The kidneys are important for a lot of reasons. Every day they process about 200 quarts of your blood! They also remove about two quarts of waste products and water during this processing.
The kidneys measure out nutrients like sodium, potassium, and phosphorus, and return them back to your blood. The kidneys try to get the levels just right. Not enough, and you will feel ill; too much, and the same thing will happen.
When your kidneys start to fail, they lose their ability to filter blood. Your blood will not get the nutrients it needs, and waste products will not be removed. If your kidneys fail completely, you need dialysis or a transplant to keep you alive.
There are two types of dialysis. One involves using a membrane inside the abdomen as a filter. A special catheter is inserted in your body and fluids are added. Extra salt, water, and waste products are removed. This treatment must be done about four or five times a day.
The other type of dialysis performs the same tasks but with a machine called an artificial kidney. Each treatment with the artificial kidney may last four hours, and it may be necessary to do three treatments a week.
Needing dialysis can have a big impact on someone’s life.
It can be very difficult to reverse end-stage kidney disease. But a new study just reported in the “American Journal of Kidney Diseases” found that a low-protein diet can delay the onset of kidney failure.
When the kidneys remove wastes from your blood, they separate proteins from the waste for your body to use. It is thought that people with kidney disease can lighten the amount of work their kidneys have to do each day by reducing the amount of protein they eat.
In the study, 112 elderly patients with chronic kidney disease were divided into two groups. One group was started on dialysis. The other was started on a vegan diet (a diet contains no animal proteins or foods.)
The group who followed the low-protein diet had dialysis delayed by an average of 9.8 months, and experienced fewer days in hospital than the dialysis group.
A vegan diet relies on whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and vegetarian protein like beans, tofu, and nuts and seeds. This study shows that it can be used to heal the body from illness.
Being a long-term vegan may require consultations with a nutritionist to make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need.
To find out more about this study and low-protein diets, look for an upcoming article in our Food Doctor newsletter.
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Tags: Diets, Kidneys
