We are in the midst of a protein craze - but what do we know about how different protein sources are broken down in our bodies?
A paper recently published in Food Research International (Mashiah et al., 2025) showed in an in vitro digestion model that females could break down oat milk protein faster than protein from whey powder and the opposite was true for men. This was due to different peptide activity in men’s and women’s stomachs, raising many interesting questions.
How many blanket rules do we apply to nutritional science when there are many nuances? Similarly, how does this apply to male and female responses to medications?
Well-designed clinical trials involving women require greater subject numbers because of hormone fluctuations, especially when you include women of different ages. For this reason, women of specific age groups are often ‘excluded’ from such trials.
The good news is that at Zestt, we see the Artificial Intelligence revolution as a driver of the democratisation of science and healthcare.
What do we mean by this?
Soon, with the AI tools being developed (and we are developing some cool stuff in this place, so watch this space), you can do more to personalise your diet and nutritional supplements to your health status, based on data you collect (input yourself or via sensors like smartwatches). This will align with medical data and treatments and you will have more ability to make a case for specific therapies, fighting against the unconscious bias so many women and older people face within the medical system.
You often know what works in your body and what makes you feel better, either consciously or subconsciously. These tools and data will help you tap into that information.
In the meantime, trust your gut - it’s more potent than you might think!