Study Finds Excessive Protein Consumption Linked to Cardiovascular Disease

Research carried out by the University of Pittsburgh and published in the specialized journal Nature Metabolism shows that excess protein can harm health and indicates that diets with more than 22% protein significantly increase the risk of atherosclerosis, which can lead to cardiovascular diseases. Dan Linetzky Waitzberg, professor at the Department of Gastroenterology at the Faculty of Medicine (FM) at the University of São Paulo (USP) and at the Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolic Surgery of the Digestive System at Hospital das Clínicas (HC), explains the impacts of this excessive consumption in the body and the importance of professional monitoring in diets.

leucine amino acid

According to the expert, animal proteins are associated with an increase in low-density lipoprotein, also known as LDL cholesterol, as well as chronic inflammation and oxidative stress, which can be a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. He says that, in part, this can be explained by the high levels of saturated fat and cholesterol that are present in animal protein sources. 

Waitzberg says that research carried out at the universities of Pittsburgh and Missouri with mice showed that not only the accumulation of fat is responsible for atherosclerosis, but also the amino acid leucine, which is not synthesized by the human body and needs to be ingested in meat. “The news is that it is not just the accumulation of fat that is responsible, as there is a signaling of this amino acid leucine contributing to the activation of macrophages and they signal the formation of the atherosclerotic plaque. So, it’s a new mechanism, they found and blamed a certain amino acid as a molecular signal,” he explains.

Diets

According to the professor, the recommendation of protein diets needs to take into account the subjectivities of each individual, such as weight, age, gender and physical activity routine. He says that diets are divided into normoprotein, hyperprotein or hypoprotein, depending on how much protein the person needs to consume each day. 

“A healthy person, who practices physical activity regularly and does not have any metabolic disease, needs around 18% to 20% protein in their daily meals. What happens is that, in the United States, where the research was conducted, they consume alarming levels of protein and saturated fat, mainly due to the cultural issue of eating foods like bacon and hamburgers all the time,” he explains.

Professional support

For Dan Linetzky Waitzberg, the Brazilian diet, generally consisting of rice, beans, salad and a piece of meat, is highly balanced from a nutritional point of view. He warns, however, that the problem in the country is the opposite of what occurs in the USA, since, for socioeconomic reasons, many individuals do not have access to protein.

“So, if someone wants to go on a diet or lose weight, it is essential that they see a nutritionist so that a metabolic and genetic profile can be carried out on the person. Based on this analysis of sleep quality, stress level and family and socioeconomic conditions, it is possible to design the best diet for each individual”, he concludes.