High-Protein Diets May Lead to Atherosclerosis

And — at least according to this paper — one amino acid is to blame.

Fat, carbohydrate, protein — the three macronutrients that give us the energy we need to live. Macros are a really convenient way to define the major thrust of the diet wars of the last 40 years. From the late 80s low-fat craze — “fat makes you fat”, to the 90s and aughts shift away from carbohydrates in general and sugar in particular, we arrive now to what seems like a fascination with protein.

High-protein diets like the paleo and Zone diets are gaining in popularity. And though the increasingly popular keto diet is really anti-carb more than pro-protein, any diet that limits one macro will inherently increase the concentrations of the others.

It sort of makes some sense that high-protein diets would be good for you. Good stuff inside your body — muscles and stuff — is made of protein and you are what you eat right? But the data doesn’t necessarily support the…