How to use protein as the foundation of satisfying meals.
What the evidence says
- A meal threshold of ~25–30 g protein is well established — for stimulating muscle protein synthesis. Whether a satiety threshold exists at that quantity is, in the source’s own words, “not known”. The supporting satiety evidence is one author’s own preliminary acute trials, in which postprandial fullness was higher after 30 g than after 15, 20 or 25 g, and the review calls for dose-response research to find ”an absolute protein threshold specific to satiety”[1]
- Recommended intake: 1.2–1.6 g protein/kg body weight/day — which the source puts at ~89–119 g/d for women and 104–138 g/d for men, not one range for everyone[1]
- Meta-analyses show greater weight loss, fat mass loss, and lean mass preservation with higher protein[1]
- 6-month RCT (n=60): fat loss nearly twice as great with 25% protein (128-139 g/d) vs 12% protein (76-80 g/d)[2]
- 12-month study (n=50): high-protein group lost -9.4 vs -5.9 kg and had 10% greater reduction in intra-abdominal adipose tissue during follow-up[2]
- Higher-protein diets improve body weight management through appetite modulation[1]
- During weight loss with reduced energy intake, absolute protein can drop below RDA (0.8 g/kg/d) even when percentage stays the same — express protein as absolute grams, not just percentage[2]
- Compliance is the primary factor determining long-term success — in one 12-month trial (Due et al) compliance was ”substantially greater” on the higher-protein diet: 8% dropout (25% energy) vs 28% (12% energy)[1],[2]