Borkent Jos W, Grootswagers Pol, Linschooten Joost, Roodenburg Annet J C, Ocké Marga, de van der Schueren Marian A E
HAN University of Applied Sciences, Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Lifestyle, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Wageningen University, Department of Human Nutrition and Health, Wageningen, the Netherlands.
Wageningen University, Department of Human Nutrition and Health, Wageningen, the Netherlands.
J Nutr Health Aging. 2025 May;29(5):100536. doi: 10.1016/j.jnha.2025.100536. Epub 2025 Mar 26.
A more sustainable diet with fewer animal-based products has a lower ecological impact but might lead to a lower protein quantity and quality. The extent to which shifting to more plant-based diets impacts the adequacy of protein intake in older adults needs to be studied.
We simulated how a transition towards a more plant-based diet (flexitarian, pescetarian, vegetarian, or vegan) affects protein availability in the diets of older adults.
Community.
Data from the Dutch National Food Consumption Survey 2019-2021 of community-dwelling older adults (n = 607) was used.
Food consumption data was collected via two 24-h dietary recalls per participant. Protein availability was expressed as total protein, digestible protein, and utilizable protein (based on digestibility corrected amino acid score) intake. The percentage below estimated average requirements (EAR) for utilizable protein was assessed using an adjusted EAR.
Compared to the original diet (∼62% animal-based), utilizable protein intake decreased by about 5% in the flexitarian, pescetarian and vegetarian scenarios. In the vegan scenario, both total protein intake and utilizable protein were lower, leading to nearly 35% less utilizable protein compared to the original diet. In the original diet, the protein intake of 7.5% of men and 11.1% of women did not meet the EAR. This slightly increased in the flexitarian, pescetarian, and vegetarian scenarios. In the vegan scenario, approximately 60% had a protein intake below EAR.
Replacing animal-based protein sources with plant-based food products in older adults reduces both protein quantity and quality, albeit minimally in non-vegan plant-rich diets. In a vegan scenario, the risk of an inadequate protein intake is imminent.
食用更少动物性产品的更可持续饮食对生态的影响较小，但可能导致蛋白质数量和质量降低。向更多以植物为基础的饮食转变对老年人蛋白质摄入量充足性的影响程度有待研究。
我们模拟了向更多以植物为基础的饮食（弹性素食、鱼肉素食、素食或纯素食）的转变如何影响老年人饮食中的蛋白质可利用性。
社区。
使用了荷兰2019 - 2021年全国食物消费调查中社区居住老年人（n = 607）的数据。
通过每位参与者两次24小时饮食回顾收集食物消费数据。蛋白质可利用性表示为总蛋白质、可消化蛋白质和可利用蛋白质（基于消化率校正氨基酸评分）摄入量。使用调整后的估计平均需求量（EAR）评估可利用蛋白质低于EAR的百分比。
与原始饮食（约62%为动物性食物）相比，在弹性素食、鱼肉素食和素食方案中，可利用蛋白质摄入量下降了约5%。在纯素食方案中，总蛋白质摄入量和可利用蛋白质均较低，与原始饮食相比，可利用蛋白质减少了近35%。在原始饮食中，7.5%的男性和11.1%的女性蛋白质摄入量未达到EAR。在弹性素食、鱼肉素食和素食方案中，这一比例略有增加。在纯素食方案中，约60%的人蛋白质摄入量低于EAR。
用植物性食品替代老年人饮食中的动物性蛋白质来源会降低蛋白质的数量和质量，尽管在富含植物的非纯素饮食中降幅最小。在纯素食方案中，蛋白质摄入不足的风险迫在眉睫。
