Dietary Protein Intake Patterns and Inadequate Protein Intake in Older Adults from Four Countries

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Nutritional Science
• Public Health

Background:

• Growing interest in per-meal protein intake among global populations.
• Lack of comparative studies on protein intake patterns across countries.
• Importance of adequate protein intake for older adults' health.

Purpose of the Study:

• Compare protein intake patterns and inadequate protein intake (IPI) per day and per meal in older adults across four countries.
• Identify differences in daily and meal-specific protein consumption and IPI.
• Assess opportunities for nutritional interventions.

Main Methods:

• Acquired protein intake data from older adults in Mexico, USA, Germany, and the UK.
• Compared daily and per-meal protein intake and IPI across countries.
• Analyzed the number of meals meeting adequate protein content thresholds (≥30 g/meal or ≥0.4 g/kg/meal).

Main Results:

• Significant differences in daily IPI (<0.8 and <1.0 g/kg/d) were observed among countries.
• Per-meal IPI (<30 g/meal) varied significantly at dinner but not breakfast or lunch.
• Per-meal IPI (<0.4 g/kg/meal) differed significantly across all meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) between countries.
• Significant differences were found in the number of meals with adequate protein intake per day among countries.

Conclusions:

• Inadequate protein intake at breakfast and lunch (<30 g/meal) is a common issue for older adults across the studied countries.
• These findings suggest a potential target for nutritional interventions to improve protein intake in older populations globally.
• Country-specific differences in protein intake patterns warrant further investigation.