Dietary Intake of Protein from Different Sources and Weight Regain, Changes in Body Composition and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors after Weight Loss: The DIOGenes Study.

Marleen Van Baak,Arne Astrup,Thomas Larsen,Alfredo Martinez,Teodora Handjieva-Darlenska,Wim Saris,Anthony Kafatos,Marie Kunešová,Andreas Pfeiffer,Susan Jebb

doi:10.3390/nu9121326

Abstract

An increase in dietary protein intake has been shown to improve weight loss maintenance in the DIOGenes trial. Here, we analysed whether the source of the dietary proteins influenced changes in body weight, body composition, and cardiometabolic risk factors during the weight maintenance period while following an energy-restricted diet. 489 overweight or obese participants of the DIOGenes trial from eight European countries were included. They successfully lost >8% of body weight and subsequently completed a six month weight maintenance period, in which they consumed an ad libitum diet varying in protein content and glycemic index. Dietary intake was estimated from three-day food diaries. A higher plant protein intake with a proportional decrease in animal protein intake did not affect body weight maintenance or cardiometabolic risk factors. A higher plant protein intake from non-cereal products instead of cereal products was associated with benefits for body weight maintenance and blood pressure. Substituting meat protein for protein from other animal sources increased insulin and HOMA-IR (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance). This analysis suggests that not only the amount of dietary proteins, but also the source may be important for weight and cardiometabolic risk management. However, randomized trials are needed to test the causality of these associations.

Highlights

Diet composition is known to affect health
We examined the role of different sources of dietary proteins on the change in body weight and body composition, and on the cardiometabolic risk factors during the weight maintenance phase of the Diogenes trial
We found that higher consumption of meat instead of other animal proteins, such as dairy, fish, and eggs, did not affect weight regain but was associated with a larger increase in fasting insulin and HOMA-IR during the weight maintenance phase

Summary

Introduction

Diet composition is known to affect health. Evidence from randomized clinical trials suggests that an increased dietary protein content helps to increase weight loss and limit weight regain in overweight and obese individuals [1,2], observational studies do not always support a negative association between dietary protein content and prospective weight gain [3,4]. Much less is known about the importance of the sources from which these proteins are derived for these beneficial effects. A review on the effect of proteins from different sources on body composition concluded that the evidence for differences among protein sources is currently inconclusive [5]. Two large observational studies reported that long-term weight gain was associated with a higher intake of proteins from animal sources [3,6]. Another review focusing on protein sources in relation to coronary heart disease and underlying risk factors did not reveal clear differences among protein sources [7]. A review on the role of dietary proteins in blood pressure (BP) control concluded that there may be a small beneficial effect of protein on BP, especially for plant protein [10]. A higher animal protein intake was associated with a higher risk of type 2 diabetes in the EPIC-NL (European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition–Netherlands) study, whereas no association with plant protein intake was found [11]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion