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Protein for adults 65 and over
EFSA keeps 0.83 grams per kilogram of body weight a day at every adult age. Several clinical expert groups disagree and propose 1.0 to 1.2 g/kg for healthy older adults. This page shows both, and says which is which.
EFSA note on this row: EFSA sets no separate value for older adults
These are published population reference values, not a diagnosis and not a prescription. A reference intake describes what covers a healthy group; it cannot tell you your own status, and no page can. Pregnancy, chronic illness, medicines and malabsorption all change the picture — take those questions to a doctor, midwife, pharmacist or dietitian.
The reference value has not moved
EFSA 2012 opinion set the adult population reference intake at 0.83 g per kilogram of body weight per day and did not derive a separate value for older adults. For a 70 kg person that is about 58 g a day.
That is the number that appears in EU reference tables, and it is the honest answer to "what is the official requirement". It is not the whole conversation.
Why clinicians argue for more
Two observations drive the argument. Older muscle shows anabolic resistance: a given amount of protein stimulates less muscle protein synthesis than it does in a younger person, so more is needed to produce the same effect. And older adults lose muscle rapidly during illness, hospital admission or immobility, and regain it slowly.
On that basis the PROT-AGE study group and the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism have recommended around 1.0 to 1.2 g/kg a day for healthy older adults, with higher figures during illness or rehabilitation. Those are clinical consensus recommendations, not EFSA reference values, and this site keeps the two clearly apart rather than blending them into one number.
Distribution across the day, not just the total
A second theme in that literature is that the total matters less than whether individual meals contain enough protein to trigger muscle protein synthesis. A typical pattern of a light breakfast, a light lunch and a protein-heavy dinner can hit an adequate daily total while leaving two of the three meals below the threshold.
The practical version is unglamorous: put a protein source into breakfast and lunch, not only dinner. Curd or cottage cheese, yogurt, eggs, fish, legumes and milk in porridge all do it. And protein works with resistance exercise rather than instead of it — the muscle response depends on loading as much as on intake.
The exception that has to be stated
Chronic kidney disease changes protein advice completely, sometimes in the opposite direction, and protein restriction is a real part of some treatment plans. Anyone with reduced kidney function should take their protein target from their own clinician or dietitian and disregard both figures on this page.
How this compares with every other group
| Group | Reference value | Type | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men 19-50 | 0.83 g/kg | PRI | g per kg body weight per day |
| Women 19-50 | 0.83 g/kg | PRI | g per kg body weight per day |
| Men 51 and over | 0.83 g/kg | PRI | g per kg body weight per day |
| Women 51 and over | 0.83 g/kg | PRI | g per kg body weight per day |
| Adults 65 and over | 0.83 g/kg | PRI | EFSA sets no separate value for older adults |
Ordinary food against a 70 kg adult at 0.83 g per kilogram
Top of this list: Chicken breast, 37.2 g in a 120 g serving (a breast) — 64% of a 70 kg adult at 0.83 g per kilogram. It would take about 2 of those to cover a full day from that one food, which is why a real diet spreads it across several rows.
| Food | Ordinary portion | Per portion | Share of the day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken breast | a breast, 120 g | 37.2 g | 64% |
| Salmon | a fillet, 120 g | 30.5 g | 52% |
| Ground beef | a portion, 120 g | 30.1 g | 52% |
| Chicken thigh | a thigh, 120 g | 29.8 g | 51% |
| Cod | a fillet, 130 g | 29.6 g | 51% |
| Boneless pork chop | a chop, 120 g | 29.6 g | 51% |
| Mackerel | a fillet, 120 g | 28.7 g | 49% |
| Trout | a fillet, 120 g | 28.6 g | 49% |
| Soybeans | a portion, cooked, 150 g | 27.3 g | 47% |
| Canned sockeye salmon | half a tin, 100 g | 23.6 g | 41% |
| Veal liver | a small portion, 100 g | 19.9 g | 34% |
| Canned tuna | a small tin, drained, 100 g | 19.4 g | 33% |
Portion sizes are ordinary household servings chosen for this table, not official reference portions, and the shortlist is an editorial one: everyday foods eaten in this region rather than the highest per-100 g entries in the database. A raw per-100 g ranking would be topped by dried herbs, drink powders and fortified breakfast cereals, which answers a different question. The composition data is American, so where US fortification practice differs from European practice the row carries a dagger and the reason. For the full per-100 g ranking of a nutrient, the food-data section of this site publishes one.
The whole nutrient, not just this group
The Protein reference intake page carries the full age and sex table, the upper level, and what the value type means.
Related pages
Vitamin D for adults 65 and over
The same life stage, a different nutrient.
Vitamin B12 for adults 65 and over
The same life stage, a different nutrient.
Sources: EFSA Dietary Reference Values · Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Annex XIII · USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy (food composition) · EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies, scientific opinion on dietary reference values for protein (2012) · Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Annex XIII · checked 2026-09-06
Frequently asked questions
How much protein do older adults need?
EFSA reference intake is 0.83 g per kilogram of body weight a day at every adult age. Clinical expert groups including PROT-AGE and ESPEN have recommended around 1.0 to 1.2 g/kg for healthy older adults, which is a consensus recommendation rather than a reference value.
Why would older adults need more protein?
Because older muscle responds less to a given amount of protein, and because muscle is lost quickly during illness or immobility and regained slowly.
Does it matter when protein is eaten?
The clinical literature suggests spreading protein across meals matters, because each meal needs enough to trigger muscle protein synthesis. A protein source at breakfast and lunch, not only at dinner, is the practical version.
Turn a reference value into your own week
TempoLife adds up what you actually ate, so you can see how a real week sits against the figure on this page.