The Study
Physical activity, protein consumption, and loss of muscle mass in older adult participants of the ELSA-Brazil study
This study looked at a group of older people and noticed that those who ate less protein tended to lose more muscle over time. But it didn’t make people change their diet — it just watched what happened. So we can’t say eating less protein definitely causes muscle loss — maybe people who were already getting weaker ate less because they couldn’t chew well or felt sick.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
As people get older, they naturally lose muscle, but eating enough protein can help slow it down — especially for women.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 560 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1This means current protein guidelines (often around 0.8g/kg) may be too low for older adults — eating more protein, especially above 1.2g/kg, could help keep muscles stronger longer.
- 2Older adults who ate the least protein (under 1.0g per kg of body weight) lost muscle 45% more often than those who ate the most.
- 3Women who ate little protein lost muscle 67% more often.
- 4Even people eating a little more (1.1–1.2g/kg) still lost muscle 27% more often than those eating the most.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Geriatrics Gerontology and Aging
Year
2024
Authors
Fernanda Duarte Mendes, Glaucia Cristina de Campos, Roberto Alves Lourenço, Virgílio Moreira Garcia, J. G. Mill, M. D. C. Molina
Related Content
Claims (4)
Older adults who consumed about 1.1 to 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day lost more muscle mass over time than those who consumed the highest amounts of protein in the study.
Older adults who consumed the least amount of protein (1.0 gram per kilogram of body weight or less per day) lost skeletal muscle mass at a 45% higher rate over four years than those who consumed the most protein, even when accounting for age, sex, education, smoking, body weight, and chronic diseases.
Older women who eat the least protein over four years lose more muscle mass than those who eat the most protein, and this link is stronger in women than in men.
As people get older, they naturally lose muscle and bone mass at a faster rate than when they were younger.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.