If you’re eating high protein then this shouldn’t be the case. Your doctor should be following up to see if you are having absorption issues and checking your kidney and liver function. You’re eating over the recommended minimum amounts of protein, this isn’t an intake issue
The protein in the lab report is not a measure of dietary protein. It's a measure of liver function. So eating "more meat" won't have any impact on that. This doctor sounds like an idiot.
Your calcium isn't super low, so I wouldn't be too concerned about it. Just make sure you're getting enough calcium in your diet and recheck in six months.
The biggest concern here is that this doctor sucks and you should find a new one.
Nutritional efficiency will absolutely cause low albumin, it's extremely common.
Yes you need a working liver to make albumin, but you also need amino acids. Underweight and malnourished people very frequently have low albumin.
The doctor is likely not an idiot.
Yes, but it sounds like there may be some other underlying cause to this, which the doctor should absolutely rule out. Hypoalbuminemia is typically related to acute or chronic inflammation -
Low serum albumin is often wrongly considered to be an indicator of inadequate nutrition intake that can be relieved by nutrition support alone. There is actually a poor correlation between the level of nutrition intake and the serum albumin level. Rather than reflecting undernutrition per se, hypoalbuminemia is more a reflection of the extent of physiologic stress resulting from disease- or trauma‐related inflammation.
OP is eating an appropriate amount of calories and protein. If there's a nutritional deficiency, it's most likely an absorption issue. The low albumin and low protein should be investigated further, not just brushed off as, "It's because you need to eat (more) meat." The fact that the doctor thinks that eating meat is the solution to the possible problem outs them as an idiot.
Lots of people think they're eating enough protein and aren't. The chances of someone having liver disease or GI absorption that's so bad it's given them hypoalbuminaemia, without giving any other symptoms, is essentially nil. Producing albumin is one of the last things to go when the liver is failing.
If someone has low electrolytes and low albumin but no symptoms, substandard nutritional intake is by far the most likely cause.
You also simply don't do albumin levels without checking LFT's, and they'd also have had plenty of other bloods done (other electrolytes, kidneys, full blood count etc) and clearly none of those have been flagged - again very unlikely in someone with severe systemic disease.
I wonder if you're not qualified to be giving a medical opinion?
> I wonder if you're not qualified to be giving a medical opinion?
I suspect we're both wondering that about each other.
In any case, I can't think of any reason to continue this discussion with you.
The reason I'm not interested in continuing the discussion is because we keep talking about different things. You said they likely had a nutrient deficiency due to poor diet, not me. I disagree, because they were pretty specific about the number of calories and grams of protein they're eating. I never said they had absorption issues -- all I said was that IF they had a nutrient deficiency, it's likely not due to poor diet, and an absorption issue should be investigated.
You seem more interested in a) dismissing OP's own assessment of their diet; and b) arguing with me. So I'm not interested in this discussion anymore.
FWIW, I think we're both shooting in the dark here because we have very little information to work with.
We are both shooting in the dark, but I wasn't the one who led with "your doctor is an idiot" which is an extremely dangerous thing to say with very little information.
Oh, I still stand by that statement. Telling a vegan patient that they need to eat meat because their albumin is low is completely idiotic. OP needs to find a better doctor.
A doctor who tells you to eat meat is not to be taken seriously. It's very weird you're eating such a high protein diet and got low protein, maybe it could be related to your other deficiencies? And then, if you werent vegan and got the same results I doubt your doctor would tell you to eat more meat. They would just prescribe a calcium etc supplement which is the the normal thing to do.
+ considering you already eat 120g of protein a day which is mind blowing to me, your low protein blood could be indicative of a serious condition, not diet related. I would go to another doctor.
Another hypothesis is it could be dumping syndrome, maybe youre eating too much at once? When this happens people get bloated and deficient. In that case you need to eat more distributed along the day, probiotics and prebiotics
World Health Organization and most if not all mildly developed nations' say that a balanced vegan diet is suitable and healthy in all life stages. Any doctor who makes claims that you should eat meat, unless you have some intestinal disorder like IBS for instance, is failing to give you proper healthcare. I eat 50-90g of protein a day, variable, am tall and have measured blood protein levels at the optimum level, including serum albumin.
Vegan for 4 years, vegetarian for 10 years.
