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The association of dietary animal and plant protein with putative risk markers of colorectal cancer in overweight pre-diabetic individuals during a weight-reducing programme: a PREVIEW sub-study

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Abstract

Purpose

Diets with increased protein content are popular strategies for body weight regulation, but the effect of such diets for the colonic luminal environment is unclear. We aimed to investigate the associations between putative colorectal cancer-related markers and total protein intake, plant and animal proteins, and protein from red and processed meat in pre-diabetic adults (> 25 years).

Methods

Analyses were based on clinical and dietary assessments at baseline and after 1 year of intervention. Protein intake was assessed from 4-day dietary records. Putative colorectal cancer-related markers identified from 24-h faecal samples collected over three consecutive days were: concentration of short-chain fatty acids, phenols, ammonia, and pH.

Results

In total, 79 participants were included in the analyses. We found a positive association between change in total protein intake (slope: 74.72 ± 28.84 µmol per g faeces/E%, p = 0.01), including animal protein intake (slope: 87.63 ± 32.04 µmol per g faeces/E%, p = 0.009), and change in faecal ammonia concentration. For change in ammonia, there was a dose–response trend from the most negative (lowest tertile) to the most positive (highest tertile) association (p = 0.01): in the high tertile, a change in intake of red meat was positively associated with an increase in ammonia excretion (slope: 2.0 ± 0.5 µmol per g faeces/g/day, p < 0.001), whereas no such association was found in the low and medium tertile groups.

Conclusion

Increases in total and animal protein intakes were associated with higher excretion of ammonia in faeces after 1 year in overweight pre-diabetic adults undertaking a weight-loss intervention. An increase in total or relative protein intake, or in the ratio of animal to plant protein, was not associated with an increase in faeces of any of the other putative colorectal cancer risk markers.

Trial registration

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01777893.

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Abbreviations

SCFA:

Short-chain fatty acids

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Acknowledgements

This study has received grants from the EU 7th Framework Programme (FP7-KBBE-2012), grant agreement No. 312057; the New Zealand Health Research Council, grant No. 14/191, the Danish Technological Institute and The Danish Agriculture & Food Council.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen, Rolighedsvej 26, 1958, Frederiksberg C, Denmark

    G. Møller, J. R. Andersen, C. Ritz, T. M. Larsen, A. Raben & L. O. Dragsted

  2. Department of Food and Nutrition, University of Helsinki, 00014, Helsinki, Finland

    E. Jalo & M. Fogelholm

  3. School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, 2006, Australia

    J. Brand-Miller

  4. Human Nutrition Unit, School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1024, New Zealand

    M. P. Silvestre & S. D. Poppitt

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  1. G. Møller
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Contributions

LOD designed the research. GM and CR performed the statistical analyses. GM wrote the paper. JRA, LOD, AR, SDP, MPS, CR. MF, EJ, TML, and JBM contributed to manuscript draft and revision. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to G. Møller.

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Conflict of interest

JBM is president of the Glycemic Index Foundation, a non-profit food endorsement programme, manager of a GI testing service at the University of Sydney and the co-author of books about the GI foods. SDP holds the Fonterra Chair in Human Nutrition at the University of Auckland. None of the other authors declare a conflict of interest.

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Møller, G., Andersen, J.R., Jalo, E. et al. The association of dietary animal and plant protein with putative risk markers of colorectal cancer in overweight pre-diabetic individuals during a weight-reducing programme: a PREVIEW sub-study. Eur J Nutr 59, 1517–1527 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-019-02008-2

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