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Protein Intake featured article

Protein is one of nutrition's most essential and debated topics. It goes far beyond its reputation as the building block of muscle, playing a crucial role in metabolism, insulin sensitivity, and the prevention of diseases like type 2 diabetes and sarcopenia. But questions abound: How much protein is enough, and can too much, particularly from animal sources, be harmful?

Protein intake, paired with resistance training, drives muscle repair and growth, enhancing athletic performance, improving metabolic health, and promoting longevity by protecting against age-related frailty. Research suggests that higher protein intakes—ranging from 1.2 to 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight—are more beneficial than the standard RDA of 0.8 grams, with even higher amounts being optimal for body recomposition.

Despite concerns about the links between high-protein diets and health risks like cancer, heart disease, or kidney dysfunction, lifestyle factors such as physical activity...

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Dr. Andy Galpin: The Optimal Diet, Supplement, & Recovery Protocol for Peak Performance

Posted on April 22nd 2025 (28 days)

Dr. Andy Galpin & Dr. Rhonda Patrick discuss nutrition, supplement, and recovery strategies for improving exercise performance.

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8 Takeaways on Protein Intake From Rhonda Patrick

Posted on January 22nd 2025 (4 months)

In this clip, Dr. Rhonda Patrick shares practical insights on protein intake, including timing, distribution, plant vs. animal sources, and health impacts.

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This Is How Much Protein You REALLY Need | Dr. Rhonda Patrick

Posted on January 21st 2025 (4 months)

In this clip, Dr. Rhonda Patrick breaks down protein needs, timing, and myths, highlighting its role in muscle building, weight loss, and health.

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  • Protein Intake

    Protein is one of nutrition's most essential and debated topics. It goes far beyond its reputation as the building block of muscle.

News & Publications

  • Regular infrared sauna use increases blood vessel density in aged muscles by 33%, though muscle size, strength, and protein synthesis remain unchanged. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
    Aging Heat Stress Muscle Sauna Protein

    Scientists have speculated that regular heat exposure, such as that experienced in a sauna, might help aging muscles adapt in ways that preserve strength and mass. A recent study found that older adults who engaged in infrared sauna sessions regularly experienced a 33% increase in the number of small blood vessels surrounding their muscle fibers.

    Researchers asked 14 healthy older adults (65 to 85 years old) to sit in an infrared sauna (60°C, 140°F) for 45 minutes, three times weekly, for eight weeks. They collected muscle biopsies before and after the heat exposure to measure capillarization—the number of capillaries around each muscle fiber—as well as muscle size. They also tracked muscle protein synthesis using amino acid infusions and ultrasound imaging to assess how well blood flowed through muscle tissue after eating. Finally, they measured leg strength using a one-repetition maximum test.

    After eight weeks of heat therapy, participants had 31% to 33% more capillaries surrounding both type I and type II muscle fibers. However, muscle blood flow, protein synthesis rates, leg strength, and muscle size did not improve. Body weight, body composition, and walking speed also stayed the same. The only physical performance measure that improved was handgrip strength, which increased slightly. Interestingly, systolic blood pressure dropped by 2%, while diastolic pressure and resting heart rate were unchanged.

    These findings suggest that passive heat treatment can increase blood vessel density in older muscle tissue, but this change alone doesn’t improve nutrient delivery, muscle building, or strength. Heat exposure might support muscle health in other ways, but it doesn’t appear to be a replacement for resistance or aerobic exercise. Learn more about the benefits of heat exposure in Aliquot #96: Thermal Stress, Part I: The Science Behind Heat Stress and its Positive Effects on Health.

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  • Food antigens, proteins in meat and milk that trigger allergic reactions, activate immune responses that reduce the risk of small intestinal tumors. www.frontiersin.org
    Cancer Diet Immune System Allergies Protein

    Proteins in milk, meat, and other foods can trigger allergic reactions in some people. However, these proteins—called antigens—can also interact with the immune system to suppress small intestinal tumors. A recent study in mice found that food antigens help activate immune responses in the small intestine, potentially reducing the risk of tumors.

    Researchers fed mice genetically prone to developing intestinal tumors—similar to the genetic predisposition to familial adenomatous polyposis in humans—an antigen-free diet to pinpoint the role of food components in immune activation. They also depleted immune tissues in the animals' small intestines called Peyer’s patches to investigate how food antigens trigger immune cells.

