(Press-News.org) Protein intake is more important than protein source if the goal is to gain muscle strength and mass. This is the key finding of a study that compared the effects of strength training in volunteers with a vegan or omnivorous diet, both with protein content considered adequate.
In the study, which was conducted by researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil, 38 healthy young adults, half of whom were vegans and half omnivores, were monitored for 12 weeks. In addition to performing exercises to increase muscle strength and mass, the volunteers followed either a mixed diet with both animal and plant protein, or an entirely plant-based diet, both with the recommended protein content (1.6 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight per day). At the end of three months, there was no difference between vegans and omnivores in terms of muscle strength and mass increase.
“Like any other protein in our organism, such as the proteins in our skin and hair cells, which die and are renewed, our muscles undergo synthesis and breakdown every day. Diet [protein intake] and exercise are the main protein balance regulators, favoring synthesis over breakdown,” said Hamilton Roschel, last author of the published study. Roschel is a University of São Paulo professor affiliated with both USP’s Sports and Physical Education School (EEEE) and Medical School (FM). He also heads the Applied Physiology and Nutrition Research Group jointly run by EEEE-USP and FM-USP.
Protein sources are characterized primarily on the basis of essential amino acids, especially leukin, which plays a key role in anabolic stimulation of skeletal muscles. “Animal protein has more leukin than plant protein. Leukin is an essential amino acid in the anabolic stimulus signaling process. A plant-based diet is often thought to contain less leukin and hence trigger less anabolic stimulation, potentially affecting vegans’ capacity for muscle mass gain,” Roschel said.
The study is published in Sports Medicine and resulted from the master’s research of Victoria Hevia-Larraín, with support from FAPESP.
The study innovated by including a clinical analysis of the effects of protein source quality on muscle adaptation in vegans as compared with omnivores, since most research on the topic to date has focused on the acute anabolic response of muscles to protein intake under laboratory conditions and not on muscle mass as such. “Our findings show that there is no impairment of muscle mass gain for young adult vegans if they ingest the right amount of protein. In fact, the outcome of both diets was the same in this respect,” Roschel said.
However, the researchers stress that, for the purposes of experimental control, protein intake was made the same in both diets by means of protein supplements. Omnivores and vegans were given milk serum protein isolate or soy protein respectively in accordance with individual dietary needs in order to attain the targeted protein intake.
“In clinical practice, we know foods of animal origin generally have a higher protein content,” Roschel said. “Meat, milk and eggs contain more protein per gram than rice and beans, for example. In a clinical application with plant-based foods as the sole protein source, vegans would need to ingest a large amount of food to obtain the same amount of protein. In some specific cases, this could be a major challenge.”
The protein source (mixed or plant-based diet) made no difference, provided each subject received an adequate amount of protein. “This result corroborates other data in the literature showing that a vegan diet can absolutely be complete if it is properly planned and executed,” Roschel said. “Previous studies suggest it can even be healthier than an omnivorous diet. For this to be the case, however, it requires appropriate nutritional counseling and education regarding people’s choices in restricting their intake to plant-based sources.”
Another point noted by Roschel is that the subjects were healthy young adults, and the results might be different for older people or subjects with health problems. “Aging entails a phenomenon known as anabolic resistance, meaning a suboptimal anabolic response to the stimuli provided by diet and exercise compared with young people. Optimal response is possible in older people only if their protein intake is higher than that of the average healthy youngster. So we should be cautious about generalizing our findings for the entire population.”
The article “High-protein plant-based diet versus a protein-matched omnivorous diet to support resistance training adaptations: a comparison between habitual vegans and omnivores” (doi: 10.1007/s40279-021-01434-9) by Victoria Hevia-Larraín, Bruno Gualano, Igor Longobardi, Saulo Gil, Alan L. Fernandes, Luiz A. R. Costa, Rosa M. R. Pereira, Guilherme G. Artioli, Stuart M. Phillips and Hamilton Roschel can be retrieved from: link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40279-021-01434-9.
