A common claim about protein consumption is that if you consume too much of it, it can be harmful to your health.

That topic surfaced this week, as fitness personality Jillian Michaels wrote about it in a recent blog post regarding the keto diet.

“Protein is good for you, but we don’t need tons of it and when we consume tons of it we stress our kidney, liver, and gallbladder significantly.”

I’m here, as always, to try and provide you with the most credible and up-to-date information I can. With that, I’m here to tell you that statement is at best a half-truth, and at worst a rather irresponsible claim, for a number of reasons.

1. Current research suggests high-protein diets can be perfectly safe.
2. Depending on your goals, you might need more protein than the average person.
3. Given that we all have a different genetic makeup, it’s silly to suggest such a blanket statement would be true.
4. Some research suggests that as we age, we will actually have a higher need for protein, depending on our goals.
5. Protein quality isn’t represented in the blog post, which can play a significant role when we’re talking about overall health for any one individual.

A pretty groundbreaking study in 2016 revealed that over an entire year, a high-protein diet had no harmful effects on healthy individuals. This study was groundbreaking not only because of the subject matter, but because it lasted for an entire year — very rare in health and fitness research.

The International Society of Sports Nutrition also took a position stand on protein in 2017, and concluded, “Increasing dietary protein to levels significantly beyond current recommendations for athletic populations may result in improved body composition. Higher protein intakes (2.3-3.1 g/kg FFM) may be required to maximize muscle retention in lean, resistance-trained subjects under hypocaloric conditions.”

I think it’s safe to say at worst, we don’t have a clear answer on this topic. At best, we can point to some recent evidence that suggests healthy individuals shouldn’t worry about protein negatively impacting their health.

Now, no one recommendation can apply to everyone. While it might be frustrating to hear or read, the level of protein you should consume depends on so many variables that only you can determine what is appropriate through trial and error. And for those with existing kidney, liver or gallbladder issues, consulting with a doctor before beginning a high-protein diet is always going to be the best course of action.

Unfortunately with this stuff, you can scour the internet and get a million different answers to the same question. This causes a big-time struggle to figure out what you should and shouldn’t be doing.

What complicates things even further is the marketing stemming from the fitness industry. I went into detail about that in my article on supplements. In a nutshell, you can’t be sure of the information you’re given.

Fitness personalities are major players in sharing information, and oftentimes they don’t get it right, either. I hate to break it to you, but someone who plays a trainer on television or YouTube might not be the best source for information regarding your own personal health and wellness.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I don’t know everything. I don’t want to come off as a know-it-all out to attack everyone else’s information and opinions.

With that said, I know that many people take recommendations from companies and personalities to heart. They’ll hear about the best product on the market or the newest trend in the industry and apply it to their routine in the quest to conquer their goals.

That’s not always the best, safest, or most optimal way to go about things.

I take THAT to heart, because I want to help people.

For this specific topic, I think the myth that protein is harmful is way overblown and needs to be analyzed on a much more careful and specific person-to-person basis. Generally, I think utilizing a high-protein diet to reach your goals is relatively safe and effective.

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If you have questions or want guidance on how to put a nutrition plan together to meet your goals, contact me and we can talk about coaching options.

CG