What are macronutrients? They are the three nutrients your body needs in large amounts for energy and building: carbohydrates, protein and fat. Carbohydrates and protein each provide 4 calories per gram, and fat provides 9. The adult reference ranges are 45 to 65% of calories from carbs, 10 to 35% from protein, and 20 to 35% from fat.
This is general information, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about your own situation.
"Macro" means large. Macronutrients are the nutrients you eat by the gram, and they provide calories. Vitamins and minerals are micronutrients: you need them too, just in much smaller amounts.
Carbohydrates: 4 calories per gram. Main job: energy.
Protein: 4 calories per gram. Main job: building and repairing cells and tissues.
Fat: 9 calories per gram. Main jobs: energy, absorbing certain vitamins, and building cell membranes.
Because fat has more than twice the calories per gram, foods high in fat are more energy-dense. That is not good or bad on its own. It is just useful to know when you read labels.
According to the FDA, carbohydrates provide calories, or energy, for the body, which breaks them down into glucose. On a Nutrition Facts label, Total Carbohydrate includes:
Sugars: the smallest type of carbohydrate, easily digested and absorbed. Some occur naturally, like the sugar in fruit and milk, and some are added.
Dietary fiber: a type of carbohydrate made of many sugar molecules linked together. It comes from plants such as beans, fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
Sugar alcohols: carbohydrates that chemically have features of both sugars and alcohols.
Carbohydrates are found mainly in plant foods, with dairy as the main exception. The FDA suggests whole grains such as brown rice, bulgur and quinoa as sides, and adding beans, peas or lentils to salads and soups for more fiber.
The FDA says protein helps your body build and repair cells and body tissue. It is also important for blood clotting, immune response and making hormones. Protein is found in beans, peas and lentils, dairy, eggs, meat and poultry, nuts and seeds, seafood and soy, with smaller amounts in whole grains and vegetables.
You may notice many labels show grams of protein but no %DV. The FDA only requires a %DV for protein when a product makes a protein claim or is meant for children under 4. It also notes that protein intake is not a public health concern for adults and children over 4 in the U.S.
Fat often gets a bad reputation, but your body needs it. The FDA explains that fat provides energy, stores energy you don't need right away, helps your body absorb vitamins A, D, E and K, and is a basic part of cell membranes. There are a few main types:
Unsaturated fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) are usually liquid at room temperature and found mostly in plants, plus fish. Think avocados, nuts, seeds, olives, fish and vegetable oils.
Saturated fat is usually solid at room temperature and found mostly in animal foods. The FDA lists it as a nutrient to get less of.
Trans fat: artificial trans fat from partially hydrogenated oils has been largely phased out of U.S. foods since 2018.
One easy FDA tip: cook with liquid oils such as canola or olive oil in place of butter, lard or shortening.
The National Academies set Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDRs) as a percent of daily calories:
Adults: carbohydrate 45 to 65%, protein 10 to 35%, fat 20 to 35%.
Children 4 to 18: carbohydrate 45 to 65%, protein 10 to 30%, fat 25 to 35%.
Children 1 to 3: carbohydrate 45 to 65%, protein 5 to 20%, fat 30 to 40%.
These ranges are wide, which leaves room for many cultures, budgets and eating styles. They are not personal targets.
Example only: food labels use 2,000 calories a day as a general guide, not a recommendation for you. On that reference amount, 45 to 65% from carbohydrates would be 900 to 1,300 calories, or about 225 to 325 grams.
Start with the serving size. Every number on the label is for one serving. The FDA notes that the serving size is not a recommendation of how much to eat, and that two servings means double everything.
Find the three macros. Look for Total Fat, Total Carbohydrate (with Dietary Fiber, Total Sugars and Added Sugars listed under it) and Protein.
Use the %DV as a quick guide. The FDA says 5% DV or less per serving is low, and 20% DV or more is high.
Know what to look for. The FDA suggests getting more dietary fiber, and less saturated fat, sodium and added sugars.
Example only: a snack label lists 3 g fat, 20 g carbohydrate and 5 g protein per serving. That is 3 x 9 = 27, plus 20 x 4 = 80, plus 5 x 4 = 20, or about 127 calories. The label may not match your math exactly because of rounding.
Tracking macros is optional. Talk to your doctor or a registered dietitian before changing how you balance them if you have diabetes, kidney disease, heart disease, are pregnant, or if tracking food tends to make you anxious.
Carbohydrates, protein and fat. Each supplies calories and does different jobs in your body.
Fiber is a type of carbohydrate, so it is listed under Total Carbohydrate on the label.
Fat, with 9 calories per gram. Carbohydrates and protein each have 4.
No. Counting is one tool some people use, but the recommended ranges are wide. Eating a variety of foods and checking labels works for many people.
Body Unpacked: Health Atlas is a free education app about food, nutrients and physiology, built for understanding rather than calorie counting. You can compare two foods across 14 nutrients per 100 g or a household portion, without rankings, and photograph an ingredient list to read it on your device. It works offline, with no account, no ads and no analytics, and everything stays on your device.
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