Our kidneys are two of the most important filters in our system, since they work non-stop filtering our blood and making urine. Through our kidneys we are able to remove all our waste from our system and create balance for important substances like electrolytes (potassium, sodium), calcium, phosphorus etc. Besides that, they take part in the production of red blood cells for transferring oxygen in all our organs, while they play a role in controlling blood pressure, while in reverse, high blood pressure can hurt them. As you can see, they are two pretty basic organs and as a dietitian-nutritionist specialized in autoimmune diseases and chronic inflammation with education on plant-based nutrition, I find it my duty to take care of them and educate people on how they can keep them safe and healthy.
According to research, nutrition and diet is very important, with new data reversing established perceptions, like the one concerning potassium. Potassium is an element that people with kidney disease should avoid and this was a common recommendation the past years. Research has shown, however, that if potassium comes from plant-based foods, it may promote greater cell distribution and excretion from our system through feces, thanks to the fiber that these foods carry. Therefore, the recommendation to avoid potassium from plant-foods is not necessary.
Furthermore, recent research has come to show the benefit of vegetarian diet in kidney function. More specifically, review on randomized controlled trials published in BMC Nephrology in June 2023 compared how a vegetarian diet and a typical carnivore diet affected gromerular filtration, which is a test that shows how well kidneys remove waste from blood, in patients with chronic kidney disease. According to the findings, vegetarian diet seemed to improve kidney function in those patients when compared to those who followed a diet based on meat. According to researchers, the benefit is attributed to the lower consumption of protein, lower blood pressure and the anti-inflammatory nature of a vegetarian diet, rich in fiber from fruits, vegetables, whole wheat, pulses, seeds etc.
Plant-based or vegetarian? Which is better?
Vegetarians don’t eat meat –but consume other animal products like milk, eggs, fish etc., while those who follow a plant-based diet exclude every single animal product. So how are kidneys affected in this case? According to a research published in Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology in 2019, a healthy, balanced plant-based diet seems to lower the risk of kidney disease. It’s worth noting though that in the case of a non balanced plant-based diet with many processed foods, even if they are not animal derived, the risk is higher.
In conclusion, we understand that the best thing we can do for healthy kidneys and generally for balance in our system, is to turn to a plant-based diet with whole, non processed foods. Guidance from a dietitian with expertise in plant-based nutrition can truly help, especially in your first steps, so that you can make the right food combinations for better absorption of nutrients and better balance in your health.
Resources
https://www.pcrm.org/news/health-nutrition/vegetarian-diets-improve-kidney-function
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37308813/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31023928/
