ParrotPalParrotPal Data · short read
More than half of women 45 and over logged less than 1 g of protein per kg of body weight
Key findings
56.2% of women aged 45 to 54 and 54.6% of women 55 and over logged less than 1.0 g of protein per kg of body weight on a typical day, March to August 2026, against 39.8% of women aged 35 to 44. Only 2.6% of women logged 30 g of fibre on a typical day. Source: ParrotPal anonymised food diaries, more than 2,500 women.
More than half of women aged 45 and over logged less than 1 g of protein per kg of body weight on a typical day: 56.2% at 45 to 54 and 54.6% at 55 and over. At 35 to 44 it was 39.8%.
56.2%of women aged 45 to 54 logged under 1 g of protein per kg
Women under 1 g of protein per kg
Share of womenThe typical woman logged about 77 g of protein a day, or 1.02 g per kg; the typical man 104 g, or 1.15 g per kg. Women’s grams a day were fairly steady with age; per kg, the median fell from 1.09 at 35 to 44 to 0.95 at 45 to 54.
Fibre is the bigger gap. Women logged a median 14.4 g a day, and only 2.6% (about 1 in 40) logged 30 g on a typical day. Food databases sometimes leave fibre out, so treat this as a floor.
This describes what women logged, not why. We don’t know who was in perimenopause or menopause, so the page makes no claim about menopause causing anything. Protein per kg uses each member’s own median weigh-in.
Strength work is the other half of keeping muscle with age. Turtle Method, a separate app from ParrotPal’s founder, has a plain guide to strength training vs cardio for women.
What this means
Around mid-life, protein per kilo is where many women’s diaries fall short, often by a single portion a day. A pot of skyr or Greek yoghurt, or an egg or two at breakfast, is the size of the gap for many.
What the research says
The PROT-AGE study group recommends at least 1.0–1.2 g of protein per kg a day for people over 65. It is a target for older people, not for 45-year-olds, so we quote it as context.
Bauer J, Biolo G, Cederholm T, et al. (2013). Evidence-based recommendations for optimal dietary protein intake in older people: a position paper from the PROT-AGE Study Group. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association 14(8):542–59. doi:10.1016/j.jamda.2013.05.021
UK government guidelines say adults should aim for 30 g of fibre a day.
NHS (2026). How to get more fibre into your diet. NHS website Eat well. www.nhs.uk
Research describes other groups of people; our figures are what ParrotPal members logged.
The figures
| Age | Women under 1 g per kg | Women, median g per kg | Men, median g per kg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 24 | 47.7% | 1.01 | 1.23 |
| 25 to 34 | 44.8% | 1.05 | 1.16 |
| 35 to 44 | 39.8% | 1.09 | 1.18 |
| 45 to 54 | 56.2% | 0.95 | 1.06 |
| 55 and over | 54.6% | 0.95 | 1.04 |
Method in brief. ParrotPal members’ anonymised food diaries, 1 March to 31 August 2026, members in every country; a counted day has 3 or more entries and 300 to 6,000 kcal; members need 7 or more counted days; deleted entries don’t count. Age and sex are what members told us when they joined. Protein per kg uses members with a weigh-in.
Aggregates only: every group shown has 50 or more members and no share rests on fewer than 10. Patterns in what members logged, not causes. who’s counted · the 50/10 rule · logged isn’t eaten.
Questions people ask
How much protein do women log a day?
In ParrotPal food diaries, March to August 2026, the typical woman logged about 77 g of protein a day, or 1.02 g per kg of body weight.
How much protein do women over 50 need?
There’s no single number. The PROT-AGE group recommends at least 1.0 to 1.2 g per kg a day for people over 65. Our protein calculator gives a personal starting number; a GP or dietitian can advise if you have a health condition.
Cite this
Free to use with credit and a link to the source page. The figures and chart are licensed CC BY 4.0.
Credit line
Source: ParrotPal food diary data, parrotpal.com/data/womens-protein-by-age/
Citation
ParrotPal (2026). More than half of women 45 and over logged less than 1 g of protein per kg of body weight. ParrotPal Data. https://parrotpal.com/data/womens-protein-by-age/. Licensed CC BY 4.0.
Embed the chart (an image with the credit link)
<figure><img src="https://parrotpal.com/data/womens-protein-by-age/chart.svg" alt="Women under 1 g of protein per kg: chart by ParrotPal" width="760" style="max-width:100%;height:auto" /><figcaption>Source: <a href="https://parrotpal.com/data/womens-protein-by-age/">ParrotPal food diary data</a> (CC BY 4.0)</figcaption></figure>
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Press questions, a comment or a chart in your house style: the ParrotPal team, jacqui+press@parrotpal.com. All our data pages: ParrotPal Data.
Your protein number in 30 seconds: the protein calculator. To track it day to day, ParrotPal is 4.7★ on the App Store · iPhone. Get it on the App Store
Please read. This page reports patterns in anonymised, aggregated app data. It’s general information, not medical or dietary advice.