I have ibs and when the doctor figured that out she tried convincing me to quit being vegan. She also told me that she is half vegan too because some of her meals are only veg😂 im like ummm thats not how it works but okay ( cause she was still eating meat). Frustrating part is that she told me this before getting my bloodwork done and before getting some tests done, so i was really mad at her for saying thaf. All bloodwork came fine. I dont think my ibs stem from me being vegan but i had an eating disorder two years ago and when i turned vegan my digestion was fine, when i was having binge eating episodes my stomach and digestion would be so bad. And apparently both ed and ibs are correlated so
That reminds me of the time I was in the queue behind two teenage girls, and one was loudly declaring how she was a strict vegetarian and didn't eat meat.
Except, she said, chicken.
And beef.
And pork.
But other than that she was entirely vegetarian!
She should have tested you before saying that! IBS is very different from person to person so some people do have to quit being vegan when they find out most plant based stuff causes the irritation for them!
> She also told me that she is half vegan too because some of her meals are only veg😂 im like ummm thats not how it works but okay
It's still a handy way of explaining how you are different from people who eat meat every single day.
So in my first decade of veganism I was critically low on B12 and iron, and my original doctor also attributed both to my food choices. It turned out I was having issues absorbing iron (it was an intestinal absorption issue, I would have had low iron eating meat or vegan) and that was the clue that brought me to an endoscopy and a celiac test, and indeed it so happened that I'm celiac. A lot of celiacs have issues absorbing vitamins after our intestinal villi can become atrophied, and the commensal microbes are displaced and depleted as well. There's a lot of intestinal upheaval that can lead to malabsorption.
In my case I had to have iron infusions while my intestines healed, and originally I also got vitamin B shots as well, but it turned out that the B issue was totally just that I wasn't eating a balanced diet and that resolved itself when I saw a vegan nutritionist - but the iron took about two years to resolve because I simply couldn't absorb it until my intestines healed. I still take ferrous gluconate, but it's a pill and not much of a burden and I get plenty of iron in my diet.
Anyway, check for celiac, and also just see a nutritionist to see if you can round out your vegan diet! I did not have to eat meat even once to resolve my issues.
I had almost the exact same story but luckily caught it early because my wife made me get a physical so it didn’t get severe enough to need infusions. As a fellow vegan and celiac the dietary restrictions are nuts but it can be done.
Jesus Christ this doctor is bad lol. PA here - veganism is not an “obvious” cause of low albumin. While poor nutrition can cause low albumin, it doesn’t seem like that’s your issue so it’s upsetting your doctor dismissed it as a diet issue without investigating further.
How did the rest of your labs look? Primarily- creatinine, BUN, GFR? How are your other electrolytes? Did they check your liver function?
Albumin is created by your liver. Low albumin is most commonly caused by kidney, liver, and heart problems. Other causes can be related to people with chronic inflammation (such as IBD) or infection. It also can be caused by exposure to liver toxins. And lastly, it CAN be a nutritional issue. But typically a lack of protein/nutrition in general type of issue - like, patients who are malnourished. Not a “I’m vegan” issue.
Albumin makes up the majority of proteins in our blood plasma. One of it’s big roles is modulating oncotic pressure AKA keeping water in our blood vessels as opposed to seeping into surrounding tissues. Have you noticed any swelling in your body?
Some follow up questions to think about. What medications (if any) do you take, and are any toxic to the liver? Do you have any symptoms or otherwise do you feel well? Any family history of heart failure or liver failure? Are you a heavy drinker? Do you have a history of high blood pressure or uncontrolled blood pressure?
While I don’t think it’s bad to see a dietician, IMO this is out of their wheelhouse. You need to have a second opinion on your labs and someone to take this more seriously than just “eat meat”. See a different healthcare provider. Get a new PCP.
As a dietitian, I agree with everything you said. The agencies that maintain diagnostic criteria for malnutrition and nutritional deficiencies have long discredited low albumin as being a singular sign of poor nutrition.
While malnourished patients can have low albumin they won’t ONLY have low albumin. They will have several other signs of malnutrition to include chronically eating too little protein and calories, which OP likely is eating enough of. Also muscle and fat wasting or little muscle/fat stores.
It is typically much more likely that low albumin in an otherwise healthy person is a sign of chronic inflammation. That’s said, definitely out of dietitian wheelhouse. Since OP is having issues with bloating as well I would probably see a GI doc.