    They found that food antigens activate immune cells in Peyer’s patches, suppressing small intestinal tumor formation. This immune response is crucial for maintaining a tumor-suppressive environment in the gut.

    These findings suggest that food antigens help protect against small intestinal tumors in mice by activating immune cells that promote tumor suppression, highlighting their potential as a protective factor in gut health. The microbiome plays a key role in gut health, too. Learn more in this episode featuring Dr. Eran Elinav.

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  • High-protein, low-calorie diets—whether animal or plant-based—lead to an average weight loss of ~18 pounds and improved glucose metabolism in people at risk for type 2 diabetes. dom-pubs.pericles-prod.literatumonline.com
    Diet Obesity Diabetes Muscle Protein Weight Loss

    The global obesity epidemic is driving a marked increase in the incidence of type 2 diabetes, and some experts estimate that by 2024, more than 780 million adults worldwide will develop the disease. A recent study found that high-protein, low-calorie diets promote weight loss and improve cardiometabolic markers in people at risk for type 2 diabetes.

    The study involved 117 adults with either prediabetes or type 2 diabetes and a body mass index (BMI) over 27.5—considered overweight or obese. Participants consumed an animal- or plant-based high-protein diet that provided 35% of their total calories for six months. The remainder of their calories came from fat (30%) and carbohydrates (35%).

    Participants in both groups saw similar improvements in body composition, including an average weight loss of approximately 8 kilograms (~18 pounds) and reduced visceral (abdominal) fat. Glucose metabolism indicators, such as fasting glucose and glycated hemoglobin levels, improved equally in both groups, as did lipid levels, liver enzymes, and inflammatory markers.

    These findings suggest that high-protein, low-calorie diets—whether animal- or plant-based—can improve body composition, glucose metabolism, and other cardiometabolic markers in people with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes.

    Dietary protein supports muscle hypertrophy and maintenance—critical aspects of glucose metabolism. Learn how to optimize protein intake to support muscle health when following a plant-based diet in this clip featuring Dr. Luc van Loon.

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  • Study shows that high protein does not affect kidney function across a wide variety of metrics. journals.humankinetics.com
    Muscle Protein

    “We’ve got 40 years’ worth of data with people on [protein supplementation] now. And we’re not seeing some sort of rife wave of people who used it getting various forms of cancer, etc., which you would expect. Forty years is enough to see the effect.” - Stuart Phillips, Ph.D. on high protein supplementation

    High protein intake is often believed to be harmful to kidney function, but robust evidence indicates that this concern is unfounded. A 2000 study demonstrated that athletes with high protein consumption do not have an increased risk for kidney dysfunction.

    Researchers asked bodybuilders and other athletes to keep detailed dietary records for one week after following their normal dietary patterns for one month. Then the researchers assessed the participants' kidney function via blood tests and urinalysis. They also measured their nitrogen balance – an assessment of the net balance of protein metabolism in the body drawn from estimates of nitrogen losses that occur via urine, feces, sweat, and other means.

    They found that, on average, daily protein intake was approximately 1.97 grams per kilogram of body weight among the bodybuilders and 1.35 grams per kilogram of body weight among the other athletes. Despite their high protein intake, the participants' urinary output of creatinine, urea, and albumin was normal, as were other kidney health parameters. Both the bodybuilders and the other athletes achieved nitrogen balance when their daily protein intake exceeded 1.26 grams per kilogram of body weight.

    The current recommended dietary allowance for protein intake is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight (~0.36 grams per pound) per day – about 68 grams for a 150-pound adult. Nutrition experts established this guideline several decades ago, based on evidence from nitrogen balance studies, which are often inaccurate due to problems with collection and overestimation of losses. Based on findings from more recent stable isotope studies, which more accurately assess muscle protein anabolism and catabolism, evidence suggests that eating 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight is likely optimal for muscle protein synthesis, especially as one ages. Learn more in this episode featuring Dr. Stuart Phillips.

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  • NIH clinical trial of investigational vaccine for COVID-19 begins. www.nih.gov
    Virus Protein COVID-19

    At the time of this writing, the worldwide death toll from COVID-19 has exceeded 10,000 people. As spread of the disease escalates, a phase 1 clinical trial of an investigational vaccine using an RNA vaccine has begun in Seattle, Washington.

