by Reed Mangels, PhD, RD
Protein pretzels, protein gummies candy, protein soft drinks … Walk through a supermarket today and you might think Americans are suffering from protein deficiency and food manufacturers are doing their utmost to help Americans meet their protein needs. In reality, most Americans get all the protein they need without having to resort to products pumped full of protein as a way to boost sales.
How much protein do vegans need?
The Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) are a trusted source of protein recommendations for different age groups and are a good starting place to determine how much protein vegans need. The RDA for protein is based on how much a person weighs:
- Infants, 0-6 months old: 0.69 grams of protein per pound
- Infants, 7-12 months: 0.54 grams of protein per pound
- Children, 1-3 years: 0.48 grams of protein per pound
- Children and teens, 4-13 years: 0.43 grams of protein per pound
- Teens, 14-18 years: 0.39 grams of protein per pound
- Adults, 19 years and older: 0.36 grams of protein per pound
- Pregnancy: 0.50 grams of protein per pound
- Lactation: 0.59 grams of protein per pound
Those who are markedly underweight or overweight should discuss their protein needs with a registered dietitian.
Older adults appear to have somewhat higher protein needs. Research suggests that older adults would benefit from a protein intake between 0.45 and 0.57 grams per pound of body weight per day (1). Ideally, this would be coupled with resistance training to promote a higher muscle mass in older people.
Individuals engaged in strength or endurance training may have somewhat higher protein needs than more sedentary people. Estimates of protein needs for adults engaged in strength or endurance training range from 0.54 to 0.91 grams per pound of body weight (1).
Vegans and others who eat mostly whole plant foods may have slightly higher protein needs since the digestibility and composition of plant proteins differ from animal proteins. Some dietitians have suggested that 1- to 2-year old vegans get 30-35% more protein than the RDA, 2- to 6-year old vegan children get 20-30% more protein than the RDA and that older children (more than 6 years old) get 15-20% more protein (1). Adult vegans and vegan athletes may need 15% more protein than the RDA or the recommendations for athletes above (1). These increases are small and are easy to achieve with a whole foods vegan diet.
Another way to look at protein needs is something called the acceptable macronutrient distribution range (AMDR) – the percentage of calories that should come from protein, fat and carbohydrate. The AMDR for protein is 10 to 35% of calories for adults, 5 to 20% of calories for 1- to 3-year old children, and 10 to 30% of calories for 4- to 18-year old children and teens (2). For example, an adult who eats 2000 calories a day would have a protein AMDR of 200 and 700 calories from protein or 50 to 175 grams of protein a day.
To read more about protein for vegans see:
Protein for Vegans & Vegetarians
References
- Mangels R, Messina V, Messina M. The Dietitian’s Guide to Vegetarian Diets, 4th edition. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning; 2023.
- Institute of Medicine Food and Nutrition Board. Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids. Washington, DC: National Academy Press; 2002.
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