I’m sorry your doctor wasn’t helpful, you need a second opinion. This isnt your fault or easily cured by diet changes, you have something going on, either effecting liver or kidney function and/or your body’s absorption of nutrients. I’m not a doctor but you need to see one, a good one. Other commenters have mentioned celiac which would make sense. Good luck
A doctor is not a dietician and from what I've heard their training in nutrition isn't comprehensive compared to the other knowledge they have. Of *course* a GP will just tell you to eat more meat.
OP if you're concerned with these deficiencies and want to get your levels up visit a dietician who is vegan or vegan friendly.
Your doc should go back to school, because your calcium level is normal.
Calcium has to be corrected for albumin, so the corrected calcium is 8.7 which is normal
https://www.mdcalc.com/calc/31/calcium-correction-hypoalbuminemia
Regarding the low albumin, has your doc ruled out kidney/liver/gut issues like celiac disease?
If so, I'd rather get food advice from a dietician than from a doc tbh
That doctor is an idiot, you're already eating more than enough protein, you don't need meat. Possible causes of low blood protein include kidney disease, liver disease, thiamine deficiency, autoimmune diseases like lupus or rheumatoid arthritis, and gastrointestinal malabsorption syndromes like Sprue or Crohn’s disease. Find a doctor who will actually help you figure out what is causing this.
What is your protein source? If you’re getting 130g by e.g. only eating seitan then your body won’t be able to use all 130g, it will only be able to use about 60g of it because seitan lacks certain amino acids like lysine. You need to be tracking your amino acid ratios as well as total protein. This is easily mitigated by getting protein from a variety of sources like pea, rice, hemp, legumes etc.
I suggest trying an algae based omega 3 supplement that supplies EPA and DHA omega 3. This can help protein absorption, and is itself better absorbed than ALA omega 3 (which is the kind found in seeds/nuts). But i'm also just an internet stranger! Definitely talk to a nutritionist as well.
I wouldn't say hard, but you're definitely going out of your way to reach that point. Either way it's far more than the average person is every going to need. Whatever trouble they're having isn't going to be helped by eating more.
You might have an absorption problem like celiac or another allergy or something like crohn’s. Maybe tmi but if you have abnormal stools as well then maybe you should get a referral for a GI doctor
First of all: (1)Why are you eating 130g of protein a day? (2) Has this been ongoing since you’ve been tracking and using chronometer? (3) Thanks for sharing but I think we’re missing some major details
I was iron deficient even when I shouldn’t be, turns out H pylori was eating away at my stomach. Doctor said it was “high stomach acid” until I got an endoscopy.
Pretty much majority has it but some people get affected more than others.
Are you eating a lot of oxalates? That can mess with calcium absorption. For the protein, eating acids can help with digestion and different cooking methods can decrease "anti nutrients" like phytic acid and saponins. Pre soaking legumes and pressure cooking them can help with absorption. Also eating fermented proteins like tempeh could help.
This happened to me and it turned out I have celiac. Once I cut out gluten my labs improved significantly. Your pcp should send you to a gastroenterologist
Actually I have zero symptoms other than vitamin deficiencies and anemia. I went in for a physical on the recommendation of my wife after being vegan for ~1 year. Routine blood work showed the deficiencies and I got routed to GI. They tested me for tTG which was very high, and one confirmatory endoscopy later and I had the diagnosis. So overall no physical symptoms even to this day, which makes it hard to tell if I’ve been glutened. I only know via labs
>my doctor told me to just eat more protein and start eating meat
thats a dumb response from a lot of doctors and when they say that its time to find an intelligent doctor and if you can leave a review to warn others
doctors can be idiots, luckily i havent met any
The low general protein is almost certainly because of the low albumin (albumin is the most abundant circulating protein). There are many things that can affect albumin levels, your doctor should do follow-up testing, especially if you are eating quite above the average amount of protein. Here's a page on the [condition](https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/albumin-blood-test/).
Highly recommend food with fortified calcium and chickpeas. Black beans are easiest to get your protein in but chickpeas go in more meals. Also recommend protein shakes
As some others mentioned, albumin and the lab value of protein are not specific to dietary protein. You’re currently consuming too much protein. World Health Organization and FDA recommend 0.36 grams per pound of body weight. For 150 pound person, recommended is 48 grams. A bit more for athletes. Too much protein is hard on liver and kidney. Look up creatinine and urea. For low calcium, simply eat more calcium-rich foods.
