Good nutrition to preserve the kidneys

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Extract from the article: Diet plays a key role in the proper functioning of the kidneys, and particularly in preventing kidney failure. So what should you eat to avoid or reduce the risk of kidney disease or prevent complications? How can you protect your kidneys with a good

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Diet plays a key role in the proper functioning of the kidneys, and particularly in preventing kidney failure. So what should you eat to avoid or reduce the risk of kidney disease or prevent complications? How can you protect your kidneys with a good diet? 

The kidneys are two bean-shaped organs, located below the spleen on the left and below the liver on the right. The kidneys are part of the urinary system, including the ureters, bladder and urethra. The main function of our kidneys is to filter and purify our blood. Prior to the kidneys' work, the liver destroys certain toxins and drugs, and transforms ammonia into urea. Once these toxins have been transformed, the liver sends them into the bloodstream. This blood reaches the kidneys via the renal artery, a branch of the aorta. The kidneys, through their nephrons, then play a central role in filtering these wastes and toxins, as well as urea, acids and excess minerals such as sodium, potassium and phosphorus. This filtration process produces urine, which is then evacuated from the body, after storage in the bladder, via the urethra.

The kidney's role in the body's water balance

The kidney plays a vital role in maintaining the body's water balance, as well as the mineral and acid-base balances required for proper functioning. Every day, a large quantity of water naturally escapes from our bodies through breathing, perspiration or urine. To stay in good health, it's important to compensate for these losses through our diet, as well as drinking 1.5 liters of water throughout the day. The kidney will filter almost 200 liters of blood, rejecting 1.5 to 2 liters of urine, thus balancing the daily inflow and outflow of water.In addition to its role in maintaining water levels, the kidney also helps maintain the body's concentrations of mineral salts, notably sodium and potassium.  Finally, it also regulates the acid-base balance, i.e. maintaining the PH neutrality of our blood. In addition to these balancing functions, the kidneys produce hormones such as renin, which helps regulate blood pressure, and calcitriol, the active form of vitamin D.

Diet to protect the kidney

We need to adopt a healthy lifestyle, with regular physical activity and a balanced diet, to prevent the onset of diseases such as hypertension and diabetes, which have a terrible impact on the kidney. This means: intensifying fruit and vegetable consumption, aiming for a maximum of 5 fruits and vegetables a day; ensuring an adequate intake of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and proteins; limiting fat, salt, sugar and alcohol consumption; keeping properly hydrated with water, which is the only beverage our body needs, aiming for an average intake of 1.5 liters of water a day.

You should also avoid smoking, which is very harmful to the kidneys.Finally, in countries where the consumption of medicinal plants is common, we must ensure that we consume plants that have no toxic effects on the kidney or other organs.

Kidney disease and diet

In the case of kidney disease, international recommendations lay down a number of nutritional principles that are very important to know: increase the proportion of foods such as fruit and vegetables to adopt an alkalinizing diet, while avoiding excess potassium.To achieve this, you need to reduce your consumption of fruits such as peaches, plums, prunes, apricots, mangoes and bananas, as well as dried fruit; limit your protein intake to 0.8 g per kg per day, i.e. an average of 50 g for women and 60 g for men, and encourage the consumption of vegetable proteins; limit your salt intake, trying to respect the recommended 5 grams per day; limit your phosphorus intake by limiting your consumption of offal, sardines, pulses, milk and cheese.

If kidney failure requires dialysis, you should also limit water intake, scrupulously respecting your doctor's advice.

Jean ELI

Source: Stéphane Besançon, French nutritionist/Priorité Santé-RFI