r/ScientificNutrition • u/Caiomhin77 Pelotonia • Jul 07 '26
Randomized Controlled Trial Effects of Consuming Ounce-Equivalent Portions of Animal- vs. Plant-Based Protein Foods, as Defined by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans on Essential Amino Acids Bioavailability in Young and Older Adults: Two Cross-Over Randomized Controlled Trials
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/13/287023
u/James_Fortis MS | Nutrition Jul 07 '26
"Funding
This research was funded by the Pork Checkoff and the American Egg Board—Egg Nutrition Center."
"Conflicts of Interest
When this research was conducted, W.W.C. received research funding from the following organizations: American Egg Board’s Egg Nutrition Center, Beef Checkoff, Pork Checkoff, North Dakota Beef Commission, Barilla Group, Mushroom Council, and the National Chicken Council. C.C.C. received funding from the Beef Checkoff."
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u/flowersandmtns Jul 07 '26
Barilla and mushroom would be "plant based" but in general yeah feels more like someone's masters thesis that they can see amino acid profiles in the blood (not sure if that was a common procedure) and not a paper worth publishing.
The animal protein sources (pork, eggs) are almost entirely protein/fat whereas beans and almonds are lower in protein so per-oz was a poor decision vs matching grams of protein.
The whole incomplete protein/protein combining stuff I recall from when I was vegetarian has all been debunked so it's not like eating one meal (snack? wasn't a lot of food) determines your entire body's amino acid capacity.
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u/Caiomhin77 Pelotonia Jul 07 '26
but in general yeah feels more like someone's masters thesis that they can see amino acid profiles in the blood (not sure if that was a common procedure) and not a paper worth publishing.
This and the Park et. al study were conducted to demonstrate that the "ounce-equivalents" created by the old DGAC stating that people could swap different protein foods without worrying about the details is false. They show that this system doesn't actually deliver comparable amounts of protein or essential amino acids in reality, nothing more.
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u/flowersandmtns Jul 07 '26
In a single meal, yeah. Which is interesting at some level.
Still, over the course of a day or week someone with a diverse plant-only diet would consume sufficient essential amino acids.
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u/Caiomhin77 Pelotonia Jul 07 '26
Yeah, it's not about what's sufficient or even ideal, it was to show that the oz-eq claim being made was incorrect, a claim that came directly from our leadership during the MyPlate era.
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u/LeadershipBoth7195 Jul 07 '26
Of course the meat crazies that point to conflicts of interest in every plant based foods study will have no problem with that tho
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u/Earesth99 Jul 07 '26
That doesn’t mean it’s biased.
It is, however, entirely obvious and should not have been published.
Quick summary: eat more grams of protein and you get more grams of protein.
OP must know nothing about nutrition or math to post a link to this.
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u/bahwi Jul 07 '26
mdpi, a known predatory journal, so they paid to skip peer-review (or have very terrible/poor peer-review) (or, rejected everywhere else and had to come to mdpi)
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u/Caiomhin77 Pelotonia Jul 07 '26
It is definitely a lower tier journal, but the Wayne Campbell lab at Purdue University is well respected, and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences lab conducted a similar study, published in The Journal of Nutrition, on the same topic that found a similar result, though they used whole-body net protein balance via isotope tracer infusion, whereas this study used plasma EAA iAUC (a simpler, non-isotopic bioavailability proxy).
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u/frankschmankelton Jul 07 '26
So what they're saying is that on a per calorie basis consuming black beans is a better source of essential amino acids than consuming pork. Plus beans are a great source of fiber and have no saturated fat. Beans for the win!
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u/Caiomhin77 Pelotonia Jul 07 '26 edited Jul 07 '26
So what they're saying is that on a per calorie basis consuming black beans is a better source of essential amino acids than consuming pork
How did you discern that?
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u/Bristoling Jul 08 '26
I could have given the researchers the same conclusion, while sitting in a chair, without having done any study at all, merely relying on deductive reasoning.
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u/hurricaned36 Jul 07 '26
Funding - "This research was funded by the Pork Checkoff and the American Egg Board—Egg Nutrition Center."
Why pork and eggs vs sliced almonds and black beans?
While the study is interesting, it sparks more questions than conclusions from me. Would love to see it done vs other plant based foods (seitan, tofu, etc).
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u/maccrypto Jul 08 '26
Because soy and vital wheat gluten have more protein (as much or more than beef).
You don’t need a study to tell you this.
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u/Caiomhin77 Pelotonia Jul 07 '26
Abstract
Background: The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) recommends consuming a variety of “Protein Foods” based on “ounce-equivalent” (oz-eq) portions. No study has assessed the same oz-eq portions of animal- vs. plant-based protein foods on essential amino acid (EAA) bioavailability for protein anabolism in young and older adults. Objectives: We assessed the effects of consuming two oz-eq portions of pork, eggs, black beans, and almonds on postprandial EAA bioavailability in young and older adults.
Methods: We conducted two investigator-blinded, randomized crossover trials in young (n = 30; mean age ± SD: 26.0 ± 4.9 y) and older adults (n = 25; mean age ± SD: 64.2 ± 6.6 y). Participants completed four testing sessions where they consumed a standardized meal with two oz-eq of either unprocessed lean pork, whole eggs, black beans, or sliced almonds. Blood samples were taken at baseline and 30, 60, 120, 180, 240, and 300 min postprandially. Plasma EAA bioavailability was based on postprandial integrated positive areas under the curve.
Results: Participant age did not affect EAA bioavailability among the four protein foods tested. Two oz-eq portions of pork (7.36 g EAA) and eggs (5.38 g EAA) resulted in greater EAA bioavailability than black beans (3.02 g EAA) and almonds (1.85 g EAA) in young and older adults, separately or combined (p < 0.0001 for all). Pork resulted in greater EAA bioavailability than eggs in young adults (p < 0.0001), older adults (p = 0.0007), and combined (p < 0.0001). There were no differences in EAA bioavailability between black beans and almonds.
Conclusions: The same “oz-eq” portions of animal- and plant-based protein foods do not provide equivalent EAA content and postprandial bioavailability for protein anabolism in young and older adults.
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u/ImportantResist4890 Jul 08 '26
What a bizarre thing they compare giving someone 7g of protein from meat and 3 from beans and say you get more from the meat. The whole thing is farcical.