In newspapers
Eating extra protein may protect older adults from disability and help them maintain independent lives, in keeping with a study published online Nov. 1, 2018. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for protein is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight per day. In the study, scientists recruited 722 85-year-olds and examined their medical data, including information comparable to physical activity, what they ate every day, their body weight, and overall health status. Disability was measured with self-reported questionnaires during which people reported how much difficulty they’d performing 17 activities of each day living, comparable to getting away from bed, dressing, bathing, doing house responsibilities, and climbing stairs.
Group data were collected again after 18 months, 36 months, and 60 months. The researchers found that consuming lower than the RDA for each day protein was related to a greater likelihood of disability. In comparison, eating 25% to 50% greater than the RDA suggestion—a mean of 1 to 1.2 grams per kilogram of body weight per day—was related to greater self-esteem.
The researchers theorized that the additional protein helped delay the lack of muscle mass and strength commonly seen in older adults. They also noted that those that consumed additional protein did so for longer periods of time, suggesting that a sudden increase in protein intake may not provide immediate results.
