By David Liu, PHD

Monday 07 16, 2012(foodconsumer.org) -- If you have been living long enough, you may know one  thing that it's easier to lose muscle than fat.  But a new study suggests that eating a soy germ protein concentrate diet may help you cut body fat weight aroung your waistline and increase muscle weight.

This is an animal study so it is only a suggestion that eating soy germ protein concentrate may do the trip in humans.

For the study, Hisahia Kataoka of of Oilseed Protein Laboratory  in Kanagawa, Japan and colleagues  fed Wistar rats three experimental diets, soy germ protein,soy protein and casein based diets for 16 weeks and then measured abdominal adipose tissue weights and hindlimb muscle weights.

The researchers found "Abdominal adipose tissue weights were significantly lower and hindlimb muscle weights were significantly higher in the rats fed soy germ protein concentrate than rats fed the casein diet."

Casein is the major protein found in milk and cheese.

In the study published in the journal Bioscience, Biotechology and Biochemistry, the soy germ protein concentrate diet consisted of 25.6% soy germ protein concentrate, 20% fat, and 17% protein and other nutrients.