When setting up your diet and looking at the foods you want to include you might ask yourself: “Should men and women eat or diet differently?”

 

This is an interesting question and while some people might think the answer is a clear „no“ because men’s and women’s bodies process nutrients the same, it’s actually not that simple.

 

But let’s start with the obvious.

 

Yes, the essentials of a healthy diet are pretty much the same for men and women. Both should eat when they are hungry, stop when they are full and make sure to get the bulk of their nutrients from quality sources like fruits, vegetables, whole grains and proteins while minimizing trans fats and other harmful substances.

 

But besides that, there are fundamental differences between proper diets for men and women, some more obvious than others.

 

 

 

Since men generally have more overall body mass than women, they need to consume more calories to maintain it. Of course, the larger the difference in body mass the greater the difference in calorie needs.

 

But even if we take a woman and a man of the same height and weight there will still be a noticeable difference in calorie needs.

 

Why?

 

Because men have more muscle mass than women. In fact, men tend to have around 40 percent muscle mass, while women tend to have around 30 percent muscle mass. And since muscles burn more calories than body fat you get the difference in calorie needs even for the same body mass.

 

 

Next are the macronutrients so protein, fat and carbs. In general, the macronutrient needs will also be higher for men than for women simply because optimal intake are calculated as either a percentage of bodyweight or daily calories.

 

That means men require more total protein, fat and carbs than women but the same goes for heavier versus lighter people of the same sex, so this difference isnt due to gender itself but because of the larger overall weight.

 

 

 

Now, what about micronutrients and minerals? Are there any difference between men and women?

 

Two come to mind. Iron and calcuim.

 

Men need less iron than women require due to the monthly blood loss during menstruation. The average woman needs around 18 milligrams of iron per day compared to 8 milligrams for men.

 

In regards to calcium, older women are more susceptible than men to weakened bones and osteoporosis because of the hormonal changes that set in when menstruation stops. Therefore, the average post-menopausal woman needs more calcium than men of the same age. Daily calcium intakes at other ages are the same for both genders.

 

Lastly, there is selenium. Many people believe that men need more selenium than women, which is false. But there are some studies suggesting that a higher selenium intake can help prevent some cancers more common in men, like prostate or lung cancer.

 

Women do not see a decline in cancer rates with higher selenium intake so it might make sense to call this a noticeable difference between the genders.