The Environmental Costs of Building Human Muscle

NCT06733857 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 41490987
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 22
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Among the general population, it has been established that plant-based diets confer significant environmental benefits (greenhouse gas emissions, land use, and water use) compared to omnivorous diets. However, sports nutrition recommendations for supporting resistance exercise-induced gains in muscle mass and strength differ substantially from population-level recommendations, especially for protein intake. Therefore the difference in environmental impact between omnivorous and plant-based diets for adults following such recommendations is as yet unknown. A prior analysis found that a high-protein, non-animal-derived diet can support resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength to the same extent as a protein-matched omnivorous diet. These findings align with previous research showing that, in the context of a high-protein diet, the source of protein - whether animal or plant-based - does not affect the rate of resistance exercise-induced gains in muscle mass and strength. The present study therefore plans to retrospectively analyze the diet records from previously published research to determine the difference in environmental impact between the high protein animal-free and omnivorous diets. The findings could highlight the unique difference in environmental impacts between those following high protein plant-based and omnivorous diets.

Conditions

Greenhouse Gas Emissions; Water Use; Land Use

Keywords

Life cycle assessment; Environmental impact; Plant-based; Protein source; Hypertrophy; Sustainability

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Diet-related greenhouse gas emissions - CO2 equivalents

  Diet-related greenhouse gas emissions defined as CO2 equivalents resulting from food production, calculated by applying environmental life cycle assessments of individual foods and food categories to dietary records.

  Applied to diet records for the duration of the 10-week intervention

• Diet-related land use - hectares

  Diet-related land use defined as agricultural land required for food production and measured in hectares, calculated by applying environmental life cycle assessments of individual foods and food categories to dietary records.

  Applied to diet records for the duration of the 10-week intervention

• Diet-related water use - cubic meters

  Diet-related water use defined as freshwater required for food production and measured in cubic meters, calculated by applying environmental life cycle assessments of individual foods and food categories to dietary records.

  Applied to diet records for the duration of the 10-week intervention

Study Arms (2)

Plant-based

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants were to consume a high protein plant-based diet while completing a 10-week exercise program consisting of 5 exercise sessions per week.

Behavioral: VEG2

Omnivorous

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants were to consume a high protein omnivorous diet while completing a 10-week exercise program consisting of 5 exercise sessions per week.

Behavioral: OMNI2

Interventions

VEG2 BEHAVIORAL

Participants were provided with a caloric target to place them in a ∼0 to 10% energy surplus, and a protein target of 2 g·kg bm-1·d-1. Participants were instructed to avoid animal products for ≥6 d per wk, focusing their intake on protein-rich non-animal-derived foods (for example, mycoprotein-containing products, pulses, soy). To facilitate reaching protein intake targets, the research team provided participants with mycoprotein-containing vegan products (∼1-2 products per day) to be used as the main protein source for some meals. This group also received 105-g mycoprotein (46-g protein, 10-g carbohydrate, 13-g fat, 348 kcal), 35-g post-training, and 70-g before bed.

Plant-based

OMNI2 BEHAVIORAL

Participants were provided with a caloric target to place them in a ∼0 to 10% energy surplus, and a protein target of 2 g·kg bm-1·d-1. Participants in OMNI2 were instructed to consume an omnivorous diet, focusing their intake on high-quality animal-derived proteins (that is, meat, milk, yogurt, cheese). To facilitate reaching protein intake targets, the research team provided participants with a weekly supply (∼1-2 products per day) of chicken or beef to be used as the main protein source for some meals. This group also received 59-g supplemental milk protein daily (47-g protein, 2-g carbohydrate, \<1-g fat, 198 kcal) 19.5-g to drink post-training and 39-g to drink before sleep.

Omnivorous

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 40 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Males and females 18 - 40 years of age.
• Body mass index between 18 and 30.
• Recreationally active.
• Resistance training experienced (have previous performed resistance exercise, and are familiar with the basic movements).

You may not qualify if:

• Any diagnosed metabolic impairment (e.g. type 1 or 2 Diabetes) (as this may affect normal protein metabolism).
• Any diagnosed cardiovascular disease or hypertension (to avoid any complications associated with heavy exercise).
• Elevated blood pressure at the time of screening. (An average systolic blood pressure reading of ≥140mmHg over two or more measurements and an average diastolic blood pressure of ≥90mmHg over two or more measurements.)
• Chronic use of any prescribed or over the counter pharmaceuticals (that may modulate muscle protein metabolism).
• A personal or family history of epilepsy, seizures or schizophrenia.
• Allergic to mycoprotein / Quorn, penicillin, or milk.
• Pregnancy.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Game Changers Institute: lead
• University of Exeter: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Game Changers Institute

Laguna Niguel, California, 92677, United States

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Monteyne AJ, Coelho MOC, Murton AJ, Abdelrahman DR, Blackwell JR, Koscien CP, Knapp KM, Fulford J, Finnigan TJA, Dirks ML, Stephens FB, Wall BT. Vegan and Omnivorous High Protein Diets Support Comparable Daily Myofibrillar Protein Synthesis Rates and Skeletal Muscle Hypertrophy in Young Adults. J Nutr. 2023 Jun;153(6):1680-1695. doi: 10.1016/j.tjnut.2023.02.023. Epub 2023 Feb 22.

  PMID: 36822394 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Hypertrophy

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Pathological Conditions, Anatomical; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: December 4, 2024
• First Posted: December 13, 2024
• Study Start: May 1, 2018
• Primary Completion: March 1, 2020
• Study Completion: March 1, 2020
• Last Updated: December 13, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-12

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL, SAP
• Time Frame: Beginning 3 months and ending 3 years after the publication of results
• Access Criteria: On request, research institutions will be emailed a protected spreadsheet with full food diary entries (redacted) which the environmental analyses will be based on, as well as the study protocol and the statistical analysis plan.

Locations

US (1)