Thirty years ago, when I began studying protein metabolism, I would never have guessed that 2025 would be spent explaining why more protein is not always better.
Protein was once the quiet macronutrient that was always assumed sufficient. Carbs had their era, and fat had its moment in the sun. Protein arrived late, but I welcomed the attention.
The phrase “jumped the shark” comes from a now-infamous 1977 episode of the iconic sitcom Happy Days, when the character Fonzie (Henry Winkler) literally water-skied over a shark. It was the moment the show sacrificed solid plot and logic for spectacle. In 2025, dietary protein repeated Winkler’s performance and crossed the line from evidence-based nutrition into performance theatre.