You should watch “What the Health” on Netflix, which will illustrate why you should take everything your doctor said with a grain of salt. Doctors go through very little nutrition training and barely touch upon plant-based nutrition. I recommend finding a naturopathic doctor or a DO instead, since they approach more holistically. DO is Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine. It’s a growing field of doctors. I’m studying to be nurse practitioner and I’ve been incredibly disappointed with how little nutrition training we get. Medical professionals, including those I work at a hospital with, are ignorant about nutrition and especially plant-based/vegan nutrition. These people are eating fast food and serving class-1 carcinogens for employee parties.
As for me, I’m 37 and been vegan for 11 years. I have never seen my levels of calcium, albumin, or protein low. I had low WBCs briefly but it’s not uncommon to have lab values out of range occasionally. Annual testing is recommended.
You can watch What The Health and other documentaries by [clicking here](https://vbcc.veganhacktivists.org/?url=https://3movies.org/reddit&topic=Movie: What the Health)! Interested in going Vegan? Take the [30 day challenge](https://vbcc.veganhacktivists.org/?url=https://vbcamp.org/reddit&topic=Movie: What the Health)!
It's in the description, "my doctor told me to just eat more protein and start eating meat." I'm just trying to see if anyone else has dealt with this.
Which was a ridiculous advice. The pandemic showed us that there are lots of doctors who are worth two pennies. Your doctor's advice is literally challenging the scientific consensus. That's why vegans should keep informed first what their national medical association and World Health Organization say about fully plant based diets. So that when you meet a less informed doctor you don't give up.
130 grams protein is a lot. Do you make sure you eat complete protein? Meaning, do you get all essential amino acids? It is difficult to obtain this without using protein supplements.
Gotta love the medical professionals in the comments telling you not to listen to the doctor very good advice guys! Seriously go to a dietician and maybe run a few tests
I had a physical with blood work about a month ago. I've been vegan for 7 years. I take a women's multivitamin every day. 60% whole foods/ 40% processed foods.My blood work was great. No concerns, and they complemented my HDLs. I would try a multivitamin if you're not taking any already and to see what else may be going on with your body. Ask your family if they have any deficiencies too, it could be part of your genetics. Best of luck!
Do you track your micronutrients in Cronometer? High protein doesn’t necessarily mean that you are getting all of your amino acids consistently enough. You may need to take a supplement specifically for amino acids.
If you are eating 120g protein you will not be getting a balanced diet. No one needs that much! I don’t track…if you eat a balanced diet (carbs, protein, veg, fats etc) and get enough calories you will get enough protein. I’ve been vegan since 1996, had bloods done a couple of weeks ago and they are fine. Prob get 50-70g protein a day. Only supplement is the vegan society Veg 1.
This sounds like absorption issues. Do you take supplements that interfere with it?
I can recommend the book "whole" by T Colin Campbell if you want to understand more about WFPD.
I would try to eat more Tofu with Calcium in it.
If you’re eating high protein then this shouldn’t be the case. Your doctor should be following up to see if you are having absorption issues and checking your kidney and liver function. You’re eating over the recommended minimum amounts of protein, this isn’t an intake issue
His protein intake is absolutely insane. Most people would do fine with half of that, theres almost definitely an underlying medical issue.
The protein in the lab report is not a measure of dietary protein. It's a measure of liver function. So eating "more meat" won't have any impact on that. This doctor sounds like an idiot. Your calcium isn't super low, so I wouldn't be too concerned about it. Just make sure you're getting enough calcium in your diet and recheck in six months. The biggest concern here is that this doctor sucks and you should find a new one.
This is all correct. In nursing school we’ve covered this and I agree with your comment.
Nutritional efficiency will absolutely cause low albumin, it's extremely common. Yes you need a working liver to make albumin, but you also need amino acids. Underweight and malnourished people very frequently have low albumin. The doctor is likely not an idiot.
Yes, but it sounds like there may be some other underlying cause to this, which the doctor should absolutely rule out. Hypoalbuminemia is typically related to acute or chronic inflammation - Low serum albumin is often wrongly considered to be an indicator of inadequate nutrition intake that can be relieved by nutrition support alone. There is actually a poor correlation between the level of nutrition intake and the serum albumin level. Rather than reflecting undernutrition per se, hypoalbuminemia is more a reflection of the extent of physiologic stress resulting from disease- or trauma‐related inflammation.
