Diabetes, obesity & metabolismOct 18, 2024

Low-calorie, high-protein diets improve blood sugar and heart health in overweight people with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, no matter the protein source

GLP-1 Therapies Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗OA ↗

Updated Jan 20, 2026

Abstract

Participants lost an average of 8.05 kg on the animal protein diet and 7.70 kg on the plant protein diet over 6 months.

Both diets resulted in similar improvements in body composition, including significant weight loss and reductions in fat mass, particularly visceral fat.
Glucose metabolism markers, such as fasting glucose and insulin resistance, improved comparably in both diet groups.
Biochemical parameters, including lipid profiles and inflammatory biomarkers, also showed similar enhancements after following either diet.
A notable decrease in fasting incretins, especially glucagon-like peptide 1, was observed in both groups, correlating with the amount of weight lost.

Simplified

AIM: The aim was to study the effect of two low-calorie, high-protein (HP) diets, with most of the protein coming from animal or plant sources, on glycaemic and other cardiometabolic outcomes in subjects with overweight or obesity and glucose metabolism disorders.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 117 participants aged >18 years with body mass index over 27.5 kg/mand prediabetes or type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) were randomized to one of two HP low-calorie diets (35% of total calories from protein), in which 75% of the protein was from either plant-based sources (HPP) or animal sources (HPA). For both diets, 30% and 35% of the total calories were from fat and carbohydrates, respectively. The dietary intervention lasted 6 months. 2

RESULTS: Both diets improved body composition to a similar extent, including weight loss (-8.05 ± 5.12 kg for the HPA diet and -7.70 ± 5.47 kg for the HPP diet at 6 months) and fat mass, mainly visceral fat. Both diets had a similar beneficial effect on glucose metabolism, including fasting glucose, insulin, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance index and glycated haemoglobin. Other biochemical parameters, including lipid profiles, liver enzymes, adipokines and inflammatory biomarkers, similarly improved in both groups. Fasting incretins, mainly glucagon-like peptide 1, decreased significantly in both groups, and this effect correlated with weight loss.

CONCLUSIONS: Low-calorie HP diets improved body composition, glucose metabolism and other cardiometabolic outcomes, regardless of protein source (either animal or plant sources), in outpatients with prediabetes or T2DM.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: The clinical trial was registered in ClinicalTrials.gov (identifier: NCT05456347) https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05456347?term=NCT05456347&rank=1.

Key numbers

-8.05 kg

Weight Loss (6 months)

Average weight loss for the animal protein diet group

-7.70 kg

Weight Loss (6 months)

Average weight loss for the plant protein diet group

-14.5 mg/dL

Fasting Glucose Reduction

Average reduction in fasting glucose for the animal protein diet group

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Low-calorie, high-protein diets improve blood sugar and heart health in overweight people with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, no matter the protein source

Abstract

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