Problems With a High Protein Diet

With so much talk about obesity and the health problems associated with being overweight, many people are looking to shed a few pounds. But while eating mostly protein may seem like an effective way to lose the flab, you can cause serious, and sometimes irreversible, damage to your body. Learn some of the conditions that can result from a poorly planned, high protein diet.

Lack of Fiber

The human body typically gets fiber from whole grains, like whole wheat bread and bran cereals. On a high protein diet, whole grains are eliminated from the meal, leaving the body craving fiber. When a diet lacks sufficient amounts of fiber, which for the average person would be between 25 and 35 grams a day, you could feel tired, nauseous or constipated.

High Fat Diet

Foods that are high in protein can often be chock-full of saturated fats. Those saturated fats will quickly build up in your arteries, putting you at risk for heart disease and diabetes. These foods include egg yolks, bacon, sausage, avocado and butter, among others.

Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma (NHL)

In March of 2004, Yale researchers reported that a diet high in animal proteins can increase a person's risk of developing non-Hodgkins lymphoma, or NHL. Often patients with NHL will experience swollen lymph nodes and will feel feverish. The National Cancer Institute estimates that almost 66,000 new case of NHL will be reported in 2009, with approximately 20,000 cases resulting in death.