The typical American diet is about 50 % carbohydrate, 15 % protein, and 35 % fat. These macronutrient intakes fall within the Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDR) for adults identified by the Food and Nutrition Board of the United States Institute of Medicine as "associated with reduced risk of chronic diseases while providing adequate intakes of essential nutrients, '' which are 45 - 65 % carbohydrate, 10 - 35 % protein, and 20 - 35 % fat as a percentage of total energy. However, the nutritional quality of the specific foods comprising those macronutrients is often poor, as with the "Western '' pattern discussed above. Complex carbohydrates such as starch are believed to be more healthy than the sugar so frequently consumed in the Standard American Diet.
a majority of calories in the average american diet come from what macronutrient
carbohydrate carbohydrate carbohydrate