It's official: Protein has entered the culture war.

We would die if we did not eat protein. But apparently the macronutrient is now “right-coded.”

Eating protein is now a political act — a meat-powered microaggression. Of course, this is absurd.

In a Vanity Fair article on America's "obsession" with protein — a think piece that reads like a political manifesto from a gender studies seminar — the growing interest in protein-maxing has nothing to do with health or science.

No, it's the fault of the "manosphere," podcast bros like Joe Rogan and Dr. Peter Attia, and apparently the ghost of Donald Trump lurking in your protein powder.

Who's to blame for this "obsession"? MAGA, of course.

Feminism strikes again

Tackling every serious topic from 19th-century meat supplements to Rogan's tequila-fueled pizza fantasies, the article strings together a bizarre thesis: that American men are obsessed with protein at the expense of women.

The article quotes Harvard Medical School professor Peter Cohen, who asserts that the obsession with protein is about the "manosphere," "manomania," and testosterone. The writer, Keziah Weir, even claims that the "intertwinement of masculinity and red meat ... is strong and deep-seated," arguing that red meat consumption is associated with perceptions of masculinity. The obsession, she claims, "affords a masculine-coded cover on the feminine-coded world of body image and dieting."

Somehow, Weir even connects protein consumption to eating disorders — and the rise of Donald Trump.

“By 2015,” Weir writes, “psychologists were finding that the overconsumption of protein among men could constitute an eating disorder. Was it correlation, coincidence, or some lean-meat canary in the proverbial coal mine that it was into this proteinous landscape that Donald Trump — burger loving, locker room talking, and all — announced his bid for the presidency?”

It's not bro science

If you waste five minutes of your life reading Weir’s article (like I did), you would conclude that eating protein is now a political act — a meat-powered microaggression.

Of course, this is absurd.

In an act of defiant journalistic malpractice, Weir never seriously considers why people are "obsessed" with protein-maxing, but the answer is obvious: because they want to be healthy.

Protein is not only essential for life, but we need to eat a lot of it to optimize our health and vitality. Protein is critical for immune function, hormone production, and building and repairing lean body tissue. High protein consumption aids in burning fat and preserving lean muscle mass, which is especially important for older people.

That's not “bro science” — it's just science.

The rise of MAHA

Weir, moreover, doesn't ask or answer a key question: Why are more Americans concerned about their health, as the protein craze suggests?

The United States is, after all, undergoing a renaissance of health consciousness, which the Make America Healthy Again movement underscores. I believe this is happening for two reasons.

First, despite being the wealthiest nation in the existence of creation, Americans are fatter and sicker than ever before, increasing our dependence on Big Pharma and the health care industrial complex. We spend more on health care than other developed nations, we have the best quality of care of any country, and yet our health outcomes are worse. Second, the failures of the "experts" during the COVID-19 pandemic woke up millions of Americans to the importance of becoming healthy, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and not depending on the "experts" to ensure their health.

Protein-maxing, then, is about Americans finally taking their health into their own hands. Good.

In my own life, I entered my 20s extremely unhealthy. I didn't exercise and I ate the standard American diet. I was 60-70 pounds overweight and taking medication for high blood pressure at age 22.

But then I took my health into my own hands.

I'm now 29 and not overweight. I maintain a strict training regime that includes resistance and cardiovascular training. I try to eat as much protein as possible: 170-200 grams from high-quality sources every day. I don't do this because of my political views, but because I know from experience that it's critical to my health, both in keeping off fat and maintaining the lean muscle mass that I have worked hard to accumulate.

Millions of other Americans could recite this same story about their lives, and it's telling that Weir doesn't interact with this perspective or, for that matter, any idea that contradicts her thesis.

What's really going on

The goal of Vanity Fair’s absurd article is not to promote health. Its real aim is to pathologize men who prioritize their health, listen to podcasts, and — God forbid — lift weights.

But here's the truth: Eating protein isn't a political statement, nor is protein the idol of toxic masculinity, nor is it a gateway drug to the "manosphere." Protein is food, and it helps everyone — men and women — build stronger, healthier bodies.

Don't be like Vanity Fair. Eat more protein.