Post-protein

First, fat was dangerous, while carbohydrates were great. Fibers and vitamins were great too.

Then, we discovered that carbohydrates make us fat, too. It's not difficult to picture the board meetings at companies like Nestle and Kraft foods, and a number of dairy producers across the world. "Ok, so we can sell low-fat, and we can sell low-carb, but those are both negatives, we need a more positive message... Oh wait, I got it: Let's sell high-protein!!!"

Fast-forward a few years and we see high protein products everywhere, from bread to pasta to dairy, where carbohydrats used to roam freely. Now, let's consider for a minute: Did normal office workers who only exercise moderately eat too little protein? Is the high-protein campaign in any way designed to give us additional health benefits? Or is it simply where marketing had to go? With the exception of athletes and body builders, sorry to say, for the rest of us it's just marketing. And as usual we're falling for it. Because protein doesn't make us fat, and we don't want to be fat. At least that's the current theory. I'm guessing that, since proteins contain calories, and we eat more of those than we burn, eventually eating lots of protein will also make us fat.

Prediction: By 2030, several credible scientific studies will show that over-consumption of protein has adverse health effects on people in the developed world. Accordingly, by 2035, the marketing will have shifted to something else. How about "balanced" or "unprocessed"?