Protein Consumption Among Youth and Adults: United States, August 2021-August 2023.

Authors

Catharine A Couch, Nicholas Ansai, Adi Noiman, Cynthia L Ogden Ph D

Published in

NCHS data brief. Issue 573.

Abstract

National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data were used to determine the mean percentage of total calories from protein and the mean percentage of total protein consumed from the top five food sources during August 2021-August 2023 and trends in the mean percentage of calories from protein consumed among U.S. youth and adults from 2013-2014 through August 2021-August 2023.
Participants age 2 and older with reliable dietary recall data from Day 1 were included. Pregnant and lactating women were excluded. The mean percentage of calories from protein and the population proportion of protein from each food group was calculated for youth and adults. Day 1 dietary interview weights were used to account for unequal probability of selection, noncoverage, nonresponse, and day of the week, and design variables were used to account for the clustered sampling design. Statistical significance was set at the p < 0.05 level.
During August 2021-August 2023, youth consumed 13.9% of calories from protein, and consumption was higher among adolescents ages 12-19 (14.3%) than children ages 6-11 (13.3%). Adults consumed 15.5% of calories from protein with adults age 60 and older consuming less (15.1%) than younger adults (15.6% among those ages 20-39 and 15.7% among those ages 40-59). Among youth, the top five contributors of protein intake were sandwiches, poultry, milk, mixed grain dishes, and pizza. Among adults, the top five contributors of protein intake were sandwiches, poultry, mixed meat dishes, meat, and mixed grain dishes. Differences in the top contributors were observed by age. From 2013-2014 through August 2021-August 2023, the percentage of calories from protein consumed among youth decreased from 14.8% to 13.9% and from 16.1% to 15.5% among adults.

PMID:
42898029
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 20 Oct 2026.

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