In an emulated trial of 3,789 postmenopausal women, a hypothetical higher protein intake lined up with less abdominal fat

What the research found

Study (emulated target trial on existing cohort data, not a feeding experiment). Investigators report in the International Journal of Obesity (2026; 50(3): 609-617; DOI 10.1038/s41366-025-01978-0), published online 9 Jan 2026. They used DXA scans from 3,789 postmenopausal women ages 50 to 79 in the Women's Health Initiative and asked what body composition would have looked like if everyone had kept protein at or above set levels for three years. The women were not randomized to protein doses. The model estimates that holding intake at or above 1.5 grams per kilogram per day, versus no such target, lined up with lower visceral fat (minus 13.1 cm2, 95 percent CI minus 18.9 to minus 7.3), lower subcutaneous abdominal fat (minus 25.3 cm2, minus 39.7 to minus 11.0), lower body-fat percentage (minus 1.0, minus 1.7 to minus 0.3), lower weight (minus 2.5 kg, minus 3.7 to minus 1.2), and a higher lean-soft-tissue percentage (plus 0.9, 0.3 to 1.6). The authors say estimated benefits started around 1.2 grams per kilogram per day. A model of a hypothetical diet is not evidence that eating that much protein produced those changes in a trial. Not medical advice.

Evidence level: Clinical trial. This is among the stronger kinds of evidence, but one study rarely settles a question.

Read the original at International Journal of Obesity