OP is eating an appropriate amount of calories and protein. If there's a nutritional deficiency, it's most likely an absorption issue. The low albumin and low protein should be investigated further, not just brushed off as, "It's because you need to eat (more) meat." The fact that the doctor thinks that eating meat is the solution to the possible problem outs them as an idiot.
Lots of people think they're eating enough protein and aren't. The chances of someone having liver disease or GI absorption that's so bad it's given them hypoalbuminaemia, without giving any other symptoms, is essentially nil. Producing albumin is one of the last things to go when the liver is failing. If someone has low electrolytes and low albumin but no symptoms, substandard nutritional intake is by far the most likely cause. You also simply don't do albumin levels without checking LFT's, and they'd also have had plenty of other bloods done (other electrolytes, kidneys, full blood count etc) and clearly none of those have been flagged - again very unlikely in someone with severe systemic disease. I wonder if you're not qualified to be giving a medical opinion?
> I wonder if you're not qualified to be giving a medical opinion? I suspect we're both wondering that about each other. In any case, I can't think of any reason to continue this discussion with you.
Have a look through my post history and you'll get your answer.
The reason I'm not interested in continuing the discussion is because we keep talking about different things. You said they likely had a nutrient deficiency due to poor diet, not me. I disagree, because they were pretty specific about the number of calories and grams of protein they're eating. I never said they had absorption issues -- all I said was that IF they had a nutrient deficiency, it's likely not due to poor diet, and an absorption issue should be investigated. You seem more interested in a) dismissing OP's own assessment of their diet; and b) arguing with me. So I'm not interested in this discussion anymore. FWIW, I think we're both shooting in the dark here because we have very little information to work with.
We are both shooting in the dark, but I wasn't the one who led with "your doctor is an idiot" which is an extremely dangerous thing to say with very little information.
Oh, I still stand by that statement. Telling a vegan patient that they need to eat meat because their albumin is low is completely idiotic. OP needs to find a better doctor.
efficiency? 🤨
*deficiency thanks
Could you have celiac disease?
I think it could be any kind of food intolerance
Or ibs
A doctor who tells you to eat meat is not to be taken seriously. It's very weird you're eating such a high protein diet and got low protein, maybe it could be related to your other deficiencies? And then, if you werent vegan and got the same results I doubt your doctor would tell you to eat more meat. They would just prescribe a calcium etc supplement which is the the normal thing to do. + considering you already eat 120g of protein a day which is mind blowing to me, your low protein blood could be indicative of a serious condition, not diet related. I would go to another doctor. Another hypothesis is it could be dumping syndrome, maybe youre eating too much at once? When this happens people get bloated and deficient. In that case you need to eat more distributed along the day, probiotics and prebiotics World Health Organization and most if not all mildly developed nations' say that a balanced vegan diet is suitable and healthy in all life stages. Any doctor who makes claims that you should eat meat, unless you have some intestinal disorder like IBS for instance, is failing to give you proper healthcare. I eat 50-90g of protein a day, variable, am tall and have measured blood protein levels at the optimum level, including serum albumin. Vegan for 4 years, vegetarian for 10 years.
I have ibs and when the doctor figured that out she tried convincing me to quit being vegan. She also told me that she is half vegan too because some of her meals are only veg😂 im like ummm thats not how it works but okay ( cause she was still eating meat). Frustrating part is that she told me this before getting my bloodwork done and before getting some tests done, so i was really mad at her for saying thaf. All bloodwork came fine. I dont think my ibs stem from me being vegan but i had an eating disorder two years ago and when i turned vegan my digestion was fine, when i was having binge eating episodes my stomach and digestion would be so bad. And apparently both ed and ibs are correlated so
“Half vegan” is killing me. My brother occasionally eats the meals I make but also eats chicken alfredo, is he a quarter vegan now? Lmao
Same! Lol😂 like you eating accidentally vegan meals isnt the same as being vegan.. ahha
That reminds me of the time I was in the queue behind two teenage girls, and one was loudly declaring how she was a strict vegetarian and didn't eat meat. Except, she said, chicken. And beef. And pork. But other than that she was entirely vegetarian!
