Protein supplies the amino acids your body uses to build and repair muscle, skin, enzymes, and immune molecules. Unlike fat and carbohydrate, protein is not stored for later — the pool is turned over every day, which is why intake matters on a regular schedule rather than in occasional large amounts.
How much is enough
The reference intake for an average adult is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight per day. Endurance and strength athletes, older adults, and people recovering from illness generally do better at 1.2–1.6 g/kg. A 70 kg desk worker needs roughly 56 g a day; the same person training hard may want closer to 100 g.
Complete vs complementary
A complete protein carries all nine essential amino acids in useful amounts. Meat, fish, eggs, dairy, and soy all qualify. Most plant proteins are lower in one essential amino acid — lysine for grains, methionine for legumes — so eating grains and legumes across the same day covers the gap without needing precise pairing at every meal.
Reading the ranking
On our protein ranking page, values are grams per 100 g of food as measured. Dried and concentrated foods (whey powder, dried fish, hard cheese) will always lead such lists simply because water has been removed. Compare foods in the same preparation state — raw against raw, cooked against cooked — or the numbers mislead you.
Practical plate advice
Anchor each meal with a palm-sized protein portion, then build carbohydrate and vegetables around it. Spreading intake across three to four meals improves how much your body actually uses compared with loading it all into dinner.