Vegan and omnivorous diets promote equivalent muscle mass gain, study shows
Trials performed by researchers at the University of São Paulo with healthy young adults show that the right level of protein intake is the key to muscle health, regardless of protein source.
2021-05-19
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Envisioning safer cities with AI
2021-05-19
Artificial intelligence is providing new opportunities in a range of fields, from business to industrial design to entertainment. But how about civil engineering and city planning? How might machine- and deep-learning help us create safer, more sustainable, and resilient built environments?
A team of researchers from the NSF NHERI SimCenter, a computational modeling and simulation center for the natural hazards engineering community based at the University of California, Berkeley, have developed a suite of tools called BRAILS -- Building Recognition ...
Cognitive-behavioral approach to treatment of obesity yields significant results
2021-05-19
Quality of life relating to physical and mental health can be a key element in the treatment of obese adults. For this reason, interdisciplinary clinical measures including cognitive and behavioral therapy may produce more significant outcomes for these people, reducing not just weight but also symptoms of depression.
This is the main conclusion of a study conducted in Brazil by the Obesity Research Group at the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) in Santos, São Paulo state, and published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition.
Considered one of the world’s major public health problems, obesity has ...
Self-affirmation can help Black med students achieve residency goals
2021-05-19
EVANSTON, Ill. --- Self-affirmation, the practice of reflecting upon one's most important values, can aid Black medical students in reaching their residency goals. But conversely, it can lead to the perception that they are less qualified for a prestigious residency than their peers.
The pandemic has underscored the racial disparities in the quality of healthcare, a field in which Black Americans are vastly underrepresented as medical physicians.
New Northwestern University research aims to address the "leaky pipeline" preventing Black medical students from completing medical school to pursuing residencies in high-need and underrepresented areas.
Sylvia Perry, assistant professor of psychology in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences at Northwestern, is the ...
A complex link between body mass index and Alzheimer's
2021-05-19
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Though obesity in midlife is linked to an increased risk for Alzheimer's disease, new research suggests that a high body mass index later in life doesn't necessarily translate to greater chances of developing the brain disease.
In the study, researchers compared data from two groups of people who had been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment - half whose disease progressed to Alzheimer's in 24 months and half whose condition did not worsen.
The researchers zeroed in on two risk factors: body mass index (BMI) and a cluster of ...
Study solves mystery of how amyloid beta forms in brain nerve cells
2021-05-19
BOSTON - In a major breakthrough, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have discovered how amyloid beta--the neurotoxin believed to be at the root of Alzheimer's disease (AD)--forms in axons and related structures that connect neurons in the brain, where it causes the most damage. Their findings, published in Cell Reports, could serve as a guidepost for developing new therapies to prevent the onset of this devastating neurological disease.
Among his many contributions to research on AD, Rudolph Tanzi, PhD, vice chair of Neurology and co-director of the McCance Center for Brain Health at MGH, led a team ...
Rogue antibodies wreak havoc in severe COVID-19 cases
2021-05-19
The development of antibodies to the COVID-19 virus has been the great long-term hope of ending the pandemic. However, immune system turncoats are also major culprits in severe cases of COVID-19, Yale scientists report in the journal Nature.
These autoantibodies target and react with a person's tissues or organs similar to ones that cause autoimmune diseases such as lupus or rheumatoid arthritis. In COVID-19 cases they can attack healthy tissue in brain, blood vessels, platelets, liver, and the gastrointestinal tract, researchers report. The more autoantibodies detected, the greater the disease severity experienced ...
New research could help manufacturers avoid 3D-printing pitfall
2021-05-19
A research team has found that a method commonly used to skirt one of metal 3D printing's biggest problems may be far from a silver bullet.
For manufacturers, 3D printing, or additive manufacturing, provides a means of building complex-shaped parts that are more durable, lighter and more environmentally friendly than those made through traditional methods. The industry is burgeoning, with some predicting it to double in size every three years, but growth often goes hand in hand with growing pains.