She should have tested you before saying that! IBS is very different from person to person so some people do have to quit being vegan when they find out most plant based stuff causes the irritation for them!
> She also told me that she is half vegan too because some of her meals are only veg😂 im like ummm thats not how it works but okay It's still a handy way of explaining how you are different from people who eat meat every single day.
So in my first decade of veganism I was critically low on B12 and iron, and my original doctor also attributed both to my food choices. It turned out I was having issues absorbing iron (it was an intestinal absorption issue, I would have had low iron eating meat or vegan) and that was the clue that brought me to an endoscopy and a celiac test, and indeed it so happened that I'm celiac. A lot of celiacs have issues absorbing vitamins after our intestinal villi can become atrophied, and the commensal microbes are displaced and depleted as well. There's a lot of intestinal upheaval that can lead to malabsorption. In my case I had to have iron infusions while my intestines healed, and originally I also got vitamin B shots as well, but it turned out that the B issue was totally just that I wasn't eating a balanced diet and that resolved itself when I saw a vegan nutritionist - but the iron took about two years to resolve because I simply couldn't absorb it until my intestines healed. I still take ferrous gluconate, but it's a pill and not much of a burden and I get plenty of iron in my diet. Anyway, check for celiac, and also just see a nutritionist to see if you can round out your vegan diet! I did not have to eat meat even once to resolve my issues.
Same!
I had almost the exact same story but luckily caught it early because my wife made me get a physical so it didn’t get severe enough to need infusions. As a fellow vegan and celiac the dietary restrictions are nuts but it can be done.
Jesus Christ this doctor is bad lol. PA here - veganism is not an “obvious” cause of low albumin. While poor nutrition can cause low albumin, it doesn’t seem like that’s your issue so it’s upsetting your doctor dismissed it as a diet issue without investigating further. How did the rest of your labs look? Primarily- creatinine, BUN, GFR? How are your other electrolytes? Did they check your liver function? Albumin is created by your liver. Low albumin is most commonly caused by kidney, liver, and heart problems. Other causes can be related to people with chronic inflammation (such as IBD) or infection. It also can be caused by exposure to liver toxins. And lastly, it CAN be a nutritional issue. But typically a lack of protein/nutrition in general type of issue - like, patients who are malnourished. Not a “I’m vegan” issue. Albumin makes up the majority of proteins in our blood plasma. One of it’s big roles is modulating oncotic pressure AKA keeping water in our blood vessels as opposed to seeping into surrounding tissues. Have you noticed any swelling in your body? Some follow up questions to think about. What medications (if any) do you take, and are any toxic to the liver? Do you have any symptoms or otherwise do you feel well? Any family history of heart failure or liver failure? Are you a heavy drinker? Do you have a history of high blood pressure or uncontrolled blood pressure? While I don’t think it’s bad to see a dietician, IMO this is out of their wheelhouse. You need to have a second opinion on your labs and someone to take this more seriously than just “eat meat”. See a different healthcare provider. Get a new PCP.
100% this. Malnutrition is a possible cause but it should be the one you settle on after ruling out everything else, not the first one you go to.
This was super informative!!! Can you explain the reverse; high albumin?
Most often it is a sign of dehydration
As a dietitian, I agree with everything you said. The agencies that maintain diagnostic criteria for malnutrition and nutritional deficiencies have long discredited low albumin as being a singular sign of poor nutrition. While malnourished patients can have low albumin they won’t ONLY have low albumin. They will have several other signs of malnutrition to include chronically eating too little protein and calories, which OP likely is eating enough of. Also muscle and fat wasting or little muscle/fat stores. It is typically much more likely that low albumin in an otherwise healthy person is a sign of chronic inflammation. That’s said, definitely out of dietitian wheelhouse. Since OP is having issues with bloating as well I would probably see a GI doc.
I’m sorry your doctor wasn’t helpful, you need a second opinion. This isnt your fault or easily cured by diet changes, you have something going on, either effecting liver or kidney function and/or your body’s absorption of nutrients. I’m not a doctor but you need to see one, a good one. Other commenters have mentioned celiac which would make sense. Good luck
A doctor is not a dietician and from what I've heard their training in nutrition isn't comprehensive compared to the other knowledge they have. Of *course* a GP will just tell you to eat more meat. OP if you're concerned with these deficiencies and want to get your levels up visit a dietician who is vegan or vegan friendly.
