Study finds moderate amounts of protein could help you live longer

BOSTON - A new study finds getting moderate amounts of protein in your diet may help you live longer.

Protein is vital for maintaining good health but how much protein is necessary? A team of researchers in Japan fed mice diets with different percentages of protein ranging from five percent to 45 percent of calories consumed for two months.

They found that the animals on the low-protein diet developed fatty livers and in middle age, had greater levels of lipids or fats, whereas those on the moderate-protein diets had lower levels of lipids and lower blood glucose levels, suggesting that moderate protein intake in the 25 to 35 percent range is best for maintaining metabolic health in middle age, at least in mice.

Scientists said we need more protein as we age because our bodies are less able to process it efficiently. 

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Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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