The Study
Higher compared with lower dietary protein during an energy deficit combined with intense exercise promotes greater lean mass gain and fat mass loss: a randomized trial.
This study is like a fair science experiment where people were randomly split into two groups to test if eating more protein helps build muscle and lose fat when cutting calories. Because it was a fair test, we can say the protein probably caused the difference.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
When young guys ate less food for 4 weeks but worked out a lot, those who ate more protein gained more muscle and lost more fat than those who ate less protein.
Where does this study sit?
Systematic Reviews & Meta-analyses
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control
Max 58Cross-Sectional
Max 44Case Reports & Series
Max 30Expert Opinion
Max 551 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. Considered the gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes, the difference is meaningful—eating more protein made a clear difference in body composition during weight loss and intense training.
- 2High-protein group: +1.2 kg muscle, -4.8 kg fat.
- 3Low-protein group: +0.1 kg muscle, -3.5 kg fat.
- 4Difference: +1.1 kg more muscle, -1.3 kg more fat loss with high protein.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
The American journal of clinical nutrition
Year
2016
Authors
Thomas M. Longland, Sara Y Oikawa, C. Mitchell, M. Devries, Stuart M Phillips
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.