    Conventional vaccines typically employ antigens – inactivated disease-promoting organisms or proteins produced by a virus or bacterium. Antigens mimic the infectious agent to provoke an immune response and provide immunity from future exposures.

    RNA vaccines, on the other hand, utilize a messenger RNA (mRNA) strand that codes for a disease-specific antigen. The vaccine delivers the mRNA strand to the body’s cells, where the genetic information is used to produce the antigen. Similar to the conventional vaccine-derived antigen, these cell-derived antigens drive an immune response.

    The phase 1 clinical trial involves approximately 45 healthy men and women between the ages of 18 and 55 years. The study participants will be enrolled into one of three cohorts to receive either a 25 microgram (mcg), 100 mcg, or 250 mcg dose, via intramuscular injection in their upper arm. A repeat dose will be given four weeks later. The patients will be monitored via follow-up visits after the vaccinations to gauge the vaccine’s safety and effectiveness.

    The mRNA vaccine used in this trial, known as mRNA-1273, has shown promise in animal studies, but this is the first trial to test it in humans. Enrollment has already begun for the trial. If you live in the Seattle area and would like to participate, read this information.

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  • Fish oil supplementation provides protection against fine particulate air pollution www.onlinejacc.org
    Omega-3 Glutathione Protein Dairy

    An estimated 4.2 million deaths each year, many of which are cardiovascular disease-related, are associated with exposure to air pollution. The mechanisms that drive this association include systemic inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress, hypertension, and metabolic dysfunction. Findings from a recent study suggest that supplemental omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease-related death associated with exposure to particulate air pollutants.

    Particulate matter in air pollution is a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets. It is present in fine inhalable particles, with diameters that are generally 2.5 micrograms (PM2.5) or less. The daily standard for PM2.5 in the United States is 35 micrograms per cubic millimeter per day, as long as the average annual exposure is less than 12 micrograms per cubic millimeter daily.

    Omega-3 fatty acids, especially eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which are derived from marine sources, elicit a wide array of health benefits. The American Heart Association recommends that people who have coronary heart disease consume approximately 1 gram of DHA and EPA daily in foods or supplemental form.

    The randomized, double-blind study involved 65 healthy students attending Fudan University in Shanghai, China. Participants received either a 2.5-gram EPA- and DHA-rich fish oil supplement or a placebo daily for a period of four months. The authors of the study measured PM2.5 levels throughout the study. They also collected blood samples from the participants to assess levels of 18 cardiovascular disease-related biomarkers.

    The average PM2.5 level during the study period was 38 micrograms per cubic millimeter. Whereas the participants who took the fish oil supplement had biomarker profiles that were cardioprotective, the participants who took the placebo had biomarker profiles associated with inflammation and cardiovascular disease. In particular, taking the fish oil supplement was associated with having higher levels of glutathione peroxidase (an enzyme that protects against oxidative stress) but the supplement was associated with having higher levels of C-reactive protein (a driver of inflammation).

    These findings suggest that the intake of fish oil supplements rich in EPA and DHA may provide cardiovascular protection to people living in areas of high air pollution.

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  • Immunization against flagellin provides protection against chronic inflammatory disease in mice presse.inserm.fr
    Inflammation Protein

    A common feature in many chronic inflammatory diseases is dysbiosis – alterations in the type and number of microbes that typically reside in the human gut. Some of these microbes are highly motile due to the presence of flagella, which contributes to the microbes' pathogenic qualities. A new study suggests that immunization against the protein flagellin may confer protection against some chronic inflammatory diseases.

    Flagellins are structural components of the flagella of gram-negative bacteria. Flagella provide bacteria motility, which facilitates penetration of the gut mucosa and drives the activation of pro-inflammatory responses.

    The study involved wild type mice that received weekly peritoneal injections of purified bacterial flagellin for 10 weeks. The injections elicited a robust immune response to the flagellin, manifested in elevated antibody counts that lasted approximately three months after the injections ceased. Furthermore, the gut microbial composition of the mice was changed to a more favorable makeup, and the mice were protected against mucosal penetration, experimentally-induced colitis, and the negative effects of diet-induced obesity.

    These findings suggest that repeated exposure to flagellin proteins immunizes mice against chronic diseases by reducing immune response-related inflammation.

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