The Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS) is one way to measure the bioavailability of protein in a food. Bioavailability refers to how much of a nutrient, once absorbed, actually becomes usable by the body.
Protein is made up of amino acids and some amino acid profiles allow for better absorption than others. By eating a variety of whole foods, you’ll likely never have to be concerned about the bioavailability of protein. However, the more you rely on things like protein bars or other processed foods in order to hit your macro goals, the more you should be concerned about the bioavailability of them.
Is that protein bar you’re eating truly giving your body what it needs to build muscle?
➡️ Here’s how you can get a sense of that using a quick trick:
The FDA sets the daily value for protein at 50g. So if a product contains 50g of protein, you’d expect to see 100% next to the protein line on the nutrition label.
🔘 If a food contains bioavailable protein, the % Daily Value listed will be roughly double the number of protein grams.
🔘 For example, Siggi’s yogurt has 18g of protein, and its % Daily Value is 36%. That’s exactly 18 x 2, which tells you all of that protein is bioavailable.
But if a food has, say, 20g of protein and only shows 25% on the label, that means a chunk of that protein isn’t being fully absorbed and utilized by your body.
🔑 Two quick notes:
🔘 If you’re eating a diet of mainly whole foods like chicken, beef, Greek yogurt, I wouldn’t be overly obsessed with the bioavailability of each of those foods.
🔘 This % Daily Value for protein is only required on foods that make a high-protein claim on the packaging – so you won’t always see it unless the product is being marketed that way.
Use this as a simple trick to help you pick protein sources that actually deliver on their promise.
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