Question

Many who follow these diets claim extreme health benefits (Improved body composition, increased energy, mental clarity, etc) from following these protocols.

With this information in mind, answer/discuss the following questions in your discussion post:

1. If an individual consumes twice as much protein as their body needs, what happens to the extra protein?

2. What, if any, health risks may be associated with very high protein consumption?

3. Finally, discuss the recommendations that you would give to a friend or family member who wishes to try one of these high protein diets.

Answer 1

1. If you eat excess protein than the body needs, it is converted into nitrogen which is excreted as urea through urine and some protein used for energy or stored as fat. Normal healthy people manage the excess nitrogen but those people with pre existing kidney disease can face overburden.

2.Health risk associated with high protein consumption:

-weight gain: excess protein consumed is usually e stored as fat, this can lead to weight gain over time. This happens when you consume too many calories while trying to increase protein intake.

-constipation: high protein diets are usually low in fibre. This can lead to constipation.

-bad breath: high protein diet can lead to bad breath especially when you restrict carbohydrate intake. This is because body goes into metabolic state called ketosis which produces chemicals that give unpleasant smell.

-Dehydration:certain study have proved that protein intake is related to hydration, high protein diet can lead to dehydration. This can be reduced by drinking lots of water.

-diarrhoea-protein diet which involves too many diary or processed items are low in fibres ,so it can cause diarrhoea.

Other health risk associated with high protein diet-

kidney damage

increased risk of cancer

Calcium loss

Heart disease

3. Recommendations given to the person who wishes to try high protein diet:

There are many ways to include proteins in your diet even for those people who have other dietary restrictions.

Following steps should be considered before starting a protein diet:

-find out the individual protein requirement according to the body weight

-prepare meal plan for a week

-use high quality protein

-include at least 25 to 30 grams of protein on each meals.

-include both plant and animal sources of proteins

-eat balanced diet

Foods to be included in protein diet:

-lentils, chickpea, eggs, beef, chicken breast, fish including Salmon, seeds and nuts, milk, cheese and oats.

Foods that be excluded:

-refined sugars, baked foods, soda, highly processed foods,and those foods containing artificial sweeteners.

There is no recommended meal timing for protein diet,some people will take intermittent fasting that is fasting for a long period of time like for more than 16 hours.

Drawbacks of high protein diet:

-people with kidney disease should follow protein diet only after consulting a doctor.this is because excess protein will be excreted through kidney which can damage the kidney function.

-People with diabetics may have high blood glucose level on taking high protein diet.

-high fat in diet can also cause heart disease.