Plant protein vs. animal protein: Which one is healthier for you?

Increasing your protein intake can provide many health benefits, including weight loss, better body composition, improved blood sugar control, and higher satiety, to name a few.

However, not all protein sources are the same. Animal and plant proteins differ significantly in many ways. Does it matter whether or not you choose animal- or plant-based proteins? In this guide, we will explore that question and the latest available data.

As with all of our guides, Diet Doctor wants to equip you with science-based information and suggestions and then empower you to make your own informed decisions. If you follow our tips and suggestions in this guide, we believe that you will have no trouble meeting your protein needs with either animal or plant proteins, or even a mix of both, depending on your lifestyle.

What is a complete protein?

You may have heard various foods categorized as a “complete protein” or an “incomplete protein.” What exactly does that mean?

After you eat protein-containing foods, your body breaks down the protein into amino acids – the “building blocks” of protein. Of the 20 amino acids found in protein, your body can make 11 of them. The other nine are essential, meaning that they must come from your diet because your body can’t produce them.

Fortunately, protein from animals is “complete,” providing all of the essential amino acids in amounts that your body needs. However, plant proteins (with the exception of soy) are “incomplete” because they lack sufficient amounts of one or more essential amino acids.¹

That doesn’t mean you can’t meet your protein needs from plants. You simply have to mix and match to make up for the amino acids that are in short supply. For example, you can pair legumes, such as beans or peas (which are high in the amino acid lysine but low in methionine), with grains that are high in methionine but low in lysine. Barley and lentil soup is a popular example of this pairing.

Alternatively, you can combine beans with nuts and seeds, have hummus with whole grain pita, or make the classic rice with beans combination.

Carb-heavy combinations like these aren’t a good fit for a low-carb diet, but if you are less strict with carb intake, they can provide all of the essential amino acids.

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Carb and calorie content

Plant sources of protein tend to be higher in carbohydrates and calories than the equivalent amount of protein from animal sources. If you follow a very low-carb or keto diet, you may find it challenging to meet your dietary goals if you use plants as your only source of protein.

Our protein table shows the number of calories required to obtain 25 grams of protein. As you can see, you can eat 25 grams of protein from beef at a fraction of the calories that you would get from quinoa, peanut butter, or black beans if you ate enough of each to get 25 grams of protein.

Your serving of beef also has zero carbs, whereas your quinoa comes with 126 grams and black beans with 68 grams.

If you want to keep your net carb intake below 20 or 50 grams per day and keep your calorie content as low as possible, plant sources may not be a realistic option. However, if your carb and calorie intake are more liberal, then plant sources may be a good choice.

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Bioavailability/absorption

On average, your body absorbs animal-based protein better than plant-based protein. Soy is once again the exception and is equivalent to animal sources.

The practical implication is that you may need to eat 20-50% more plant proteins to absorb the equivalent amount of amino acids as you would from animal sources.²

That doesn’t mean you can’t meet your goals with mostly plant proteins. You absolutely can, particularly if you prioritize soy intake. However, you need to watch the associated carbs and calories that come with the higher-required volume of food if you are trying to lose weight.

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Anabolic or muscle-building benefits

Higher protein intake has anabolic effects, meaning that it helps with building muscle.³

That doesn’t mean, however, that eating protein will automatically give you the physique of a bodybuilder. It does mean that eating more protein can help build or maintain your existing muscle mass — especially if you exercise.

On average, animal protein sources have greater gram-for-gram muscle-building benefits than plant proteins. ⁴

Soy may once again be unique among plant proteins as it appears to have similar muscle-building effects to animal proteins.⁵

If you are looking for the maximum muscle-building effect per gram of protein and per calorie, animal sources appear to be the best choice.⁶

With non-soy plant proteins, you’ll need to combine multiple types of plants and consume more protein for the equivalent muscle-building effect you’d get from animal protein.⁷ However, this latter approach is certainly doable for those who do not consume animal products.

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Associated nutrients

Animal- and plant-based proteins each have certain benefits over the other with regard to nutrients.

One theory regarding the “protein leverage hypothesis” is that our craving for whole-food protein has as much to do with the micronutrients as it does with the protein itself.⁸

Compared with plant protein sources, animal sources are higher in vitamin B12, vitamin D, the omega 3 fatty acid DHA, heme-iron, zinc, and vitamin K2.⁹

Compared with animal protein sources, plant sources are higher in fiber, vitamin C, and flavonoids.¹⁰

While there is no such thing as a medical fiber deficiency, some people may want to add high-fiber foods, such as above-ground vegetables, to their diet if most of their protein comes from animals.¹¹

Learn more in our guide 15 high-fiber foods that are low in carbs.

