Protein ‘ can shorten life’
T O WN S V I L L E a u t h o r and gastroenterologist Dr Stephen Fairley has a dire warning for gym junkies who chug down protein shakes every day – eating too much protein will shorten your life.
His latest book Ageing: How To Kick The Habit, which will be released midyear, is a bold bid to get through to high- protein dieters and is “very different” to what a lot of doctors are telling people.
But Dr Fairley stands by his recommendation that eating a lot of animal protein “is very harmful and bad for you”.
“It’s really making a statement which is shocking to that part of society which is taking all these protein shakes – you may have bigger muscles and be stronger in the gym but you will die sooner,” Dr Fairley said.
“We need a lot less protein to stay healthy than what we consume. The problem is that wealthy countries like ours tend to eat more, because it’s tastier and we’re told it will help our muscles get bigger and stronger, help us perform better in sport and exercise and keep us leaner.
“Protein does to some extent aid with fitness, but our consumption is far too much especially when you add in protein shakes and powders to the equation – because the more protein you take in your diet the sooner diseases are likely to strike which is what the book explores.”
Dr Fairley, who has also written Death By Carbs and The Mystery Of Sustained Weight Loss, is currently editing the book, which will be published locally by Prime Print. But the book isn’t just about pulling apart the protein obsession. It also offers tips for leading a longer, healthier life.
“It’s essentially about how to stay young and avoid disease because ageing and disease are linked. If you can make certain lifestyle adjustments you will slow the rate of ageing and you are less likely to get diseases like diabetes, heart disease, stroke and dementia,” he said.
“There are evidencebased things that you can do to live to your maximum life expectancy, if you can avoid disease and doctors. I talk about your health span and the fact that if you do everything I’ve laid out, you can live 10 to 20 years longer.”
Dr Fairley’ has sold thousands of books in Townsville after building a following with fans who like his “blunt” writing style. Ageing: How To Kick The Habit will be out by mid- year.