Residual stress, a byproduct of the repeated heating and cooling inherent to metal printing processes, can ...
Bees interrupted
2021-05-19
During a 15-year study of wild bees visiting blueberry fields during their blooming season, researchers caught an unexpected glimpse of how extreme weather events can impact bee populations highlighting the need for more long-term studies, says a Michigan State University researcher.
"There are few bee studies in the U.S. that have sampled bees for many years at the same location," said Rufus Isaacs, a professor in the Department of Entomology within the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, "There are even fewer that use the same methods over more than a decade."
The research ...
New study explores digitally native, but technologically illiterate students
2021-05-19
The younger generation of workers, although raised with and on technology, are not as technology savvy as the older generations believe.
A new study by researchers in The University of Toledo John B. and Lillian E. Neff College of Business and Innovation published in the END ...
Tezepelumab significantly reduced asthma exacerbations: Phase 3 NAVIGATOR trial
2021-05-19
ATS 2021, New York, NY - Results from the NAVIGATOR study of tezepelumab showed that the new biologic therapy significantly reduced exacerbations requiring hospital stays and emergency department (ED) visits for adults and adolescents with severe, uncontrolled asthma, according to research presented at the ATS 2021 International Conference. NAVIGATOR (NCT03347279) is a recently completed randomized, placebo-controlled double-blind multicenter phase 3 clinical trial.
"Tezepelumab offers new therapeutic opportunities for patients who are currently ineligible for biologic treatments," said study author/investigator Arnaud Bourdin, MD, professor, Département de Pneumologie et Addictologie, PhyMedExp, University ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Cercus electric stimulation enables cockroach with trajectory control and spatial cognition training
Day-long conference addresses difficult to diagnose lung disease
First-ever cardiogenic shock academy features simulation lab
Thirty-year mystery of dissonance in the “ringing” of black holes explained
Less intensive works best for agricultural soil
Arctic rivers project receives “national champion” designation from frontiers foundation
Computational biology paves the way for new ALS tests
Study offers new hope for babies born with opioid withdrawal syndrome
UT, Volkswagen Group of America celebrate research partnership
New Medicare program could dramatically improve affordability for cancer drugs – if patients enroll
Are ‘zombie’ skin cells harmful or helpful? The answer may be in their shapes
University of Cincinnati Cancer Center presents research at AACR 2025
Head and neck, breast, lung and survivorship studies headline Dana-Farber research at AACR Annual Meeting 2025
AACR: Researchers share promising results from MD Anderson clinical trials
New research explains why our waistlines expand in middle age
Advancements in muon detection: Taishan Antineutrino Observatory's innovative top veto tracker
Chips off the old block
Microvascular decompression combined with nerve combing for atypical trigeminal neuralgia
Cutting the complexity from digital carpentry
Lung immune cell type “quietly” controls inflammation in COVID-19
Fiscal impact of expanded Medicare coverage for GLP-1 receptor agonists to treat obesity
State and sociodemographic trends in US cigarette smoking with future projections
Young adults drive historic decline in smoking
NFCR congratulates Dr. Robert C. Bast, Jr. on receiving the AACR-Daniel D. Von Hoff Award for Outstanding Contributions to Education and Training in Cancer Research
Chimpanzee stem cells offer new insights into early embryonic development
This injected protein-like polymer helps tissues heal after a heart attack
FlexTech inaugural issue launches, pioneering interdisciplinary innovation in flexible technology
In Down syndrome mice, 40Hz light and sound improve cognition, neurogenesis, connectivity
Methyl eugenol: potential to inhibit oxidative stress, address related diseases, and its toxicological effects
A vascularized multilayer chip reveals shear stress-induced angiogenesis in diverse fluid conditions
[Press-News.org] Vegan and omnivorous diets promote equivalent muscle mass gain, study showsTrials performed by researchers at the University of São Paulo with healthy young adults show that the right level of protein intake is the key to muscle health, regardless of protein source.