However, if most of your protein comes from plants, we strongly suggest that you consider supplementing with the vitamins and minerals listed above.¹²

Learn more in our guides on following a vegan or vegetarian low-carb diet.

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Longevity and chronic disease

One of the most-discussed concerns about protein, in general, is the effect it has on human longevity. Data from flies, rats, and other animals suggest that lower-protein diets can improve longevity, while human data are sparse and very weak.¹³

In theory, eating higher amounts of protein can “turn on” growth signals in our body, most notably mTOR (mechanistic target of rapamycin).¹⁴

But do the data from mice and flies equally apply to humans? Maybe not.

As we have shown in this guide, eating more protein can help with weight loss, metabolic health, and gaining strength — all of which are important for improving health and living well.

Furthermore, animal data show that lower-protein diets can improve longevity, but also lead to obesity.¹⁵ And higher protein diets improve reproductive health, which for flies and mice may be the ultimate marker of overall health.¹⁶

The animal data, therefore, appear to suggest that we need to choose between health and longevity, an interesting paradox.

Further, we must also recognize that the exact impact of animal protein on longevity is not only unclear, but it may be extremely small if the impact exists.¹⁷

In other words, would avoiding meat help you to live longer by months? Years? A decade or longer? The answer remains unclear, but given the low hazard ratios for all-cause mortality in human studies of animal vs plant protein, we can infer that most individuals will not see a meaningful increase in lifespan.

In light of the need to consume adequate protein to prevent loss of muscle tissue and frailty as we age, restricting protein in order to increase lifespan seems inadvisable.

You can read more below for a representative example of a human study suggesting lower animal or overall protein intake improves longevity, and see why we feel the quality of the research does not support the recommendation.

When it comes to possible differential effects of plant vs animal sources of protein on chronic diseases, some data suggest that animal-source proteins are more concerning. That said, the data proposing that animal protein intake leads to diabetes, heart disease, or even premature death is low-quality and, we believe, should not be used to make conclusive arguments.²¹

As we cover in our detailed guides on red meat and another on diet and cancer, the data against animal foods remain very weak. When looking at higher-quality evidence, we find no high quality evidence to support the claim that animal food sources are less healthy than plant-based sources, especially within the context of an otherwise healthy lifestyle.

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Environment

You may have heard claims that giving up meat is one of the things that you can do to protect the environment.

It is true that cows and other ruminant animals emit methane when they burp, and may have a greater greenhouse gas contribution than other animals like chickens or pigs. However, calculating the contribution of this methane to greenhouse-gas emissions remains complicated.

To start with, there is a vast difference in the environmental impact of industrial cattle feeding operations and grass-finished cattle ranches. As we discuss in our podcast with dietician, farmer, and regenerative agriculture advocate Diana Rodgers, grazing cattle can benefit the environment by improving soil quality and removing carbon from the atmosphere.

The environmental argument is also nuanced when examining how much water and other resources cows require. The water used for meat is derived mostly from rainfall, not irrigation. Rice and almonds, however, require much more “blue water —” the limited-resource water derived from irrigation – per gram of protein than does meat.²²

Ultimately, when zooming out and looking at environmental damage through a wider lens, human activities and fossil fuel use contribute far more to climate change than do ruminant animals.²³ And this includes the fossil fuels required for plant-based agriculture.

The full environmental question is far too complex to explore adequately in this guide. However, the details surrounding this topic are more nuanced than the standard narrative suggests.

If you would like to learn more about this important issue and how you can make a difference, please listen to our podcasts with greenhouse gas expert Professor Frank Mitloehner and another with environmental lawyer and rancher Nicolette Hahn Niman. You can also read our three-part series on the green keto meat eater.

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Animals or plants, it’s your choice

Increasing your protein intake, whether through animal or plant sources, can provide many health benefits.

Gram for gram, animal protein sources are more complete, have better absorption and muscle-building effects, have more additional nutrients, and contain fewer calories and carbohydrates.

No high-quality data exist to support the concern that eating more animal products comes with adverse health effects.

Despite the differences between animal and plant protein sources, you can still meet all of your protein needs with plant-only sources.

If you are on a plant-only diet, be sure to mix and match your plant sources to get a full amino acid profile, and aim for at least 1.5 grams per kilo of body weight to absorb enough functional protein. Remember that eating soy is a great way to get a complete protein that has good absorption. Please also talk to your healthcare provider about necessary vitamin and mineral supplementation.

Whether you prefer plant- or animal-based protein sources, here are some of our favorite recipes that you can enjoy.