A healthful, balanced diet should provide you with a steady supply of protein to keep you nourished. If your protein is low -- often caused by issues such as kidney problems or bone marrow conditions -- it causes a number of health concerns. Eating more protein might fix the issue, but the best method of remedying low protein is to treat the cause with the help of your health-care professional.
Linked Health Problems
Becoming protein deficient without an underlying health problem would require a severely limited diet. Meats, dairy products, grains and soy products contain notable levels of protein, and vegetables and fruits contain some but not as much protein. Protein deficiency is more likely a result of a health condition. Liver, kidney or celiac disease, for example, can result in low protein levels.
Being low on protein for a week or two typically does not produce notable symptoms. MayoClinic.com recommends 50 grams daily for average, healthy adults. More specifically, between 10 and 35 percent of your day's calories should be from protein. For example, if you consume 2,000 calories daily, between 200 and 700 calories should come from protein, which contains four calories per gram. Aim for at least this much to prevent protein deficiency not caused by a health condition.
Protein is essential for tissue repair and muscle building. If your protein is low, your muscles can begin to deteriorate. This contributes to weakness, which is most often the first sign of a protein deficiency. Weakness could set in within a month. Muscle cramping is also common and usually gets worse as time goes on. As the degradation of your muscles progresses, simple tasks like walking might leave you winded, while climbing stairs seems unfathomable.
Edema is a condition that causes swelling in your face and body because of fluid accumulation. It most commonly affects your hands, arms, feet, ankles and legs, according to MayoClinic.com. Skin around the swollen area often appears shiny or stretched and might retain an indentation for several seconds when pressed. The site of the swelling is often an indication of the condition causing, or being caused by, low protein. For example, protein-deficiency-induced liver problems commonly cause your abdomen to retain fluid.
While weakness and edema are common signs of low protein, many people do not exhibit symptoms. The safest way to diagnose your symptoms is to see a physician, who can use blood analysis to determine if you have a protein deficiency. If your protein is low, further testing is necessary to determine the exact cause. Note any possible symptoms that could help your physician determine what is wrong. A change in appetite, bowel functions, sleep patterns or mood, for example, could be vital to your diagnosis. Never attempt to self-treat a suspected protein deficiency.
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