From The Straits Times    |

European food agency releases dietary protein targets for consumersThe European Food Safety Authority has set out minimum protein targets required for good health.

In a report published last week, the European food agency said that adults need a minimum of 0.83 grams per kg of body weight per day. That means a 70 kg (154 lb) man needs a minimum of 58 g of protein.

For comparison, a 3 oz. portion of chicken — about the size of a deck of cards — is about 30 g of protein.

For the majority of European consumers, that’s not a problem as the average protein intake of adults in Europe is often at or above the threshold, dubbed the population reference intake (PRI).

The main sources of protein in European diets are meat and meat products, followed by grains and dairy-based foods. The latest targets were released as part of new dietary reference values (DRV) that are used for food labeling and establishing food-based dietary guidelines.

Here are the protein targets for different age and gender groups:

Adults (including older adults): 0.83 g per kg of body weight per day.
Infants, children and adolescents: between 0.83 g and 1.31 g per kg of body weight per day depending on age.
Pregnant women: additional intake of 1 g, 9 g and 28 g per day for the first, second and third trimesters respectively.
Breast-feeding women: additional intake of 19 g per day during the first 6 months of lactation and 13 g per day thereafter.