How much protein IS "too much"

The Body can ONLY absorb 26 grams or less of "protein" per day. Everything else is waste! I put protein in quotations because there is No such thing as protein; there are aminos and someone came up with which ones THEY believe are essential. Protein is a Myth, and the need for it in great numbers are an even Bigger myth, this is one reason for so many diseases, EXCESS "protein" actually it is Excess food products that carry these aminos that the Body can not digest to get to the aminos...such as meats and dairy. Those excess food products can not be broken down by the Body so they just sit and cause damage. Ever heard that beef can stay in the intestines for yrs...TRUE. And guess what, it is just rotting there, a cancer waiting to happen.

Credentials? Sources?

... because I don't get the context of what you are saying. I have a B.S. in Chemistry with a concentration in Biochemistry. Proteins are defined as long polypeptide chains of amino acids 50+ amino acids long, governed by many intermolecular interactions which allows the polypeptide to fold and form the fully functional protein. Without these interactions, "amino acids" that are by themselves would be useless.

The Body can ONLY absorb 26 grams or less of "protein" per day. Everything else is waste! I put protein in quotations because there is No such thing as protein; there are aminos and someone came up with which ones THEY believe are essential. Protein is a Myth, and the need for it in great numbers are an even Bigger myth, this is one reason for so many diseases, EXCESS "protein" actually it is Excess food products that carry these aminos that the Body can not digest to get to the aminos...such as meats and dairy. Those excess food products can not be broken down by the Body so they just sit and cause damage. Ever heard that beef can stay in the intestines for yrs...TRUE. And guess what, it is just rotting there, a cancer waiting to happen.

Huh? Might want to take a basic biology course or take a trip to Africa and see children suffering with kwashiorkor

"It has been observed that the human liver cannot safely metabolise much more than 285-365 g of protein per day (for an 80 kg person), and human kidneys are similarly limited in their capability to remove urea (a byproduct of protein catabolism) from the bloodstream. Exceeding that amount results in excess levels of amino acids, ammonia (hyperammonemia), and/or urea in the bloodstream, with potentially fatal consequences,[1] especially if the person switches to a high-protein diet without giving time for the levels of his or her hepatic enzymes to upregulate. Since protein only contains 4 kcal/gram, and a typical adult human requires in excess of 1900 kcal to maintain the energy balance, it is possible to exceed the safe intake of protein if one is subjected to a high-protein diet with little or no fat or carbohydrates. However, given the lack of scientific data on the effects of high-protein diets, and the observed ability of the liver to compensate over a few days for a shift in protein intake, the US Food and Nutrition Board does not set a Tolerable Upper Limit nor upper Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Range for protein.[2] Furthermore, medical sources such as UpToDate[3] do not include listings on this topic." 

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbit_starvation

^^^ this is exactly what I was going to paraphrase.

Also found this which lists WEIGHT GAIN, Reduced Liver and Brain Function, and High cholesterol:

"Your body can only use a certain amount of protein each day. If you take in too much protein, you may gain weight. Each gram of protein has 4 calories. If you take in 100 grams of protein, but your body can only use 50 grams of it, your body will store the extra 200 calories' worth of protein as fat. Doing this daily can cause you to take in 1,400 extra calories per week, resulting in a weight gain of almost 2 pounds per month." (http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/three-problems-associated-much-protein-intake-6546.html)

Not a problem if you're eating at a deficit to begin with. This very basic logic applies to calories whether the source is protein, carbs or fat. In order to consume the amounts of protein that theoretically would cause problems is nearly impossible unless you are intentionally doing so. On a good day, when I'm eating double servings of meat at every meal, having protein bars or drinks for snacks, I might get to 230 grams for the day. Since those are also the days that I might burn 1000-1500 kcal in exercise, I'm certainly not going to gain weight from those protein cals.

" The position of the International Society of Sports Nutrition is that exercising individuals need approximately 1.4 to 2.0 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight per day. The amount is dependent upon the mode and intensity of the exercise, the quality of the protein ingested, and the status of the energy and carbohydrate intake of the individual. Concerns that protein intake within this range is unhealthy are unfounded in healthy, exercising individuals. An attempt should be made to obtain protein requirements from whole foods, but supplemental protein is a safe and convenient method of ingesting high quality dietary protein.

The timing of protein intake in the time period encompassing the exercise session has several benefits including improved recovery and greater gains in fat free mass. Protein residues such as branched chain amino acids have been shown to be beneficial for the exercising individual, including increasing the rates of protein synthesis, decreasing the rate of protein degradation, and possibly aiding in recovery from exercise. In summary, exercising individuals need more dietary protein than their sedentary counterparts, which can be obtained from whole foods as well as from high quality supplemental protein sources such as whey and casein protein. "

"Within the media there has been widespread reports that high levels of protein intake puts heavy stress on the kidneys. There has been other reports indicating that high protein diets increase excretion of calcium-leading to an increased risk of osteoporosis. Both of these concerns have no scientific substantiation whatsoever. Most of the cited sources relate to studies done on animals and patients with co-exiting renal (kidney) disease. For healthy individuals-with no disease or impairment-higher levels of protein intake for exercising individuals are safe, and desired for optimal performance. "

"The RDA for healthy adults (0.8 g/kg body weight per day) was created to allow for an individual's differences in protein metabolism-since people's metabolic rate can vary due to numerous factors. That recommendation for protein intake covers that vast majority of society-approximately 97.5%- which may be adequate for non-exercising individuals. Since exercise breaks down additional foodstuffs coming from protein, carbohydrates and fats, trained individuals require more calories-especially coming from protein to accommodate recovery and muscle maintenance.
Most studies related to protein requirements use nitrogen balance assessments and amino acid tracer studies. This has one primary disadvantage for trained individuals because nitrogen balance studies may underestimate the amount of protein needed for optimal performance related to exercise. All athletes whether endurance, resistance, or any other form of training require additional protein to fuel their metabolism.

