What happens if you don't get enough protein?

[IveGotThePower 395]

I'm just over 4 months out. Feel great. Doing well. The only thing is that I know I'm not getting enough Protein every day. Maybe half the time I do. I'm still happy with the speed at which I'm loosing weight. Anybody have issues from not taking in enough Protein other than not loosing weight fast enough?

[Christinamo7 4,042]

your body will consume it's muscle (even the vital organs) if you do not get enough Protein. So keep trying

[IveGotThePower 395]

Thank you for your post Christinamo7. Been doing a little digging since my post. Looks like the FDA recommends 50 mg per day as the general rule. However, my nutritionist says to aim for 80 grams a day, which is consistent with what I read. Have an appointment with my nutritionist Monday. Wondering what the numbers are and if a Protein intake between 50 - 80 grams half the time is really a problem. Have to wonder if we are told to aim high in hopes that we hit the lower mark or do we need more Protein than non VSG people. Any vegetarians out there who can shed a little light?

[Christinamo7 4,042]

I've noticed for myself if I am less than 70 my weight loss slows. when it is higher, I tend to loose more and feel more satiated with my food choices.

let us know what you find out.

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

Thank you for your post Christinamo7. Been doing a little digging since my post. Looks like the FDA recommends 50 mg per day as the general rule. However, my nutritionist says to aim for 80 grams a day, which is consistent with what I read. Have an appointment with my nutritionist Monday. Wondering what the numbers are and if a Protein intake between 50 - 80 grams half the time is really a problem. Have to wonder if we are told to aim high in hopes that we hit the lower mark or do we need more Protein than non VSG people. Any vegetarians out there who can shed a little light?

The way my surgeon explained it is that if protein is low, our body thinks there is a famine and food is scarce and will do everything it can to conserve/store energy. If it is getting enough protein it thinks everything is great and our metabolism keeps humming.

Also, protein is used for a lot of things, including repair. As we lose weight our body had a lot of rearranging, restructuring, repairing to do.

My analogy (you can't blame my surgeon for this one). Think of it this way:

If you have a regular house, you may need to do occasional maintenance, but if you are renovating your house, you need more labor, supplies, and energy. The protein is the supplies, the metabolism is the labor, and the fat is energy. If you don't have enough supplies (nails, bricks, etc.), then everybody gets to take the day off until more supplies are delivered (so your metabolism slows and you aren't using the energy). If you are waiting for supplies (protein) and not using the energy, then any new energy that arrives (carbs/fats) is stored. We are efficient at storing energy but our bodies do not store protein.

If we don't have enough supplies but the roof springs a leak, we may have to take supples from elsewhere (protein in our muscles, like the heart) to do an emergency repair.

That is why chronically low protein can cause heart and other serious problems: our organs (heart, lungs, skin, etc.) are made of protein. If we don't have enough protein we can damage our muscles and organs. If we have just enough for that but not enough to keep up with the repairs needed as we lose weight then our weight loss slows down or stops.

Also, if we aren't getting enough protein and our body consumes muscle then it slows our metabolism even more. We may see a change on the scale but it won't be fat loss, it will be muscle.

We need muscle to burn fat (back to my analogy, muscle is the labor force). So, instead of a work crew of contractors, we may have a skeleton crew that can do even fewer repairs.

The bottom line: don't skimp on protein. You don't get bonus points for starving your body of protein. You don't get bonus points for severely restricting protein.

[kharenzhee 39]

Inner Surfer Girl, that was awesome!

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[olliesoda 174]

ISG - that is a great analogy and very useful. I am about to start pre-op and this makes total sense. I need to make sure I have my supplies! Top top tip!

[sunflower* 1]

Thank you for your post Christinamo7. Been doing a little digging since my post. Looks like the FDA recommends 50 mg per day as the general rule. However, my nutritionist says to aim for 80 grams a day, which is consistent with what I read. Have an appointment with my nutritionist Monday. Wondering what the numbers are and if a Protein intake between 50 - 80 grams half the time is really a problem. Have to wonder if we are told to aim high in hopes that we hit the lower mark or do we need more Protein than non VSG people. Any vegetarians out there who can shed a little light?

The way my surgeon explained it is that if protein is low, our body thinks there is a famine and food is scarce and will do everything it can to conserve/store energy. If it is getting enough protein it thinks everything is great and our metabolism keeps humming.

Also, protein is used for a lot of things, including repair. As we lose weight our body had a lot of rearranging, restructuring, repairing to do.

My analogy (you can't blame my surgeon for this one). Think of it this way:

If you have a regular house, you may need to do occasional maintenance, but if you are renovating your house, you need more labor, supplies, and energy. The protein is the supplies, the metabolism is the labor, and the fat is energy. If you don't have enough supplies (nails, bricks, etc.), then everybody gets to take the day off until more supplies are delivered (so your metabolism slows and you aren't using the energy). If you are waiting for supplies (protein) and not using the energy, then any new energy that arrives (carbs/fats) is stored. We are efficient at storing energy but our bodies do not store protein.

If we don't have enough supplies but the roof springs a leak, we may have to take supples from elsewhere (protein in our muscles, like the heart) to do an emergency repair.

That is why chronically low protein can cause heart and other serious problems: our organs (heart, lungs, skin, etc.) are made of protein. If we don't have enough protein we can damage our muscles and organs. If we have just enough for that but not enough to keep up with the repairs needed as we lose weight then our weight loss slows down or stops.

Also, if we aren't getting enough protein and our body consumes muscle then it slows our metabolism even more. We may see a change on the scale but it won't be fat loss, it will be muscle.

We need muscle to burn fat (back to my analogy, muscle is the labor force). So, instead of a work crew of contractors, we may have a skeleton crew that can do even fewer repairs.

The bottom line: don't skimp on protein. You don't get bonus points for starving your body of protein. You don't get bonus points for severely restricting protein.

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[IveGotThePower 395]

Thanks Inner Surfer Girl! I like your analogy. That makes sense.

[Minimel 45]

Yeah, I'm starting to question the enormous Protein requirements we've been given . There's a bariatric surgeon in Texas that has his patients on 30 grams of plant Protein and they're having the same results as the high protein diets. The world health organization says we only need 31 grams to maintain muscle so I'm wondering what the extra 40 - 50 grams is used for. I'm

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[Jasminelums 50]

I'm 7 weeks post op and taking in about 20-30gm of Protein. Hope I'm not messing my metabolism up!

[KristenLe 5,980]

I'm 7 weeks post op and taking in about 20-30gm of Protein. Hope I'm not messing my metabolism up!

It's more about your body breaking down muscle for Protein which can cause significant health issues. Your brain needs protein to function. Supplement with shakes or powder if needed.

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[Christinamo7 4,042]

the brain uses glucose. your heart and other necessary organs are Protein and need you to be eating at least your minimum amount of Protein.

[chycky 671]

The daily recommended amounts or dietary Recs for a typical person do not apply to us. People don't normally lose 50% or so of their weight in one year or have absorption issues.

[KristenLe 5,980]

Yeah, I'm starting to question the enormous Protein requirements we've been given . There's a bariatric surgeon in Texas that has his patients on 30 grams of plant Protein and they're having the same results as the high protein diets. The world health organization says we only need 31 grams to maintain muscle so I'm wondering what the extra 40 - 50 grams is used for. I'm

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Same results...as in weight loss results? That doesn't mean they aren't damaging their organs or losing muscle, screwing up their metabolism, have abnormal labs, etc.. I think I'll stick with the thousands of other surgeons who follow national standards and evidenced based guidelines.

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