High-Protein, Low-Carb Diet Promotes Strong Bone Health

A health expert at The Observer Magazine takes on the question about whether eating high amounts of protein, as many who are on a low-carb lifestyle do, is bad for your bones as many critics of livin' la vida low-carb frequently claim.

Dr. John Briffa, a noted advisor on issues of health in the UK, tackles the all-important question about whether more protein in your diet is good for your bones or if it causes your bones to lose calcium and weaken.

Inquiring minds want to know. So here's his educated answer:

Support for this theory recently came from a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Researchers examined the relationship between protein consumption and bone health in 1,000 women averaging 75 years in age. Higher protein intakes were associated with improvements in the bone density in the hip, and the quality of the bone in the heel. This study is part of a considerable body of research into protein intake and bone health. As is often the case in science, the findings of these studies are not utterly consistent. Yet most studies have found higher protein intakes to be associated with improved bone density.

I referenced this same research study last week in a blog entry entitled "Study: Low-Carb Has Metabolic Advantage Over Low-Fat Diets." It showed better weight loss for those women who ate a low-carb, high-protein diet. Dr. Briffa also points out that the higher protein contributed to better bone density as well in the study participants.

However, as positive as Dr. Briffa is about the health benefits to your bones because of more protein, he is a doctor after all with all of his preconceived notions about what is considered "healthy." Needless to say, he's not a big fan of Atkins or low-carb programs by any stretch of the imagination.

He describes the low-carb lifestyle as a diet with an "extreme carbohydrate restriction."

While the first two weeks you are "restricted" to 20 grams of carbohydrates, you quickly go up from there. I probably eat as many as 80 grams of carbs per day now that I am maintaining. I do not feel restricted in the least bit and do not consider my eating habits as "extreme." Unless, of course, you want to count just how "extreme"-ly good the foods are that I get to eat! ;-)

Furthermore, Dr. Briffa bemoans the fact that you supposedly cannot eat a lot of fruits or vegetables when you are livin' la vida low-carb which makes it "unlikely to represent a particularly healthy way to attain and maintain a healthy weight for seasons to come."

I wish I had a dollar every time I've heard this excuse. I'd be a millionaire by now! Low-carb programs do not prevent you from enjoying lots of great fruits and vegetables that your body wants and craves for healthy, nutritious nourishment. Foods such as lettuce, green beans, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, cauliflower, and much more are all acceptable on just about every phase of the low-carb lifestyle. When you are in the maintenance phase, you may enjoy just about any fruit or vegetable that you want as long as it remains within your daily allowable carb total. Be smart about it and don't go eating a bunch of bananas or raisins.

Despite his clear objection to the low-carb lifestyle, Dr. Briffa does come to its defense by stating the scare tactics of the anti-Atkins crowd claiming low-carb is bad for your bones is unfounded. But Dr. Briffa explains that research has found that protein in your diet helps your body absorb protein from your stomach which raises calcium levels in your urine and distributes calcium throughout your body if you are livin' la vida low-carb. This runs counter to the false argument so often repeated that protein sucks all the calcium out of your bones. It is a lie repeated by low-carb opponents to frighten people from trying the low-carb lifestyle for themselves.

Dr. Briffa concludes: "The evidence suggests that eating meat, fish and eggs is likely to contribute to bone health, as well as fruit and veg, which 'alkalinise' the body, offsetting any calcium-leeching effects dietary protein may have. It seems that those eating a diet rich in such primal foods are likely to feel it in their bones."

Hey, what do you know? A doctor that gets it right with his medical observations regarding low-carb. Although he would not recommend low-carb because he is under the assumption that it is nutritionally incomplete, Dr. Briffa certainly provides ample medical research as evidence that this way of eating is not unhealthy for your bones.

You can send Dr. John Briffa a question or comment by e-mailing him at john.briffa@observer.co.uk.