Introduction

The purpose of this paper is to analyze my personal dietary intake as a way of better understanding the ways in which the foods I consumer are helping or hurting my overall nutrition and health. This project is about understanding how consuming too much or too little of particular nutrients can be unhealthy and do harm to one's body over time. Even more, this project is about dispelling some of the myths that are present about nutrient consumption in order to have a more scientific understanding of what is considered healthy in food and nutrient consumption.

This paper will focus on some important nutrients that are important for general health: fiber and protein. My personal daily intake will be analyzed to determine what foods are providing the right type of proteins and fiber, and how food consumption might be adjusted to provide for a healthier nutrient intake. It is important to state at the outset that the nutrient intake that is being used for this analysis is only for a one-day period. However, it will provide some insight into my eating habits and how those habits might be improved from a scientific standpoint.
Protein Intake

The protein intake that was recorded was well over the recommended or acceptable level of protein intake. My intake of protein on December 10, 2007 was 152 grams. This is almost triple the recommended daily intake of protein of only 56 grams. This was due to the fact that during the day in question, I consumed a grilled chicken sandwich from McDonald's, milk, and a pork chop. What is also important about my protein consumption on this day is that nearly all of the proteins were completely proteins. Complete proteins are found in foods such as milk and meat that contain all nine of the essential amino acids, but also contain saturated fats (Keane & Chase, 1999).

The fact that all or nearly all of the protein