It’s one of the big claims about the nutrient. We asked experts if there was evidence to back it up.
For Mima Mendoza, 34, protein has become the “anchor” to all of her meals. Instead of using large amounts of white rice to tie them together, she now loads up on eggs, Greek yogurt, fish and chicken.
This new focus on protein, said Mendoza, a project manager in Severna Park, Maryland, has left her feeling more satisfied and less likely to graze. And she believes her attention to protein has helped her maintain her weight after she stopped taking a weight loss drug in October.
The idea that protein is uniquely satiating and helpful for weight loss goes back decades, said Hannah Cutting-Jones, a food historian at the University of Oregon. In a 1933 article published in The Times, a high-protein diet featuring lots of lean meat was billed by a doctor as satisfying and effective for weight loss. In the 1970s, some claimed that a “revolutionary” high-protein drink made from collagen helped people lose an average of 20 to 25 pounds in a month.
Today, high-protein diets and protein supplements for weight loss are all over social media, and protein-enriched cereals, chips, waters and coffee drinks line grocery store shelves. In January, new federal dietary guidelines recommended, for the first time, that Americans should eat more protein, in part to regulate appetite and manage weight.
There is something to the idea that prioritising protein can help you control your appetite and lose some weight, said Stuart Phillips, a professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Canada. But, he added, the extent of those benefits has been “oversold” by influencers. Here’s what the research shows.
HOW PROTEIN AFFECTS APPETITE
Most of the studies looking into how protein affects appetite are limited by their size and scope, meaning they have measured how small groups of participants responded to single, high-protein meals or snacks, said Tanya Halliday, an associate professor of health and kinesiology at the University of Utah.
But when you look at the studies’ results together, they suggest a consistent pattern. In a 2020 review of 49 such studies, for instance, researchers found that participants tended to feel more satisfied and less hungry after eating protein-rich meals and snacks than they did after eating lower-protein versions.
Many of the same studies have also looked at what hormones are released from the gut after eating. High-protein meals typically prompted lower blood levels of ghrelin (a hormone that makes you feel hungry) and higher blood levels of hormones like GLP-1 (which help you feel full).
High-protein meals can also cause food to move slowly through your stomach and intestines, keeping you feeling fuller for longer, said Heather Leidy, an associate professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Texas at Austin.
But research suggests that these feelings last for only about three to four hours after eating, Dr Leidy said. And they don’t consistently translate to eating less at the next meal, or over weeks or months of following a high-protein diet, said Richard Mattes, a professor of nutrition science at Purdue University in Indiana.
Protein is just one of many factors that may affect how much you eat, Dr Mattes said. Your mood, genetics, relationship with food and food environment (the food at grocery stores, in restaurants and at work, for example) play roles, too.
That said, if prioritising protein makes you feel more satisfied, with fewer food cravings and steadier energy levels throughout the day, that’s a real benefit, said Julia Lloyd, a dietitian who specialises in weight management at Massachusetts General Hospital.
HOW PROTEIN AFFECTS WEIGHT
As to whether a high-protein diet can help you lose weight or keep it off, the evidence is mixed but suggests that there is a small benefit.
In a 2021 review of 37 clinical trials, researchers found that when people who were overweight or obese followed higher-protein diets for an average of eight months, they lost about 3.5 more pounds (1.58kg) than when they followed lower-protein diets. And in a 2019 review of studies on overweight or obese adults who had recently lost weight, researchers found that following higher-protein diets for between three and 12 months resulted in slightly less weight regain compared with lower-protein diets.
That may be, at least in part, because digesting protein burns slightly more calories than digesting carbohydrates or fats, Dr Halliday said.
Following a higher protein diet during weight loss may also help you lose weight in a healthier way – shedding a little more fat and less lean mass, which includes muscle, Dr Phillips said.
Prioritising protein may nudge you toward a healthier weight, but you still need to pay attention to calories, Dr Phillips said, adding that the best way to conserve your muscle during weight loss is to do resistance training, like lifting weights.
Source: https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/wellness/protein-weight-loss-benefits-578246
