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Dr Chris Macdonald (Credit: Lucy Cavendish College)<\/p>\n
Researcher Suggests People Are Probably Not Getting Enough Exercise Or Protein, With Guidelines To Blame<\/p>\n
In A Nutshell<\/p>\n
Most people know smoking kills. It\u2019s plastered on cigarette packs and treated as one of the great public health battles of the last century. But a perspective paper in Frontiers in Nutrition<\/a> argues that low fitness levels and inadequate protein intake may be doing comparable or greater damage, and that governments are setting the bar too low when it comes to telling people how to fix it.<\/p>\n According to the paper, authored by Chris Macdonald of the University of Cambridge, very low cardiovascular fitness is associated with a roughly 400% higher risk of death compared to high fitness levels, and low muscular strength with around a 200% increase. Smoking carries roughly a 50% increase by comparison. These figures come from different studies with different methods and are not a direct head-to-head comparison, but together they suggest low fitness may be among the most overlooked health risks in modern life.<\/p>\n Both physical activity and protein guidelines in the UK are stuck in a \u201cbare minimum\u201d mindset, the paper argues, built to prevent deficiency rather than optimize health. American guidelines from the CDC<\/a> follow the same logic. Macdonald calls on governments to overhaul those targets.<\/p>\n Current Fitness Guidelines Miss the Mark on Intensity<\/p>\n Current UK physical activity guidelines from the National Health Service are framed around minimums, telling adults to aim for \u201cat least\u201d a certain amount of moderate exercise per day. Macdonald argues this undersells the evidence and leaves people without a clear sense of what healthy living actually requires.<\/p>\n One of the more revealing points involves intensity. An analysis of more than 70,000 adults from a large UK health database found vigorous physical activity<\/a> was associated with roughly four times greater reduction in all-cause mortality risk than moderate activity, and about eight times greater for cardiovascular death. For cancer mortality, more than an hour of light activity may be needed to match what just one minute of vigorous exercise provides.<\/p>\n High-intensity exercise isn\u2019t only for the young. In previously sedentary middle-aged adults, two years of high-intensity training reversed key structural signs of cardiac aging by an amount equivalent to roughly two decades of age-related change. Anyone long sedentary<\/a> should build up gradually and consult a clinician first, but the paper argues it is not too late to start.<\/p>\n Your fitness level may matter more for longevity than whether you smoke, and official guidelines aren\u2019t telling you nearly enough. (Image by StudyFinds)<\/p>\n Protein Guidelines Haven\u2019t Been Updated Since 1991<\/p>\n Current UK guidance on daily protein intake<\/a> was established in 1991, based on sedentary lifestyles and aimed at nothing more ambitious than preventing the body from breaking down its own tissue. Macdonald argues that standard has aged poorly.<\/p>\n For people who do strength training, research cited in the paper supports protein intakes more than double current recommendations. Even a modest increase above the recommended amount has been shown to significantly improve muscle growth<\/a> and strength. As noted by Bosse and Dixon, the lay recommendation of 1 gram per pound of body weight per day while resistance training \u201caligns well with research that assesses optimal health outcomes,\u201d though Macdonald acknowledges the evidence would benefit from larger studies.<\/p>\n Age-related muscle loss is associated with a 60% increased risk of falls and more than an 80% increased risk of fractures. Recent studies show improved muscle mass and function in older adults when protein<\/a> intake was roughly doubled from current guidance.<\/p>\n For pregnant women, the paper cites evidence that protein needs may exceed current guidance, with some studies linking higher intake to better fetal growth outcomes, though the evidence is largely associative and protein is not the only factor.<\/p>\n Protein also aids fat loss. It increases fullness by triggering satiety hormones and burns more calories during digestion than carbohydrates or fat. In several studies cited, higher-protein groups lost more fat than lower-protein groups at the same calorie intake, while preserving more muscle.<\/p>\n Plant-Based Diets Can Still Deliver on Protein, With Planning<\/p>\n People following vegan diets are less likely to meet even current protein recommendations, according to research cited in the paper, and a large Oxford study linked vegan diets to higher fracture risks, with authors suggesting lower protein intake might partially explain the gap. A separate analysis found that women following vegan diets during pregnancy had offspring with lower average birth weights and higher rates of preeclampsia<\/a> compared to omnivorous mothers, though protein is cited as one plausible factor, not a confirmed cause. Macdonald is not arguing against plant-based eating. Well-planned vegan meals including complete sources such as tofu can meet protein needs, and choosing less processed sources matters as much as hitting a protein target.