High Protein intake and Kidney Stress!?

[CLEMDOG]

I would like to bring this question to the table, for one, all of use hear eat a hell of a lot of protein everyday, and two, it has reciently become a concern of mine.

I have always heard that too much protein for extended periods of time isnt good for you and its harder for your body to eliminate excessive amounts. The protein molecule is a rather large molecule and it is harder for your kidneys to excrete. When ingesting large quantities of proteins and protein powders over extended periods of time your kidneys become stressed due to the overload of the large protein molecule. Over time this can lead to kidney stress, which can be recognized by elevated creatinine levels.

I heard this but always choosen to ignore it. Well it may have caught up with me. My BP has been elevated with a pressure in my chest the last 2 weeks, but has subsided. I went in for a stress echo and EKG and everything was just fine. I will be taking a blood test to check liver enzyme levels and will be checking Creatinine levels to check for Kidney stress. I have a feeling kidney stress has been causing my elevated BP.

What do you guys think about ingesting large amounts of protein for extended periods of time? Do you think it is really that significant, and do we need to worry about it?

And what about protein cycling? Do any of you do it, and what is your method and reasoning? I've been considering 4 weeks of my normal high protein diet, then 1 week of lower protein consumption (1grm per lbs bodyweight) or even less, with increased carb consumption to keep calories elevated.

Lets hear some responses guys, I think this is important for everyone!

 

[CLEMDOG]

Bump, lets hear some guys! I'm going to bed now.

 

[lifter64]

I've been wondering about high protein and kidneys. I have a problem with kidney stones. I'm trying to find out if higher protein diets would contribute to a quicker collection of these F'n stones. OOOHHHH they suck ass. Good question though Clem. The kidneys are nothing you wanna F with.

 

[Bigsatan13]

There have been numerous studies on this subject, and I believe it was determined that extra protien intake showed no stress on the kidneys. Infact there have also been numerous studies showing that hard training athletes need the extra protein. As far as kidney stones, they are from calcium.

 

[maxes21]

the only side effect i get from high protein r these stinking farts that will clear out people on a hole basketball court. damm these thing stink.

 

[greatshape]

I notice a raised level of "ureum" in my blood-tests.I bodyweight is about 100kg and i consume 300g proteïne daily.My experience is,when i lower proteïn intake, my ureum levels go down also.I have no raise in creatinine levels.The doctor told me the little higher ureum levels won't hurt anything.They are 60 and normal range is between 20 and 50.Good luck

 

[success]

try drinking alot more water...it will def help lower bp and help filter the kidneys
success

 

[CLEMDOG]

bump for you guys this morning.

thanks for the replies guys.

Lets hear from some of you vets who have been in the game for awhile and have been bodybuilding for awile, I'd like to hear what you guys think and if youve ever had problems in the past from the lifestyle we live.

I'm going to get my blood drawn today to see if we can determine what the hell is causing my high BP, cause it doesnt seem to want to go away.

BTW- I drink alot of water, sometimes more than 2 gallons a day.

 

[BigAndy69]

I don't think that we need a study to tell us that eating 4-5k calories a day is bad for you. I think the real concern is the colon and not the kidneys. I mean we are stuffing ourselves with large amounts of food that our bodies probably can't handle.

I know that when I use to ingest 350g of protein a day while dieting, I would get pains in my kidneys. Now I only eat 200g a day and sometimes less. My gains have never been better.

Hardcore bodybuilding is not safe, I don't think anyone can dispute that.

As for protein cycling, it worked suprisingly well for me. I lower my protein intake for 2 days at .5-.7 per lb of lb and then increase it to about 1.1.

 

[CLEMDOG]

BigAndy- as far as the protein cycling that you do, do you mean that you do 1.1grms/lb for 5days during the week, then drop to .5-.7grms/lb for 2 days on the weekends?

I have considered that myself but the only thing I think about is what about the workouts later in the week, such as my FRI and SAT workouts. If I drop my protein intake on Sat and Sun then those two workouts will be deprieved of the protein that they would require to grow. Whereas the days in the beginning of the week that I workout they will be provided with plenty of protein.