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April 27, 2025
Macronutrient distribution predicts energy intakes
According to a new study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (April 2011), the percentage of energy consumed from fat has decreased and the percentage of energy from carbohydrates has increased since the 1970s in the United States. While these changes are in line with current dietary recommendations, the prevalence of obesity has increased dramatically along with energy intakes over the last 3 decades. This study, which examined changes in macronutrient intakes over time and their association with energy intakes, found that only higher protein intakes are strongly associated with lower energy intakes. This was identified as one of the most striking findings from this study.
Based on NHANES* 2005-2006 data, this study reports increasing protein from 15% to 25% of energy intake in an obese individual would be expected to be associated with a decrease in energy intake of:
- 438 calories/day if substituted for carbohydrates
- 620 calories/day if substituted for fat
This study found that consumption of a higher percentage of energy from protein with a corresponding reduction in the percentage of energy from carbohydrates or fat was consistently associated with reduced energy intake in both NHANES 2005-2006 and NHANES 1 (1971-1975). This strong association was also consistent across normal weight, overweight and obese individuals.
For Your Practice
The authors of this study concluded, as would be expected, that dietary interventions to combat the obesity epidemic should focus on reducing total energy intake. Furthermore, they suggest that substituting protein in place of carbohydrate and fat intake may help reduce energy intake. They note their findings are consistent with experimental data showing that higher protein diets can be more effective for increasing satiety, reducing hunger and energy intake and achieving greater weight loss.
Want to Learn More?
See the abstract, Trends in carbohydrate, fat, and protein intakes and association with energy intake in normal-weight, overweight, and obese individuals: 1971�2006. Austin GL, Ogden LG and Hill O. Am J Clin Nutr 2011 93: 4 836-43.
For clinical trial evidence on the benefits of increasing protein, see A high-protein diet induces sustained reductions in appetite, ad libitum caloric intake, and body weight despite compensatory changes in diurnal plasma leptin and ghrelin concentrations. Weigle DS et al. Am J Clin Nutr 2005; 82:41-8.
*NHANES is the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
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