Protein is having its dayor rather its decadein the spotlight, so what happens when you eat too much?
Protein is a hot nutrient right now.
Protein is perceived to do little harm; in fact, most worry more about not getting enough.
Photo: Shana Novak / Getty Images
But like everything else, moderation is still key.
Consistently consuming protein amounts that greatly exceed one’s needs has side effects.
Check out these8 things that can happen to your body when you eat too much protein.
The kidneys filter urea from the blood and remove it from the body as urine.
This means higher protein intake requires more water or fluid to help the kidneys do their job.
(Learn side effects of not drinking enough water.)
(Eat more of thesehigh-fiber foods to help you poop.)
Weight May Go Up or Down
Consuming adequate protein is essential when trying to lose weight.
This can work well if calorie intake isn’t exceeding needs.
But if calories exceed that, then that extra energy is stored as fatincluding calories from protein.
Increased Cancer Risk
Higher-than-needed protein intakes thatregularly consists of processed meats and higher-fat red meatscan increase your cancer risk.
Processed meats appear to pose the greatest threat.
When increasing protein intake means eating more higher-fat animal protein with saturated fat, this eating pattern increases risk.
(Try eating more of thesetop 15 foods for heart health.)
But for healthy individuals, higher protein intakes don’t appear to impact overallkidney function.
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