A study from the University of Geneva has highlighted the toxic risks that may result from high-protein diets, which can lead to severe neurological disorders.
High-protein diets, known as Paleolithic diets or Paleolithic diets, are common and include fruits, vegetables, lean meats, fish, eggs, nuts and seeds. Although effective for weight management and diabetes control, these diets are not without risks.
Excess protein leads to a significant increase in ammonium production, which stresses the liver. Excess ammonium can cause neurological disorders, and in severe cases may lead to coma.
Scientists at the University of Geneva in Switzerland used mice to study the effects of this diet, and the results of the study, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, indicate the need for caution when following these diets.
Lose weight to control diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disease that is on the rise. Due to a sedentary lifestyle and other diet-related causes, the damaged pancreas struggles to regulate blood sugar levels. Current treatments help control the progression of the disease, but they do not cure diabetes. Weight loss is often a key part of treatment.
“Diets rich in animal and plant proteins, known as paleo diets, can be used to stabilize type 2 diabetes and regulate weight,” explains Pierre Mischler, professor in the Department of Cell Physiology and Metabolism at the University of Geneva’s Faculty of Medicine, who led the study.
This diet was inspired by the meat-based diets of pre-agricultural times, but what is its effect on the body? Is it healthy? This is what researchers tried to find out.
Liver under pressure
Ammonia is a natural product of protein breakdown and is removed in the liver by an enzyme called glutamate dehydrogenase in the event of protein overload. Glutamate dehydrogenase is under stress. To study the effects of high-protein diets, Pierre Mischler’s team fed healthy mice and mice lacking the liver enzyme glutamate dehydrogenase a diet with protein content that mimicked a Paleolithic diet.
The scientists observed that in healthy mice, despite the increased production of ammonium due to the excess protein, the liver was able to manage this excess thanks to the action of the enzyme glutamate dehydrogenase, which removes the toxicity of ammonium before it causes damage.
“In mice lacking glutamate dehydrogenase, the liver is unable to eliminate excess toxic ammonium derived from proteins,” explains Karolina Luczkowska, a former PhD student in the Department of Cell Physiology and Metabolism at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Geneva and lead author of the study. “You don’t have to wait weeks or months, just a few days of diet change is enough to see major consequences.”
These results suggest that in cases of glutamate dehydrogenase deficiency, high-protein diets may cause harmful excess ammonium. Ammonium that is not eliminated by the liver can cause severe disorders, especially neurological ones.
“It is important to be well informed before following a high-protein diet,” Pierre Mishler concludes, according to Eurek Alert.