Is a high protein diet harmful.

fitness63
fitness63 Posts: 42 Member
edited September 29 in Food and Nutrition
I have changed my diet to eat better. I always thought I was a healthy eater until I started reading FitnessRX magazine and doing research on body building. WoW! I eat a high protein and low carb diet. Low carb mainly because I have celiac disease and gluten free bread is horrible. I go way over the recommended amount for protein and fiber. You could check out my food diary as it is open. Should I be worried that this could be harmful? If so what are the effects. Thank you.

Replies

  • sarah44254
    sarah44254 Posts: 3,078 Member
    It's harmful if you do not drink much water, or if you consume more than 1g per 1lb in bodyweight. So if you are 180lbs, try not to consume more than 180g of protein that day. Too much can wreck havoc on your insides in bad ways, but too little and your muscles cry out for help! Anywhere between 60g and 130g a day is likely in a good range for you (unknown of your weight, but if it is less than 130lbs, have less protein :))
  • MarieNevada
    MarieNevada Posts: 395 Member
    your protein's fine. where are your vegetables? you should be eating a whole lot more veggies than you are (as in none). even if you eat a low carb diet you shoudl still be eating plenty of cruciferous carbs, ie veggies.
  • bjohs
    bjohs Posts: 1,225 Member
    There is a lot of information about this on the Internet, just do a Google search. Yes, there is a point when a woman can consume "too much" protein in her diet. Here is an example of one of the articles you will find: http://bit.ly/pNhPMy
  • fitness63
    fitness63 Posts: 42 Member
    your protein's fine. where are your vegetables? you should be eating a whole lot more veggies than you are (as in none). even if you eat a low carb diet you shoudl still be eating plenty of cruciferous carbs, ie veggies.

    Your right. I eat a bell pepper or a cucumber one in an while and I should really step it up. I will hit up the farmers market this Saturday! Thanks for the advise.
  • CindiJ
    CindiJ Posts: 20
    Looking at your diary, it seems you are not eating enough vegetables and relying too much on "snack" type and convenience foods. High protein diets are effective for weight loss, but you can cause havoc to your digestive system if you don't drink enough water and you still need the nutrients and fiber you get from vegetables and fruits. Also, look at your sugar consumption. A lot of packaged foods and "health" bars contain a fair amount of sugar in one form or another.
  • elizabeth_ashley44
    elizabeth_ashley44 Posts: 5
    Too much can wreck havoc on your insides in bad ways, but too little and your muscles cry out for help! Anywhere between 60g and 130g a day is likely in a good range

    Are the daily goals that myfitnesspal provides good? My goal is 45g's of protein. I currently weight 152. I try to at least come in at the goal, but I don't stress if I go over a little b/c my fitness people always encourage me to choose high-protein foods. They say to multiply the amount of protein in a food by 3, and if that number is higher than the carbs in that food, I'm doing good.
  • sarah44254
    sarah44254 Posts: 3,078 Member
    Too much can wreck havoc on your insides in bad ways, but too little and your muscles cry out for help! Anywhere between 60g and 130g a day is likely in a good range

    Are the daily goals that myfitnesspal provides good? My goal is 45g's of protein. I currently weight 152. I try to at least come in at the goal, but I don't stress if I go over a little b/c my fitness people always encourage me to choose high-protein foods. They say to multiply the amount of protein in a food by 3, and if that number is higher than the carbs in that food, I'm doing good.

    Nope, these are the goals I put together from info around the internet. MFP sets the protein goal at 15% of your daily calories, which I feel is too low. Please follow what you think is best if you disagree with what I say :smile: I really don't have any backup for my comments, just sharing what I do.
  • MarieNevada
    MarieNevada Posts: 395 Member
    the ideal ratio for fat loss is 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% good fats. if you want to eat a low carb diet, changing it to 40% carbs, 40% protein, and 20% fat is good. and get your carbs from a mix of complex carbs ie brown rice, and lots of veggies, limit fruit intake and beware of high sugar veggies like corn, carrots and peas. yams are perfect. as long as you dont go adding sugar to it. i add splenda to my yams if i want something a bit sweeter.
  • pattyproulx
    pattyproulx Posts: 603 Member
    Depends what you consider too much. Many people recommend up to 1g per lb of body weight - generally our body will not let us eat more than that unless we force it.
    If you're going much beyond that, then you could potentially run into kidney issues, from what I've read.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,990 Member
    I have changed my diet to eat better. I always thought I was a healthy eater until I started reading FitnessRX magazine and doing research on body building. WoW! I eat a high protein and low carb diet. Low carb mainly because I have celiac disease and gluten free bread is horrible. I go way over the recommended amount for protein and fiber. You could check out my food diary as it is open. Should I be worried that this could be harmful? If so what are the effects. Thank you.
    High protein diets have been around for years. Most of the drawback comes from not getting essential vitamins and minerals since most advocates aren't really fond of vegetables.
    Unless you have kidney disease or your doctor emphatically states it could be harmful to YOUR health, there really hasn't been any bad evidence against a high protein diet.
    Here's something that most people don't know................protein and fats are essential.........carbs aren't. You need carbs for better function and energy levels, but the body can live without them.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,990 Member
    It's harmful if you do not drink much water, or if you consume more than 1g per 1lb in bodyweight. So if you are 180lbs, try not to consume more than 180g of protein that day. Too much can wreck havoc on your insides in bad ways, but too little and your muscles cry out for help! Anywhere between 60g and 130g a day is likely in a good range for you (unknown of your weight, but if it is less than 130lbs, have less protein :))
    Well I'll disagree slightly. Most bodybuilders will consume 1.5 to 2.0 grams per lb of body weight to increase muscle building. Not to say that most body builders are the epitome of health (couldn't be further from the truth), but there hasn't been enough evidence to show that it wrecks you. Also it depends on your protein source.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories