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The Role of Diet in Supporting Bone and Muscle Health in Older Adults (Poster Theater Flash Session 9)

(PTFS09-04-25) Protein Intake Associated With the Prevalence of Frailty Among Older Adults Consuming Sufficient Energy Intake: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Monday, June 2, 2025
10:12 AM – 10:16 AM ET
Location: South Hall B (The Hub) - Poster Theater / Poster Board Number PT-3

    Presenting Author(s)

  • Yongsoon Park, PhD (she/her/hers)

    Professor
    Hanyang University
    Seoul, Seoul-t'ukpyolsi, Republic of Korea

    Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.

    • Co-Author(s)

  • SK

    Seokju Kang

    Hanyang University, Seoul-t'ukpyolsi, Republic of Korea

  • YJ

    Youri Jin

    Hanyang University, Republic of Korea

Objectives: There was an inconsistent findings regarding the association between dietary intake of protein and frailty, which could be attributed to energy intake adequacy. This study hypothesized that the prevalence of frailty was inversely associated with intake of protein, animal protein, and plant protein in older adults with sufficient energy intake, but not in those with deficient energy intake.

Methods: Data from 5,768 individuals aged over 65 years were analyzed using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2014–2018. Frailty was assessed using a modified Cardiovascular Health Study Frailty Index.

Results: In older adults with sufficient energy intake, prevalence of frailty was inversely associated with the intake of protein (odds ratio [OR], 0.67; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.46–0.97; p-value [p] for trend = 0.032), animal protein (OR, 0.59; 95% CI, 0.43–0.82; p for trend = 0.001), and plant protein (OR, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.50–0.92; p for trend = 0.043). On the other hand, prevalence of frailty was inversely associated with plant protein intake (OR, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.37–0.88; p for trend = 0.012), but not with total and animal protein intake in older adults with deficient energy intake. In addition, intakes of animal protein from meat and seafood, and plant protein from legume/nut/seed and fruit/vegetable were also inversely associated with the prevalence of frailty in the energy sufficient population. In the energy deficient population, only intake of plant protein from fruit/vegetables was inversely associated with the prevalence of frailty.

Conclusions: These findings suggest that adequate energy intake is essential for the protective effects of total and animal protein intake against frailty, while higher intake of plant protein appears to have beneficial role on frailty regardless of energy intake.

Funding Sources: This study was supported by the BK21 Fostering Outstanding Universities for Research (FOUR) project of the National Research Foundation of Korea Grant, and a National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korean government (MSIT) (grant number NRS RS-2024-00334109).