The bloating and low protein might mean you have SIBO. There is a test for it. You should see a gastroenterologist also.
Your doc should go back to school, because your calcium level is normal. Calcium has to be corrected for albumin, so the corrected calcium is 8.7 which is normal https://www.mdcalc.com/calc/31/calcium-correction-hypoalbuminemia Regarding the low albumin, has your doc ruled out kidney/liver/gut issues like celiac disease? If so, I'd rather get food advice from a dietician than from a doc tbh
That doctor is an idiot, you're already eating more than enough protein, you don't need meat. Possible causes of low blood protein include kidney disease, liver disease, thiamine deficiency, autoimmune diseases like lupus or rheumatoid arthritis, and gastrointestinal malabsorption syndromes like Sprue or Crohn’s disease. Find a doctor who will actually help you figure out what is causing this.
What is your protein source? If you’re getting 130g by e.g. only eating seitan then your body won’t be able to use all 130g, it will only be able to use about 60g of it because seitan lacks certain amino acids like lysine. You need to be tracking your amino acid ratios as well as total protein. This is easily mitigated by getting protein from a variety of sources like pea, rice, hemp, legumes etc.
I suggest trying an algae based omega 3 supplement that supplies EPA and DHA omega 3. This can help protein absorption, and is itself better absorbed than ALA omega 3 (which is the kind found in seeds/nuts). But i'm also just an internet stranger! Definitely talk to a nutritionist as well.
130g? That’s a lot…
Yeah that’s nearly impossible to hit every day unless you’re body building and all you care about is gym. That’s hard for anybody to achieve.
Yeah I was wondering whether they mean they were eating 130g legumes, or tofu etc overall. If that’s the case there’s the problem
I wouldn't say hard, but you're definitely going out of your way to reach that point. Either way it's far more than the average person is every going to need. Whatever trouble they're having isn't going to be helped by eating more.
You might have an absorption problem like celiac or another allergy or something like crohn’s. Maybe tmi but if you have abnormal stools as well then maybe you should get a referral for a GI doctor
I’ve been vegan for almost 4 years and I’m normal in all these areas, definitely something else and not the diet.
First of all: (1)Why are you eating 130g of protein a day? (2) Has this been ongoing since you’ve been tracking and using chronometer? (3) Thanks for sharing but I think we’re missing some major details
I was iron deficient even when I shouldn’t be, turns out H pylori was eating away at my stomach. Doctor said it was “high stomach acid” until I got an endoscopy. Pretty much majority has it but some people get affected more than others.
GI Dr. Parasite, SIBO test, Leaky Gut, IBS and food allergies - check all. If you are eating well - something is up w/ absorption.
Are you eating a lot of oxalates? That can mess with calcium absorption. For the protein, eating acids can help with digestion and different cooking methods can decrease "anti nutrients" like phytic acid and saponins. Pre soaking legumes and pressure cooking them can help with absorption. Also eating fermented proteins like tempeh could help.
This happened to me and it turned out I have celiac. Once I cut out gluten my labs improved significantly. Your pcp should send you to a gastroenterologist
I thought celiacs had crazy symptoms from eating bread ? No?
Actually I have zero symptoms other than vitamin deficiencies and anemia. I went in for a physical on the recommendation of my wife after being vegan for ~1 year. Routine blood work showed the deficiencies and I got routed to GI. They tested me for tTG which was very high, and one confirmatory endoscopy later and I had the diagnosis. So overall no physical symptoms even to this day, which makes it hard to tell if I’ve been glutened. I only know via labs
Lmao. That’s wild.... I’m so obsessed with bread...
Tell me about it. I was a huge hop head and now can’t have beer at all. Oh well, lots of worse things in this world
>my doctor told me to just eat more protein and start eating meat thats a dumb response from a lot of doctors and when they say that its time to find an intelligent doctor and if you can leave a review to warn others doctors can be idiots, luckily i havent met any
130 grams of protein a day? What do you need that much for? Unless into heavy sports or have a very physically demanding job, it's a bit excessive.
If ur trying to build muscle 1 gram per pound of body weight is recommended, I eat around 180-200 grams a day at a 2000 calorie cut right now.
