How to Find the Best Protein Supplements for Malnutrition

📌 Overview and Key Takeaways

This is a Dietitian’s guide on how to fid the best protein supplements for malnutrition.

Discover how to safely meet your nutritional needs.

Last Updated
Mar 2, 2026

Author and Medical Reviewer

Written by Jack, CNC

Jack is a National Academy of Sports Medicine Certified Nutrition Coach.

Medically reviewed by Brittany, MS, RD and Jenn, PA-C

Brittany is a Registered Dietitian with a MS in Nutrition.

Jenn is a Physician Assistant with a BA in Nutritional Sciences.

Protein Supplements for Malnutrition

Can Protein Supplements Help With Malnutrition?

Although protein supplements are often championed as a weight loss food, they can also help you put on weight.

This is because protein powders and shakes make it easy to add calories to your diet.

And gaining weight is all about eating more calories than you burn.

Keep in mind that it takes an extra 3,500 calories to gain a pound, and to gain weight at a safe rate (0.5 pound per week) you need to eat an extra 250 calories per day.

1 serving of a protein shake or powder can help you easily create this calorie surplus.

Moreover, if you are not only trying to gain weight, but also trying to build muscle, then protein supplements might be a great addition to your diet.

Muscle growth can occur only if your body has enough amino acids (the building blocks of protein).

And if you are not getting enough amino acids from foods like eggs, fish, and meat, a protein shake or powder can help you bridge the gap.

Depending on your dietary needs, however, a protein shake or powder might not be the best type of supplement to add to your diet.

This is because protein supplements are formulated to be high in protein and low in everything else, including fats, carbs, and fiber.

If you need comprehensive nutritional support (lots of nutrients and calories), a Meal Replacement is probably the better option.

That said, protein supplements, particularly protein powders, can be easily added to smoothies, oatmeal, and other recipes.

When used in this way, they have been shown to result in weight gain, improved muscle function, and even reductions in complications in both hospitalized and post-discharge patients (Ageing Res Rev, 2012).

What Is the Best Protein Supplement for Malnutrition?

Not all protein shakes and powders are created equal.

But as long as you are eating a balanced diet – getting protein from a variety of sources – the type of protein supplement you use does not matter.

Ingredients do matter, however.

In fact, the ingredients in your protein powder can contribute to conditions that impair your ability to gain weight and build muscle.

Among these most problematic ingredients are food additives and protein concentrates and isolates.

🚫 Avoid Food Additives

Regularly eating emulsifiers, thickeners, artificial sweeteners, and other ultra-processed additives can alter the composition and function of your gut microbiome (North Clin Istanb, 2020).

These shifts, known as gut dysbiosis, have been shown to diminish your ability to digest and absorb the food you eat (Best Pract Res Clin Gastroenterol, 2016).

Specifically, gut dysbiosis disrupts the symbiotic relationship between your body and the microbes living in your gut.

As a result, you lose some of your ability to break down nutrients and produce metabolites like short-chain fatty acids.

This can cause nutrient deficiencies and complications such as anemia and hypoproteinemia (low protein levels).

⚠️ Here is a list of the most common food additives in protein supplements:

• acacia fiber
• acacia gum
• acesulfame potassium
• artificial flavors
• ascorbic acid
• aspartame
• calcium carbonate
• carrageenan
• cellulose gum
• dextrin
• dicalcium phosphate
• dipotassium phosphate
• erythritol
• gellan gum
• guar gum
• gum arabic
• inulin
• locust bean gum
• maltitol
• maltodextrin
• mono- and diglycerides
• ‘natural’ flavors
• rice bran extract
• rice dextrin
• rice hulls
• rosemary extract
• silica
• silicon dioxide
• sodium alginate
• soluble corn fiber
• sorbitol
• soy lecithin
• sucralose
• sunflower lecithin
• tocopherols
• tricalcium phosphate
• xanthan gum
• xylitol
• zinc oxide

As a rule of thumb, if you cannot find it in nature or make it at home, it is probably a food additive.

🚫 Avoid Protein Concentrates and Isolates

You might also want to avoid ultra-processed protein concentrates and isolates.

Most protein supplements are made from one or both of these ultra-processed protein sources, which have been mechanically and/or chemically stripped of everything but the protein.

This includes the enzymes, fiber, and other natural digestive aids that help your gut break them down.

You therefore do not digest them in the same way that you do whole foods, which could affect your gut health.

Studies show that regularly eating protein concentrates and isolates might disrupt your gut microbiome and cause the formation of toxic byproducts in your gut (Nutrients, 2018; Mol Nutr Food Res, 2024).

You should thus look for protein supplements made from whole food protein sources like egg whites and almonds, which are easier to digest and absorb.

Order Samples to see for yourself.

Sources

1. Ageing Research Reviews (Ageing Res Rev). Systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of high protein oral nutritional supplements. 2012.
2. Northern Clinics of Istanbul (North Clin Istanb). Food additives and microbiota. 2020.
3. Best Practice & Research. Clinical Gastroenterology (Best Pract Res Clin Gastroenterol). Microbial perturbations and modulation in conditions associated with malnutrition and malabsorption. 2016.
4. Nutrients (Nutrients). Effect of a Protein Supplement on the Gut Microbiota of Endurance Athletes: A Randomized, Controlled, Double-Blind Pilot Study. 2018.
5. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research (Mol Nutr Food Res). In Vitro Fermentation of Animal and Plant Protein Isolates by the Human Gut Microbiota Under High and Low Carbohydrate Conditions. 2024.

Editorial Guidelines

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This article was written by a Registered Dietitian and reviewed by a Physician Assistant. We rely on peer-reviewed research and trusted medical sources, and regularly update our content to ensure accuracy and clarity.