Research
Macro partitioning
Protein supplementation alone does not improve functional frailty outcomes (lean body mass, strength, gait speed) in pre-frail or frail older adults, but when combined with exercise training, it yields greater benefits than exercise alone.
Do not rely on protein supplements alone to fight frailty. They are ineffective without physical activity. Combine protein supplementation (up to 32g/day) with exercise training to see improvements in muscle mass and strength.
GoodQualifiesHIGH confidence
The meta-analysis showed no effect of protein supplementation (up to 32 g/day)... More encouraging evidence has come from trials in which protein supplementation is combined with exercise training... protein supplementation... plus exercise training resulted in greater effects on outcomes such as lean body mass, hand grip and leg strength, when compared with exercise training alone
Why this rating
Based on meta-analyses of RCTs.
Source
Nutrition and Frailty: Opportunities for Prevention and Treatment
Mary Ní Lochlainn et al. · Nutrients · 2021
DOI 10.3390/nu13072349
narrative_reviewCited 264×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Adherence to high-quality dietary patterns, specifically the Mediterranean diet, is associated with a significantly lower risk of incident frailty in older adults.Good
- Higher consumption of fruit and vegetables (5+ portions/day) is associated with a lower risk of incident pre-frailty or frailty in older adults.Moderate
- High consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) is associated with a three-fold increased risk of incident frailty in older adults.Moderate
Related findings · Macro partitioning
- Total daily protein intake of 1.6 g/kg/day is sufficient for maximizing resistance training-induced muscle gains, with an upper confidence interval of 2.2 g/kg/day.Strong
- Resistance exercise training combined with sufficient dietary protein intake acts synergistically to maximize skeletal muscle hypertrophy, with protein intake saturating around 1.6 g/kg/day for general populations and potentially requiring 2.0-2.2 g/kg/day for resistance-trained individuals.Strong
- Trans fats should be completely eliminated from the diet, as they increase LDL cholesterol, decrease HDL cholesterol, and are directly associated with increased coronary risk.Strong
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