Associations of dietary protein intake with bone mineral density: An observational study in 70,215 UK Biobank participants

Purpose: Adequate dietary protein intake is important for the maintenance of bone health; however, data in this area is ambiguous with some suggestion that high protein intake can have deleterious effects on bone health. The aim of the current study was to explore the associations of protein intake with bone mineral density (BMD).

Methods: We used baseline data from the UK Biobank (participants aged 40-69 years) to examine the association of protein intake with BMD (measured by ultrasound). These associations were examined, in women (n = 39,066) and men (n = 31,149), after adjustment for socio-demographic and lifestyle confounders and co-morbidities.

Results: Protein intake was positively and linearly associated with BMD in women (β-coefficient 0.010 [95% CI 0.005; 0.015, p < 0.0001]) and men (β-coefficient 0.008 [95% CI 0.000; 0.015, p = 0.044]); per 1.0 g/kg/day increment in protein intake, independently of socio-demographics, dietary factors and physical activity.

Conclusions: The current data have demonstrated that higher protein intakes are positively associated with BMD in both men and women. This indicates that higher protein intakes may be beneficial for both men and women.