For endurance training individuals, recommended protein intakes range from of 1.0 g/kg to 1.6 g/kg per day depending on the intensity and duration of the endurance exercise, as well as the training status of the individual. Strength/power exercise is thought to increase protein requirements even more than endurance exercise, particularly during the initial stages of training and/or sharp increases in volume. Recommendations for strength/power exercise typically range from 1.6 to 2.0 g/kg/day. "

Also found this which lists WEIGHT GAIN, Reduced Liver and Brain Function, and High cholesterol:

"Your body can only use a certain amount of protein each day. If you take in too much protein, you may gain weight. Each gram of protein has 4 calories. If you take in 100 grams of protein, but your body can only use 50 grams of it, your body will store the extra 200 calories' worth of protein as fat. Doing this daily can cause you to take in 1,400 extra calories per week, resulting in a weight gain of almost 2 pounds per month." (http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/three-problems-associated-much-protein-intake-6546.html)

Only if that protein puts you above maintenance. Protein is actually the hardest macro for your body to store as fat. With fats, they can be stored as adipose tissue pretty easily, carbs are converted vis lipogenesis, protein is first broken into glucose via de novo gluconeogenesis and then converted via lipogenesis.

I wonder what our ancestors did with all that extra meat after hunting a mammoth when they realised that your body cant eat that much protein?

After passing it around to all the folks who directly helped with the hunt, their families, and everyone else in the band... what extra meat are we talking about again? Not to mention, this was ice age megafauna which implies fat galore.

The least I eat is about 150 grams of protein and the most I eat is about 250 grams...
Im doing this along with eating little carbs because my goal is to lower my bodyfat further and because my weight training is intense
This method is working for me and im seeing more muscle definition little by little:)

So in other words, it all depends what are your goals and how are your workouts as well, this is my opinion

The Body can ONLY absorb 26 grams or less of "protein" per day. Everything else is waste! I put protein in quotations because there is No such thing as protein; there are aminos and someone came up with which ones THEY believe are essential. Protein is a Myth, and the need for it in great numbers are an even Bigger myth, this is one reason for so many diseases, EXCESS "protein" actually it is Excess food products that carry these aminos that the Body can not digest to get to the aminos...such as meats and dairy. Those excess food products can not be broken down by the Body so they just sit and cause damage. Ever heard that beef can stay in the intestines for yrs...TRUE. And guess what, it is just rotting there, a cancer waiting to happen.

So much bullshhh. As a matter of fact, I would suggest you deactivate your account and never post on any ADULT/Fitness based site ever again. Anything sitting in a tract for years is due to other factors such as inadequate hydration and inadequate fiber intake. You're vilifying amino acids?????????????????????????????????????????????????????? I'm copy and pasting this crap to do a video about later. Thanks. And oh yea, ever heard of Nitrogen?

Anyways....

"high" protein intake isn't harmful to a healthy kidney or liver, given a decent hydration and electrolyte balance. Everyone wants to pick one of the three macronutrients and demonize it! There's only 3 people! Get a clue! What else is there left to eat?

And funny how civilization made it this far without cloggin up our tracts and having kidney failure throughout our pass and snuffing us out of existence. It's all the other crap we eat nowadays and the harmful ways we raise and treat our sentient sources (meat) that leads to problems. Feeding a cow corn all day and pumping it full of steroids might have some issues for you if you consume alot of that. There's no question about that.


A simple answer to this question is an analogy i like to use: If you were in the wilderness...if all hell broke loose, again, or for whatever reason you were living on your own having to hunt and gather for food....think about it...you already know the answer.

Conspiracy theories are starting to look more plausible! "make them believe they should eat low fat and low protein so they'll be more docile, have lower testosterone and less aggressive" As the saying goes, Try to rule the world on berries and twigs if you want to. I'm not an aggressive type, but I'd much rather defend my family against someone afraid of protein!

Less we forget, your cells are always replicating. What is your DNA made up of?
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Unless you're trying to be a professional body builder there's no reason to even worry about this question. Research says you would want to slowly ramp up your intake if you're going to get to a new set point. I'm sure 50 grams is doable for about anyone in a sitting.

There probably shouldn't be a person on this whole forum eating under 150 grams of protein a day. Do that, THEN distribute the rest of your carbs and fats accordingly with good hydration and good fiber, and unfortunately for mfp, you probably wouldn't need to come here too often.

And yea...to whoever had the gall to post wikipedia as a source...you made my night!

Laugh...out....loud!!!!!

You'd been better off quoting the USDA or the FDA...

On that note, I'm gonna eat some more kettle chips, take a shot of tequila, and go to bed.

and I'm just here to continually perv at your picture. sorry about that! yum.