He drank whey protein every day to lose weight, ate high-protein food without starch... and ended up with chronic renal dysfunction

Losing weight is not just about losing a few kilograms of weight. It is best to also improve your body condition to achieve the effect of gaining muscle and reducing fat. In addition to adjusting your body's health, it can also reduce the chance of gaining weight again in the future. How can you lose weight while gaining muscle and reducing fat? Nutritionists suggest that in addition to developing exercise habits, it is very important to choose the right foods in your diet! In particular, it is easy to fall into the myth of adopting a high-protein diet and not eating starch when losing weight, so eating habits must be corrected.

Do you mistakenly believe in the "high-protein diet" and not eating starch to lose weight, thinking that you can gain muscle and lose fat?

A 36-year-old Mr. Lin recently went to Beitou Health Management Hospital for a health check. He is 175 cm tall, weighs 84 kg, and has a BMI index of 27.4. He has reached the definition of "obese" for adults, and he regards "weight loss" as the primary issue in maintaining health. After consulting with a nutritionist, he shared that he had recently started to adopt the "high-protein diet" that was popular on the Internet. He significantly reduced the proportion of starch in his diet, and even stopped eating it, instead eating large amounts of meat. In order to consume more protein, he, who had no exercise habits, had an even more bizarre idea and followed the example of fitness enthusiasts who drank a glass of whey protein powder every day, thinking that this would help him "gain muscle and lose fat."

The nutritionist looked at his health check-up results and found that he already had high blood pressure and his eGFR index was far below the standard value, at only 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 (the normal eGFR is about 100-120 ml/min/1.73 m2), indicating that there was a problem with his kidney function and he had mild chronic renal dysfunction. Nutritionist Pan Fuzi from Beitou Health Management Hospital warns that if people continue to follow this diet, it may increase the burden on the kidneys, causing kidney function to continue to decline, and even lead to irreversible damage.

"I didn't realize I already had high blood pressure before the check-up, so I didn't take any medicine to control it. I didn't expect that my kidneys had problems. I also found that losing weight is not as effective as listening to other people's results. I can also follow their approach. Fortunately, I discovered it in time, otherwise I might have to go on dialysis in the future." Mr. Lin said in surprise.

Long-term low sugar intake may cause kidney burden in patients with chronic kidney disease

Nutritionist Pan Fuzi explained that Mr. Lin's way of losing weight falls into the myth of not eating starch. Good starchy foods contain sugars. When sugars enter the human body, they are converted into glucose after digestion and absorption, which is the source of energy for human cells under normal conditions. When the sugar intake is too low for a long time, most of the body's cells will not be able to directly use blood sugar as energy, causing metabolic disorders. A diet high in protein, combined with appropriate exercise, can indeed help build muscle and lose fat, but it can put a strain on the kidneys in people with chronic kidney disease. Eating too much protein can cause serious problems with kidney function.

According to data from the National Health Administration, young people are more likely to eat out, their taste is saltier, and they generally lack awareness of high blood pressure. As a result, 366,000 people aged 18 to 39 suffer from high blood pressure, of which only 130,000 are known to have high blood pressure, and nearly 240,000 are unaware of it. Many people discover that they have high blood pressure accidentally through health checks. Nutritionist Pan Fuzi reminds that in order to find an effective weight loss method that suits you, it is best to arrange a health check to understand your physical condition, then seek the help of a doctor or nutritionist, and follow professional advice to avoid blindly trying online rumors, which may not only fail to lose weight but also harm your body.