TOO MUCH protein bad for kidneys?

[cobalamin]

"Any protein more than 5-8% of the diet forces the "inactive and carb restricted" body to convert protein back to carbohydrate. This causes the release of nitrogen compounds, mainly Ammonia. Your liver is then burdened with transforming the ammonia to urea so that the kidneys can excrete it. That's one reason why vegetarians have so much more kidney reserve capacity when we're older.

Once the system of conversion is highly active, your body craves more protein "because the body is in survival mode and needs the protein to maintain blood glucose levels via gluconeogenesis." It's the same basic mechanism as drug addiction."

Meat has to be earned...

[surfsteve]

That makes sense. But the other extreme of total vegan overloads the body with antinutrients forcing it into a state of malabsorption leading to malnutrition. Seems like a balanced diet or what would more commonly be thought of as low carb (by today's standards), but not so low that it throws your body into ketosis and forces it to convert protein into carbohydrates would be ideal. I'm still searching for answers.

[van]

"Any protein more than 5-8% of the diet forces the "inactive and carb restricted" body to convert protein back to carbohydrate. This causes the release of nitrogen compounds, mainly Ammonia. Your liver is then burdened with transforming the ammonia to urea so that the kidneys can excrete it. That's one reason why vegetarians have so much more kidney reserve capacity when we're older.

Once the system of conversion is highly active, your body craves more protein "because the body is in survival mode and needs the protein to maintain blood glucose levels via gluconeogenesis." It's the same basic mechanism as drug addiction."

Meat has to be earned...

Would love to see the research?   Your number of 5-8 sounds vegan based.    Would agree though that too many are eating large protein meals as if to say, hey, look at me, how much of a carnivore I am.     
    Protein eaten in excess in one meal is the culprit, as the body can not store amino acids, but turns excess into sugar/fat which stimulates insulin causing cortisol  inflamation and hormonal imbalance. 
   Improper combining, eating when not hungry, cooking proteins (oxidized fats and denatured proteins) all contribute to stress in the body.
 

[Projectile Vomit]

I think the general idea put forward in this thread is reasonable, though we need to get a better sense of how much protein each person needs. I don't think about protein in terms of % of total calories. I don't eat protein for calories, I eat it for the amino acids it contains so my body can use them as building blocks. I estimate how much protein I need based on my activity level (i.e. if I'm actively strength training, I eat more), and eat that much. I then calculate how many calories I think I need, and make sure to meet that need from carbs, fiber, and fat. Much of the dietary fiber will be turned into short chain fatty acids in the large intestine by gut bacteria, so it's still useful as energy it just won't be digested in the stomach and absorbed in the small intestine like digestible carbs and fat. I try to get most (>60 percent) of my calories from fat.

[dair]

I think that you also have to adapt to the situation where you are at the moment. When I was 8, I got nephritis (kidney problem), I was peeing blood, and was quite seriously ill for 2 month and had to see a doctor in another country. Doctor told 2 things, no violent physical activity, and no meat. I did get better, and much later became a vegetarian, then a strict vegan. But when I again started to eat meat after many years of veganism because of teeth problems, I felt so good: suddenly I stopped freezing: I was living in Sweden at the time, and meat instantly made me feel warm in way I had not felt for at leat a decade. When I started to travel in tropical countries in Asia, fruitatrianism felt good, in beginning at leat. Too much meat in those hot humid countries make me feel very uncomfortable. (But I should have added some animal products, which I didn't at the time because I was brainwashed by 30bananasaday). So, for me it's about adapting to the situation. Is it winter in the north? or am I in the tropics? Have spent many years eating mostly plant based? Or, on the contrary, have I eaten too much meat the last months/years? I definitely don't believe in veganism, but I feel easily stressed if I eat too much meat, and can't sleep well. But on the other hand, also have serious problems without any animal proteins. Still have not figured out what works best for me: shellfish and oysters are easily digested but have too much copper, and I have a huge overload of it. Meat, is something I am not that used to in a way, I like it, but feels heavy and harder to digest. I actually crave and like more the fat. Fish is full of poisons, and my kidneys are still damaged in a way, and have to take care...

[IronDog]

"Any protein more than 5-8% of the diet forces the "inactive and carb restricted" body to convert protein back to carbohydrate. This causes the release of nitrogen compounds, mainly Ammonia. Your liver is then burdened with transforming the ammonia to urea so that the kidneys can excrete it. That's one reason why vegetarians have so much more kidney reserve capacity when we're older.

Once the system of conversion is highly active, your body craves more protein "because the body is in survival mode and needs the protein to maintain blood glucose levels via gluconeogenesis." It's the same basic mechanism as drug addiction."

Meat has to be earned...

Interesting about the excess ammonia. Though I couldn't smell it on myself I would be able to smell it in my shower towels after awhile, and could not get rid of the smell so eventually had throw them away and buy new ones. I also used to get consistent lower back pain which seemed to be kidney related.