Wheat protein and muscle building after a single meal
What it found
In 36 healthy young men, drinking 30 g of wheat protein, milk protein, or a blend of both increased muscle protein synthesis over 5 hours, with no difference between the drinks.
The study measured muscle building, not long-term muscle size or strength.
What they found
Studies in people
Muscle protein synthesis
Muscle protein synthesis increased in all three groups after drinking the protein. The rates were about the same whether the men drank milk protein, wheat protein, or the blend.
Blood amino acids
Blood levels of essential amino acids, leucine, lysine, and methionine rose more after milk protein than after wheat protein or the blend. The blend gave higher levels than wheat alone.
Blood sugar and insulin
Blood sugar did not change after any of the drinks. Insulin rose similarly after all three protein drinks.
Other findings
Protein composition
The milk protein drink contained more essential amino acids, leucine, lysine, and methionine than the wheat protein drink. The blend had levels in between.
What the authors conclude
“Ingestion of a meal-like (30 g) dose of plant-derived protein can be as effective as ingesting the same amount of animal-derived protein to increase muscle protein synthesis rates in vivo in healthy, young males.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that ingesting 30 g of milk protein, 30 g of wheat protein, or a blend of 15 g wheat plus 15 g milk protein increases muscle protein synthesis rates in young, healthy males.
- They state that post-prandial muscle protein synthesis rates following the ingestion of 30 g of milk protein do not differ from rates observed after ingesting 30 g of wheat protein or a blend providing 15 g of milk plus 15 g of wheat protein in healthy, young males.
- They advise that a meal-like dose of 30 g of plant-derived protein can be as effective as the same amount of animal-derived protein for increasing muscle protein synthesis in healthy, young males, but note that more research is needed in older or clinically compromised populations.
How it was done
Plant proteins are often said to be less effective for muscle building than animal proteins. The authors wanted to see if wheat protein, or a blend of wheat and milk protein, could stimulate muscle protein synthesis as well as milk protein alone.
36 healthy, young males (average age 23) were randomly assigned to drink 30 g of milk protein, 30 g of wheat protein, or a blend of 15 g wheat plus 15 g milk protein. Blood and muscle samples were taken over 5 hours to measure muscle protein synthesis.
What it can’t tell you
- This study only looked at muscle protein synthesis over 5 hours in young, healthy men. It cannot show what happens with long-term wheat protein intake, muscle size, or strength.
- The results may not apply to older adults, sedentary people, or those with health conditions, as the authors note these groups may respond differently.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Maastricht University Medical Centre+, The Netherlands; Wageningen University & Research, The Netherlands
The paper
- Title
- No differences in muscle protein synthesis rates following ingestion of wheat protein, milk protein, and their protein blend in healthy, young males
- Type
- Randomised controlled trial
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Licence
- CC BY. Words in quotation marks are the authors’; the rest is our summary.
- Cite
- Pinckaers PJM, Kouw IWK, Hendriks FK, et al (2021). No differences in muscle protein synthesis rates following ingestion of wheat protein, milk protein, and their protein blend in healthy, young males. The British journal of nutrition. doi:10.1017/S0007114521000635Free full textPubMed 33597056DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error