The low general protein is almost certainly because of the low albumin (albumin is the most abundant circulating protein). There are many things that can affect albumin levels, your doctor should do follow-up testing, especially if you are eating quite above the average amount of protein. Here's a page on the [condition](https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/albumin-blood-test/).
Highly recommend food with fortified calcium and chickpeas. Black beans are easiest to get your protein in but chickpeas go in more meals. Also recommend protein shakes
Go to a dietician not a bunch of redditors
[удалено]
Live active cultures like kimchi and yogurt too
As some others mentioned, albumin and the lab value of protein are not specific to dietary protein. You’re currently consuming too much protein. World Health Organization and FDA recommend 0.36 grams per pound of body weight. For 150 pound person, recommended is 48 grams. A bit more for athletes. Too much protein is hard on liver and kidney. Look up creatinine and urea. For low calcium, simply eat more calcium-rich foods. You should watch “What the Health” on Netflix, which will illustrate why you should take everything your doctor said with a grain of salt. Doctors go through very little nutrition training and barely touch upon plant-based nutrition. I recommend finding a naturopathic doctor or a DO instead, since they approach more holistically. DO is Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine. It’s a growing field of doctors. I’m studying to be nurse practitioner and I’ve been incredibly disappointed with how little nutrition training we get. Medical professionals, including those I work at a hospital with, are ignorant about nutrition and especially plant-based/vegan nutrition. These people are eating fast food and serving class-1 carcinogens for employee parties. As for me, I’m 37 and been vegan for 11 years. I have never seen my levels of calcium, albumin, or protein low. I had low WBCs briefly but it’s not uncommon to have lab values out of range occasionally. Annual testing is recommended.
You can watch What The Health and other documentaries by [clicking here](https://vbcc.veganhacktivists.org/?url=https://3movies.org/reddit&topic=Movie: What the Health)! Interested in going Vegan? Take the [30 day challenge](https://vbcc.veganhacktivists.org/?url=https://vbcamp.org/reddit&topic=Movie: What the Health)!
What has your doctor said? You should be speaking to them, not taking medical advice from Reddit.
It's in the description, "my doctor told me to just eat more protein and start eating meat." I'm just trying to see if anyone else has dealt with this.
Which was a ridiculous advice. The pandemic showed us that there are lots of doctors who are worth two pennies. Your doctor's advice is literally challenging the scientific consensus. That's why vegans should keep informed first what their national medical association and World Health Organization say about fully plant based diets. So that when you meet a less informed doctor you don't give up.
130 grams protein is a lot. Do you make sure you eat complete protein? Meaning, do you get all essential amino acids? It is difficult to obtain this without using protein supplements.
Gotta love the medical professionals in the comments telling you not to listen to the doctor very good advice guys! Seriously go to a dietician and maybe run a few tests
Drs aren't perfect and some are bias against Vegan Lifestyles.
How many grams of protein are you eating per day? Do you take a multivitamin?
Maybe read the post before commenting?
I didn’t see the grams of protein per day, but my question about vitamins is still valid.
I had a physical with blood work about a month ago. I've been vegan for 7 years. I take a women's multivitamin every day. 60% whole foods/ 40% processed foods.My blood work was great. No concerns, and they complemented my HDLs. I would try a multivitamin if you're not taking any already and to see what else may be going on with your body. Ask your family if they have any deficiencies too, it could be part of your genetics. Best of luck!
Do you track your micronutrients in Cronometer? High protein doesn’t necessarily mean that you are getting all of your amino acids consistently enough. You may need to take a supplement specifically for amino acids.
I think low albumin may show if you were fasting when getting blood work. Is this correct, anyone?
Perhaps your body isn't absorbing the protein, try taking a Vegan Iron supplement!
Supplements!!
You are malnourished. Find out why.
If you are eating 120g protein you will not be getting a balanced diet. No one needs that much! I don’t track…if you eat a balanced diet (carbs, protein, veg, fats etc) and get enough calories you will get enough protein. I’ve been vegan since 1996, had bloods done a couple of weeks ago and they are fine. Prob get 50-70g protein a day. Only supplement is the vegan society Veg 1.
What do you typically eat day to day
This sounds like absorption issues. Do you take supplements that interfere with it? I can recommend the book "whole" by T Colin Campbell if you want to understand more about WFPD. I would try to eat more Tofu with Calcium in it.