Food X is 28% protein and 72% carbohydrate, whereas food Y is 72% protein and 28% carbohydrate.

Question

Scientific studies suggest that some animals regulate their intake of different types of food available in the environment to achieve a balance between the proportion, and ultimately the total amount, of macro-nutrients consumed. Macro-nutrients are categorised as protein, carbohydrate or fat/lipid. A seminal study on the macro-nutrient intake of migratory locust nymphs (Locusta migratoria) suggested that the locust nymphs studied sought and ate combinations of food that balanced the intake of protein to carbohydrate in a ratio of 45:55 [1]. Assume that a locust nymph finds itself in an enivronment where only two sources of food are available, identified as food X and food Y . Food X is 28% protein and 72% carbohydrate, whereas food Y is 72% protein and 28% carbohydrate. Assuming that the locust eats exactly 100 mg of food per day, determine how many milligrams of food X and food Y the locust needs to eat per day to reach the desired intake balance between protein and carbohydrate. [1] D Raubenheimer and S J Simpson, The geometry of compensatory feeding in the locust,

Answer 1

Quite the question

I came up with 61.3 milligrams of X

38.7 milligrams of Y