Protein requirements: A critical evaluation of the FAO/WHO expert group reccomendations.

The recommended allowances for protein suggested by
the FAO/WHO Expert Group on protein requirements and by the
Nutrition Expert Group, Indian Council of Medical Research,
India have been critically examined in the light of recent
experimental evidence for protein requirements for growth
and for maintenance. The protein requirements expressed as
NDDCal% for growth of infants (1-2 months) has been established
by Miller and Payne as 8.0 and for maintenance as
4.0. The recommendations of FAO/WHO Expert Group for the
protein requirements of children (aged' 1-3 years) expressed
as NDnCal% range from 4.2 to 4.4, for adUlts from 6.3 to 6.7
and ar infants (aged 4-9 months) 6.5. The recommendations
of the Nutrition Expert Group of Indian Council of Medical
Research, India, for the protein requirements when expressed
as NDpCal% range as fairs:-
Children (1-3 years) 3.4 'to 3.4; and Adults, 6.0 to 6%.
The recommendations of the FAO/WHO Expert Group and of the
Nutrition Expert Group of Indian Council of Medical Iesearch
indicate that the protein requirements of. children (1-3 years)
are less than that of adults and the requirements for adults
are of the same order as those of infants aged 10-12 months
and are thus contradictory to the recent experimental
evidence of Miller and Payne. 3 revised set of allowances
for Reference Protein requirements in terms of NDpCa1% has
been suggested by the author in this paper.
These allowances are as follows : -
Infants aged 1-12 months, 8.0 to 6.0; children aged 1-3 years,
5.5 to 5.0; children aged 4-18 years 5.0; Adults, 4.5 and
expectant and nursing mothers, 5.0 pCal%.