached out to Adam via TikTok direct message and comment.