^
A
A
A

Protein diet is dangerous to health

 
, medical expert
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
 
Fact-checked
х

All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.

We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.

If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.

20 April 2015, 09:00

Among adherents of a healthy diet, protein diets are widely distributed. At the heart of such dietary nutrition are animal proteins (beef, veal, liver, heart, fish and seafood, black and red caviar, hard cheeses, eggs, etc.), which are necessary for the body to work properly (due to a lack of protein gradually decreases the ability to repair tissues).

This diet contributes to rapid weight loss, however, according to experts, such a diet can significantly damage health.

A recent study on this topic has shown that a protein diet significantly increases the risk of premature death. Several thousand volunteers aged 50 to 65 participated in the experiment. The health of the participants was watched by doctors. As shown by the survey, with a protein diet in 75% of cases, premature death was recorded, in addition, the risk of developing a malignant tumor quadrupled. Scientists suggest that the protein diet for danger is comparable to smoking 20 cigarettes a day.

The research team has already published the results of two of its studies, which proved the harm of such a diet. According to one study, people who consumed large amounts of protein quadrupled the risk of developing diabetes or oncology. As a rule, such patients used up to 20% protein from the total caloric intake. In general, meat lovers were twice as high as those who consumed no more than 10% protein from total calories. As noted by the researchers, in food it is preferable to use vegetable protein, which is more useful for health.

Scientists have explained that the use of animal protein in large quantities affects the production of growth hormone, which is important for the metabolism of an adult, but in addition, growth hormone increases the likelihood of developing a cancerous tumor.

Protein diet is useful only to people over 65 years of age, since at this age the production of growth hormone is significantly reduced, and protein helps to increase its secretion. In the elderly, experts recommend eating about 0.8 g of animal protein per 1 kg of weight.

In another study of the Sydney Academic Group, it was found that a protein diet contributes to the deposition of fat and a decrease in appetite. In the experiment, specialists used about one hundred rodents, which were kept on various diets, as a result it was found that a large amount of protein provokes the development of diseases of the endocrine, cardiovascular system and reduces life expectancy.

According to scientists, the most dangerous is a diet in which there is a large amount of fat and a small part of the protein.

Previously, more than 40 diets were disassembled in the US mass media, which were most often chosen by average Americans. The results concluded that the most optimal and useful is the Dash food system, which is based on vegetables, fruits, cereals.

trusted-source[1], [2], [3], [4]

Translation Disclaimer: For the convenience of users of the iLive portal this article has been translated into the current language, but has not yet been verified by a native speaker who has the necessary qualifications for this. In this regard, we warn you that the translation of this article may be incorrect, may contain lexical, syntactic and grammatical errors.

You are reporting a typo in the following text:
Simply click the "Send typo report" button to complete the report. You can also include a comment.