There have been a few articles published recently in relation to what has been called the protein leverage affect. It offers a simple explanation to what could be a major contributor to obesity that we were never aware of.

A Nutritional ecologist named Professor David Raubenheimer ran a collaborative story on spider monkeys and then similar experiments on humans. Professor David Raubenheimer is from Massey University, New Zeland.

The results of the experiment showed the monkeys would try and maintain a certain amount of protein within their diet. If there was not enough high protein food available they would eat larger quantities of whatever low protein, high calorie foods high in fat and high in carbs where available. Until they get enough protein from these foods. Hence the name the protein leverage affect.

It is easy to see how this could be affecting many people’s diet as they will continue to eat to maintain this minimum protein requirement. A lot of modern foods do not have as much protein in as natural organic foods compared to the amount of calories within the food. This includes sweets, cakes, fizzy drinks, some processed foods. Foods with added fat such as fried foods will also have a disproportionately high number of calories compared to the amount of protein. This is described by Professor David Raubenheimer as a diluting of the protein in the modern diet leading to consumption of highly palatable foods rich in fats and carbohydrates, which leads to over-consumption of energy.

It’s been known for a long time that protein makes us feel more full so in a way the Protein Leverage Effect is just an extension of that. We eat more if we don’t get enough protein.

How to use the Protein Leverage Affect to Your Advantage

The easiest way to implement this in to your diet to help maintain weight or help lose weight while on a diet is of course to ensure that at least 15 – 20 percent of the calories you consume are from protein. This should be split up between all meals so that you are getting the supply of protein consistently through out the day.

Remember that organic foods naturally contain more protein then processed or sugary foods.

Sources:
http://www.tewahanui.info/wordpress2/?p=2021
http://insciences.org/article.php?article_id=6419

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