PROTEIN IN PERSPECTIVE Available to Purchase

I have an old book of nutrition written in 1890. Proteins were already known then, and called albuminous or nitrogenous material as distinct from fats, sugars and starches. The author felt that the alternative term ‘proteids’ would soon die out! But at that time no one could find out how much protein we really needed. It was not possible, as now with vitamin C, to starve someone of that particular nutrient and see what it took to keep him right. Nutritionists therefore looked at the diets of healthy people and took that amount of protein as correct. They did not actually hide the fact that they were estimating, but many people did not realise that this was the case.