Phenylalanine rich foods
Phenylalanine (symbol Phe) is an essential α-amino acid not synthesized de novo in humans and other animals, who must therefore ingest phenylalanine or phenylalanine-containing proteins.
Phenylalanine is a precursor for tyrosine, the neurotransmitters dopamine, norepinephrine (noradrenaline), epinephrine (adrenaline), and the skin pigment melanin.
Phenylalanine is found naturally in the breast milk of mammals.
The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for phenylalanine plus tyrosine RDA for adults 19 years and older is 33 mg/kg body weight/day. More on phenylalanine here.
Below is a list of foods having the highest content of phenylalanine in grams (g) per 100 grams of the food. The list also includes the number of kilocalories (kcal) and the phenylalanine content in grams (g) per kcal, and the list is sorted with respect to the latter with the highest values at the top.
As you can see there are many foods having a high phenylalanine content per kcal. So if you are lacking in phenylalanine, you could easily correct the deficiency by eating some of these foods.
The list is made using ECstep’s Personal Nutrition Data Program and includes more than 100 of the phenylalanine richest foods. Commercial brand products are not included in this list.
