Abstract
Rationale: An adequate amount of good-quality protein (P) is essential to remain fit and healthy at an older age. Animal-based proteins (ABPs) are of high quality and provide nearly 60% of the P intake in older adults. It is unclear if an adequate P intake can be achieved when ABPs are replaced by vegetarian (Veg) or plant-based (Plant) alternatives. Methods: A simulation study was performed based on dietary intake data from the Dutch National food consumption (DNFC) 2019–2021 (n = 607, age ≥ 65 years). In five scenarios, animal protein intake was replaced by vegetable protein. The scenario diets included vegetarian, flexitarian (two levels), pescatarian and vegan. Protein quality was measured by the Meal Protein Quality Score (MPQS), a score that ranges from 0–100 and takes into account protein digestibility, body-weight based amino acid requirements, and time window of complementation. Results: Total P and MPQS remained stable over all non-vegan plant-based scenarios, but showed a large decrease in the vegan scenario. Conclusions: shifting to a fully vegan diet severely compromises total protein intake and protein quality in older adults, whereas shifting to a vegetarian or flexitarian diet does not.
Author Contributions
P.G. presented the abstract; P.G. and J.B. wrote the abstract and analysed the data; M.D.v.d.S., J.L., A.R., I.T., M.T. and W.R. collaborated in the project and were involved in funding acquisition. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding
This research received no external funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement
Not applicable.
Informed Consent Statement
Not applicable.
Data Availability Statement
Data is available upon reasonable request and approval by RIVM.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors have received funding from both plant-protein and animal-protein related companies.
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