6 ways that your body can change after starting a diet rich in protein

Enter any grocery store and you will probably find a flow of protein -enriched products, waffles and fries cereals and desserts. While most people get enough of this essential macronutrient in their regular diet, Many are now deliberately responsible to lose weight, increase energy or develop muscles.

If you are thinking of increasing your protein intake, here is what could happen to your body.

As you start to eat, your body releases hormones – namely Ghrelin and GLP -1 – which regulate the metabolism of appetite and glucose. Research shows that protein -rich diets increase the production of these hormones, which in turn seem to reduce hunger and promote more sustainable satiety.

Dana Ellis Hunnes, RD, PHD, MPH, senior clinical dietitian at the University of California, Los Angeles Medical Center, suspects that there can be several reasons for this.

“You may chew on proteins longer, it is heavier in your stomach, or also, due to its fat content, it stays in the stomach longer (delaying gastric emptying) and can therefore keep you more full longer,” she said.

That said, how full you feel after consumption of protein can vary from person to person. “It could depend on what you eat others, the type of protein you eat, the amount of fat it contains and the way it has been prepared,” said Hunnes Health.

Compared to carbohydrates and fats, proteins require more energy to digest, absorb and metabolize, said Allison Childress, PHD, RDN, LD, CSSD, sports dietitian and associate professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at Texas Tech University.

Several studies show that many people have an increase in metabolism when starting a protein -rich diet. Over time, however, this effect decreases, and only super rich protein meals continue to reactivate metabolism. There is a warning, according to Childrade: losing weight or a lean mass will compensate for this metabolic increase.

Protein provides amino acids that directly stimulate muscle protein synthesis, the process that feeds muscle repair and growth.

After working – and for about 24 to 48 hours – your muscles become more sensitive to amino acids, explained Childress. During this period, the admission of protein labeled “the anabolic window” can facilitate muscles repair, support growth and help prevent your body from decomposing muscles for energy.

What could that look like? According to Childrade, you may feel “less pain, improve the performance of future episodes of exercise, preservation or gain in muscle mass and improved recovery”. You might also feel less emptied, sleep better and have less pain and pain, she said Health.

In the longer term, protein loading can change your body composition, but only if you also engage in vigorous resistance training, such as weightlifting, according to Christopher Gardner, PHD, Director of Nutrition Studies at Stanford Prevention Research Center. “It has been proven that you cannot just eat protein and win muscle,” he said Health.

If you are consistently, it can still take months to see significant muscle growth. “This requires decomposing the current muscles and rebuilding it, again and again,,” said Gardner.

Although most people do not feel gastrointestinal symptoms, some may find that they become constipated when they consume more protein, depending on the search.

Hunnes said that it depends largely on your individual microbiome, which is the community of microorganisms living in your intestine.

Proteins, especially when they come from animals, can change the microbiome and influence overall health. “What it ends up doing in the intestine, in terms of symptoms, can depend on the individual,” she said.

When you consume more protein than your body needs it – the upper daily limit for active people is 0.9 grams per body weight book, and even lower for those who are sedentary – there is no room to store excess. Instead, your body breaks down it. The by -products of this process – like ammonia – must be filtered and excreted by the kidneys. “For most people, the human body is very effective in this process,” said Gardner.

But for people with an altered or compromised renal function, the kidneys can become overworked, resulting in the worsening of kidney health, according to research. As such, this group is often advised to limit their protein intake.