Hormonal
High-protein diets (exceeding 0.8 g/kg BW) promote weight loss and fat mass reduction primarily by increasing satiety through anorexigenic hormones (GLP-1, CCK, PYY) and decreasing orexigenic hormones (ghrelin), while simultaneously increasing energy expenditure via the thermic effect of food (DIT).
To lose fat while keeping muscle, increase your protein intake to at least 0.8g per kg of body weight, ideally higher (up to 2.3g/kg for athletes). This works by making you feel fuller (via hormones like GLP-1 and CCK) and burning more calories during digestion (thermic effect). Focus on high-quality sources like whey, casein, or plant proteins, and ensure you are in a caloric deficit for weight loss.
High protein diets are increasingly popularized in lay media as a promising strategy for weight loss by providing the twin benefits of improving satiety and decreasing fat mass. Some of the potential mechanisms that account for weight loss associated with high-protein diets involve increased secretion of satiety hormones (GIP, GLP-1), reduced orexigenic hormone secretion (ghrelin), the increased thermic effect of food and protein-induced alterations in gluconeogenesis to improve glucose homeostasis.
Why this rating
The paper is a review citing multiple human studies and meta-analyses, though it acknowledges mixed results in some specific contexts.
Source
A high-protein diet for reducing body fat: mechanisms and possible caveats
Dominik Pesta et al. · Nutrition & Metabolism · 2014
DOI 10.1186/1743-7075-11-53
More from this paper
- High intake of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) combined with a high-fat (western) diet may exacerbate metabolic disease risk by interfering with fatty acid oxidation and causing mitochondrial stress.Moderate
- Excess protein intake, particularly when energy demand is low, can be converted to glucose or ketone bodies, potentially contributing to a positive energy balance and hindering weight loss.Moderate
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