<\/p>\n Bar graph showeing protein recommendations, national recommendations versus contemporary science. (Credit: Dr Chris Macdonald)<\/p>\n Governments Should Aim Higher for Public Health<\/p>\n Macdonald calls on governments to update both exercise and protein guidelines with optimal outcomes as the goal, and to communicate those targets in clear, actionable ways. As a practical example, the paper suggests that for an adult weighing 175 pounds, a daily protein target of 120 grams translates to roughly 30 grams per meal across four meals.<\/p>\n A frail older person<\/a> struggling with basic movement is often treated as an inevitable consequence of aging. Macdonald argues it more often reflects sedentary habits and inadequate nutrition, patterns normalized while guidelines stayed unambitious. Setting the bar at the bare minimum, the paper contends, isn\u2019t cautious. It\u2019s costly.<\/p>\n Disclaimer<\/strong>: This article is based on a perspective paper and reflects the views of the study\u2019s author. It is not intended as medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet or exercise routine.<\/p>\n Paper Notes<\/p>\n Limitations<\/p>\n Macdonald acknowledges significant limitations in the broader field of dietary and lifestyle research. Much of the underlying evidence relies on self-reported data, smaller sample sizes, and study designs that make it difficult to fully account for confounding variables. For instance, people who eat more protein may also eat fewer fruits and vegetables, making it hard to isolate protein\u2019s specific effects. Epidemiological studies have also reported that individuals following omnivorous diets are, on average, more likely to smoke, drink alcohol, and have lower educational attainment compared to vegetarian or vegan groups, which complicates any direct dietary comparisons. Macdonald explicitly states that to fully understand optimal protein amounts for building muscle, far more studies with larger sample sizes and greater variation in doses would be needed. The paper also cautions that individuals with pre-existing conditions such as kidney disease should approach high protein intakes carefully, and that anyone who has been sedentary for a long time should ease into vigorous exercise progressively and consult a medical professional before beginning.<\/p>\n Funding and Disclosures<\/p>\n Financial support was received to assist with publication costs from Lucy Cavendish College, University of Cambridge. The author declared that this work was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The author also declared that generative AI was not used in the creation of the manuscript.<\/p>\n Publication Details<\/p>\n Author:<\/strong> Chris Macdonald, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom Paper Title:<\/strong> \u201cBeyond the bare minimum: the case for revised physical activity guidelines and protein intake recommendations that maximise healthspan\u201d Journal:<\/strong> Frontiers in Nutrition<\/a>, Section: Sport and Exercise Nutrition, Volume 13, 2026 Published:<\/strong> June 17, 2026 DOI:<\/strong> 10.3389\/fnut.2026.1853124 Article Type:<\/strong> Perspective<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dr Chris Macdonald (Credit: Lucy Cavendish College) Researcher Suggests People Are Probably Not Getting Enough Exercise Or Protein,…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":879712,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[38],"tags":[1728,1198,210,123320,1929,77709,67,132,68],"class_list":["post-879711","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-exercise","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-mortality-risk","tag-protein","tag-sedentary-lifestyle","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116780420747887169","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879711","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=879711"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879711\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/879712"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=879711"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=879711"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=879711"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Man](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AdobeStock_248481909-1200x857.jpeg\")
It\u2019s never too late to start a workout routine. (\u00a9 rangizzz \u2013 stock.adobe.com)<\/p>\n![\"protein](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/protein-infographic-1200x675.png\")
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