As primates, humans are designed to need very little *animal* protein.  Like
most primates, humans are basically omnivorous, eating all different kinds
of plant foods and occasional animal protein.  Most humans in the world
today eat very little animal protein on a daily basis -- the staple of
hunter-gatherer diets all over the world is the plant foods collected by the
women and the staple of agricultural societies all over the world is the
main crop.  The most important staples (in terms of number of people eating
it) are rice, followed by corn, millet, sorghum, root crops such as taro and
yams, and wheat and barley.  Only in a few societies, such as traditional
Inuit (Arctic) populations, and salmon-fishing tribes of the Pacific
Northwest US, did people consume a lot of animal protein on a daily basis,
until the modern era.

Most Americans eat relatively large portions of animal meat every day,
compared to the rest of the world.  I don't know the exact figures, but I
suspect most Americans eat animal protein at the evening meal, most also eat
animal protein at the middady meal, and fewer eat animal protein for
breakfast (sausage, bacon, eggs, milk).  Some Americans eat animal protein
at every single meal, and a "standard" evening meal in the US features meat
as the main course.  This is in huge contrast to the standard evening meal
for the vast majority of the world's population, which consists of a big
portion of the staple carbohydrate (rice, corn, millet, etc.), flavored with
a tiny amount of sauce made from vegetables and spices, with maybe a little
animal protein for flavor.

Most people in the US get way more animal protein than they need.

Kathy Dettwyler

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