protein isn't healthy

Protein enriched hype?

Last week, I wrote about how ultra-fast delivery was making Indians sicker.

The responses were overwhelming.

Founders admitting their quick commerce addiction, doctors sharing diabetes horror stories, mothers questioning their family's ₹49 pizza habits.

But something happened while reading through 200+ email responses that stopped me cold.

More than 40 different people mentioned they'd started ordering "healthy" alternatives.

One of the responses I got in last week's newsletter was: Ritesh, I don't eat junk. I usually order protein cookies through x app or protein chips via y app (both x and y are quick commerce apps commonly used).

They thought they'd solved the problem by switching to "protein-enriched" food.

Same convenience.
Same processed ingredients.
Same delivery addiction.

Just with "high protein" slapped on the packaging.

Bryan Johnson, the billionaire biohacker, takes 100+ pills daily at a cost of $2 million annually, convinced that natural food can't meet the body's needs.

His philosophy? "No diet can satisfy the body's entire needs, so you have to supplement."

We're heading down the same path in India.

That's when I realized we are not just addicted to convenience.

We are addicted to feeling good about bad choices.

And the food industry had found the perfect way to feed that addiction.

Last week, I was at a supermarket in Delhi and counted 47 different products with "protein" prominently displayed on the packaging.

Protein cookies.
Protein chips.
Protein cereal.
Protein pasta.
Protein bread.
Even protein water.

Everything has "high protein" stamped on it like it's some kind of health badge.

Now you might question...'Ritesh protein is healthy, what's wrong with it?'

And to answer this...I did what any curious founder (or foodpharmer) would do.

I started reading labels.

I picked up a pack of "High Protein Cookies" from a popular Protein brand. The packaging tries to convince you it's healthy with: "10g protein!" in bold letters.

I flipped it over.

Ingredients: 

Wait. What?

The first ingredient was wheat flour. Then came palm oil.(very unhealthy), and then sugar. Plus it also had hydrogenated fat (trans fat).

The protein was buried halfway down the ingredients list...just enough to justify the marketing claim.

Translation: This was a sugar cookie with protein powder sprinkled in.

And this product has 10g of protein in 100g (not per serving). 

For context, even Cadbury Dairy milk has 8.1g of protein in 100g.

They took junk food, added protein powder, and suddenly it's "healthy."

I spent the next hour analyzing every protein-enriched product I could find:

• Protein chips: Still fried in oil, loaded with sodium

• Protein cereal: Sugar was the second ingredient after refined wheat

• Protein pasta: Refined wheat with added protein isolate

• Health drinks: 80 calories from sugar alone per serving

The pattern was clear:

Brands are taking processed foods, adding minimal protein, and marketing them as health upgrades.

But here's the scary part...it's working.

The size of the market?

Worth ₹38,247 crores with projections to reach ₹1,36,327 crores by 2033

Yet here's the paradox: 70% of protein supplements in India are mislabeled, with some containing up to 50% less protein than advertised.

Some even had fungal toxins and pesticide residues.

what happened on Rakhi

I started tracking how people around me were eating these products.

And when our family got together, my nephew proudly showed me his "protein snack drawer" filled with protein bars, protein chips, and protein cookies. He was convinced he was eating healthy.

When I asked about his actual protein intake from food, he had no idea.

"But uncle, I'm eating protein all day!" he said, holding up a protein cookie.

With this rapid commercialisation of protein, one might think at least people are getting adequate protein now.

On digging deeper, I found that 73% of urban Indians are protein deficient despite this boom in protein products.

And that's not it...93% are not even aware of their daily protein requirements.

The gap: People think they’re getting adequate protein from processed “protein” products, so they stop focusing on actual protein-rich foods.

It’s the ultimate marketing trick. Create a problem (protein deficiency), then sell upgrades to junk food as the solution.

I called up a nutritionist friend to validate my suspicion.

“Ritesh, I see this daily. Clients come in eating protein bars for breakfast, protein chips for snacks, protein cookies for dessert and wonder why they’re still protein deficient and gaining weight.”

“The protein in processed foods doesn’t replace the protein your body actually needs from whole foods.”

And moreover, as per Cambridge studies, protein from processed foods does not get absorbed as efficiently into our body as protein from natural sources.

The more I dug, the more I realized we’re seeing the exact same pattern that happened with “sugar-free” products in the 2000s.

Remember when everything became “sugar-free”? Diet coke, sugar-free biscuits, sugar-free ice cream. People thought they were being healthy while consuming artificial sweeteners and chemicals.

Now we’re doing the same thing with protein.

Protein supplements only work when combined with proper nutrition and exercise. 

But we're treating protein-enriched junk food like a shortcut to health.

You can't out-protein a bad diet.

Our grandparents never needed protein cookies. They ate actual food.

But we've been convinced that protein only comes in packets with fitness models on them.

Bryan Johnson embodies where India's protein obsession leads.

But here's what medical experts say about his approach:

Dr. Nir Barzilai, longevity researcher: "Some treatments he's taking are actually antagonizing each other"

Total monthly cost for supplements alone: $361

Meanwhile, your grandmother's dal-rice provides complete nutrition for ₹700.

We're choosing Johnson's expensive pills over traditional wisdom that actually works.

While we're obsessing over protein powders, we're ignoring a fundamental truth.

Traditional Indian foods aren't just protein sources but complete nutritional systems.

Research from ICMR and NCBI reveals the power of traditional combinations:

This whole experiment reminded me of something we've lost.

Traditional Indian cuisine wasn't protein-deficient. We made it protein-deficient by replacing real food with shortcuts.

Instead of making dal, we buy protein powder. Instead of eating curd, we buy protein drinks. Instead of having almonds, we buy protein bars.

We're paying premium prices for inferior nutrition.

Instead of falling for protein-enriched marketing, I'm building protein systems.

To get 50g+ protein daily from actual food sources that my body recognizes and absorbs properly.

Total: 51g complete protein with all essential nutrients.

Cost: ₹2,500 monthly vs. ₹4,500 for processed protein products.

The protein industry will keep growing. Brands will keep adding protein to everything from ice cream to chips.

But your health depends on something much simpler: choosing protein-rich foods over protein-enriched products.

The difference? One nourishes your body. The other just nourishes corporate profits.

Hit reply and tell me: What's the most ridiculous "protein-enriched" product you've seen?

I read every email.

Until next week,
Ritesh