By Arun AgrahriLast reviewed 3 timecoded sources
Short answer
About 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight a day, not 0.8, is the figure the four counted sources lean toward for adults over 50. Some would go higher with age, as older muscle builds less from the same protein, though exercise before a protein meal largely restores that response. Precis has read no studies on this yet.
Eating more protein than the official recommended amount preserves muscle and supports healthy aging.
The verdict on Protein overall. 16 sources: 5 positive, 11 partly
positive partly neutral negative Each researcher and each study counts once per claim, however often they come up.
Adults over 50 need about 1.6 g of protein per kg of body weight a day.
4 sources: 2 positive, 2 partly.
Researchers say
2 positive, 1 partly
Mark Hyman, 5 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 01:23 · positive
“for people getting older it shouldn't be probably 0.8 it should be more like 1.6”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 45:11 · positive
“And for people getting older it shouldn't be probably 08. It should be more like 1.6.”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 08:20 · positive
“the amount we need is probably more like up to a gram per pound or 1.6 or even up to uh two grams per kilo”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 57:48 · positive
“And for people getting older, it shouldn't be probably 0.8. It should be more like 1.6.”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 45:14 · partly
“you need actually probably 1.2 1.5 even 2 grams per kilo as you age depending on your activity level”
Rhonda Patrick, on FoundMyFitness, at 07:43
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 07:43 →“combined with a higher daily protein intake ideally around 1.6 gram per kilogram body weight”
Peter Attia, on The Drive, at 1:40:33
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:40:33 →“at least 1.6 gram uh of protein per kilogram of body weight and as you get older you should start to move that number higher”
Studies show
1 partly
1 cited on tape, not yet checked against the paper
Stuart Phillips, McMaster University, cited on FoundMyFitness, at 25:14
Partly Study
Open the tape at 25:14 →“that number goes up if you're physically active um it goes up to 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight”
Mark Hyman Video · positive · 5 mentions
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 01:23 · positive · Opinion
“for people getting older it shouldn't be probably 0.8 it should be more like 1.6”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 45:11 · positive · Opinion
“And for people getting older it shouldn't be probably 08. It should be more like 1.6.”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 08:20 · positive · Opinion
“the amount we need is probably more like up to a gram per pound or 1.6 or even up to uh two grams per kilo”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 57:48 · positive · Opinion
“And for people getting older, it shouldn't be probably 0.8. It should be more like 1.6.”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 45:14 · partly · Opinion
“you need actually probably 1.2 1.5 even 2 grams per kilo as you age depending on your activity level”
Rhonda Patrick, on FoundMyFitness, at 07:43 Video · positive · Opinion
“combined with a higher daily protein intake ideally around 1.6 gram per kilogram body weight”
Peter Attia, on The Drive, at 1:40:33 Video · partly · Opinion
“at least 1.6 gram uh of protein per kilogram of body weight and as you get older you should start to move that number higher”
Stuart Phillips, McMaster University, cited on FoundMyFitness, at 25:14 Study · partly
“that number goes up if you're physically active um it goes up to 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight”
Adults over 50 need about 1.6 g of protein per kg of body weight a day.
Mark Hyman, 5 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 01:23 · positive
“for people getting older it shouldn't be probably 0.8 it should be more like 1.6”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 45:11 · positive
“And for people getting older it shouldn't be probably 08. It should be more like 1.6.”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 08:20 · positive
“the amount we need is probably more like up to a gram per pound or 1.6 or even up to uh two grams per kilo”
on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 57:48 · positive
“And for people getting older, it shouldn't be probably 0.8. It should be more like 1.6.”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 45:14 · partly
“you need actually probably 1.2 1.5 even 2 grams per kilo as you age depending on your activity level”
Rhonda Patrick, on FoundMyFitness, at 07:43
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 07:43 →“combined with a higher daily protein intake ideally around 1.6 gram per kilogram body weight”
Researchers
Peter Attia, on The Drive, at 1:40:33
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:40:33 →“at least 1.6 gram uh of protein per kilogram of body weight and as you get older you should start to move that number higher”
Studies
Stuart Phillips, McMaster University, cited on FoundMyFitness, at 25:14
Partly Study
Open the tape at 25:14 →“that number goes up if you're physically active um it goes up to 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight”
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Four credited sources count toward this claim, all of them on tape. Two back 1.6 grams per kilogram in full and two in part, and none argues for less protein after 50. Precis has not read any studies on it yet, so every figure below comes from the tape.
Mark Hyman, as a guest on Rangan Chatterjee's show, says that for people getting older it shouldn't be 0.8, it should be more like 1.6. On his own show he puts the need at up to a gram per pound, 1.6, or even up to two grams per kilogram. Elsewhere he gives 1.2 to 1.5, even 2 grams per kilogram as you age, depending on how active you are.
Rhonda Patrick, on her own show, says older adults should eat 1.6 grams per kilogram a day or more. In a talk on her channel she cites newer work, credited here to Stuart Phillips at McMaster University, that puts the need for active people at 1.6 grams per kilogram.
Peter Attia, on his own show, says you probably want at least 1.6 grams per kilogram. As you get older, he says, you should move that number higher because of anabolic resistance. That means older muscle builds less from the same protein.
Patrick calls regular exercise plus about 1.6 grams per kilogram the most effective way to fight it, and says inactivity makes it worse. Exercise before a protein meal, she says, brings an older adult's muscle-building response back to that of a younger adult. She also says up to two grams or more may be best for losing fat while keeping muscle.
Patrick says an even spread across meals is ideal but not vital. She calls the idea that protein past 20 to 25 grams in one meal goes to waste a myth. Hyman wants at least 30 to 40 grams per meal.
Patrick says high-protein diets do not harm healthy kidneys. These targets assume healthy kidneys; if you have kidney disease, set your protein with your doctor.
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