Diet of kidney patients

Today Dr. (Lt Col) Kuldeep Singh, best Nephrologist in Kanpur will discuss about the diet in kidney patients.

The most common question that best Nephrologist in Kanpur hear from patients with kidney disease is, “What should I eat?” It is very confusing when patient hear or read different things from different sources.

Kidney disease diets minimize the amount of waste and toxins in the blood and decrease the amount of work done by kidneys. Protein, sodium, potassium calcium, magnesium and phosphorus are the main considerations of a kidney diet. This and next few blogs by best nephrologist in Kanpur, Dr. (Lt Col) Kuldeep Singh will discuss the very basic and general dietary recommendations for kidney disease patients. Both kidneys act as body’s filters to help excrete waste and toxins from the body. When a patient has kidney disease, any stage, he loses the ability to get rid of nitrogenous protein waste and toxins from foods you eat or drink, and it starts accumulating in his body. This accumulation of nitrogen waste and toxins in the body is called uremia. The symptoms of uremia include nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, bad taste in the mouth, and weakness.

If a patient has early kidney disease of stages 1 or 2 (eGFR of 60 or higher), reducing protein intake can slow down the progression of kidney disease. Protein comes from both animal sources – like beef, pork, poultry, eggs, fish, shellfish, and dairy – and plant sources, including beans, legumes, and tofu. Commercially available protein powder supplements are usually made from whey or soy and are not recommended by best nephrologist in Kanpur. If your tests show you have protein in your urine (proteinuria) or high blood urea levels (azotemia), or both, reducing protein intake becomes very important.

Too much protein can irreversibly damage your kidneys. Protein requirements are determined by your stage of kidney disease, your weight, your urine protein results, whether or not you have diabetes, and your nutritional status. In general, for kidney disease stages 1 and 2, the current recommendation is to limit dietary protein to no more than 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. For example: if body weight is 60 kg, protein needs are: 60 kg x 0.8 g/kg = 48 grams of protein or less per day. Once glomerular filtration rate (GFR) starts to decline, it is better to get more plant-based proteins, as they break down to less urea than animal proteins. A nephrologist can help you find the right amount and type of protein for you.

If a patient has kidney disease stage 3-5 (eGFR 59 or lower), unfortunately, patient need to restrict his protein even more. Studies have shown that limiting protein to 0.55-0.60 grams per kilogram of body weight can delay progressive decline in kidney function. For example, if your weight is 60 kg, your protein requirements are: 60 x 0.6 – 0.8 g/kg = 36-48 grams per day. This equals about 4-6 ounces of protein from animal or plant sources per day. If a patient is diabetic, 0.8-0.9 grams per kilogram of his body weight is adequate protein intake. Sometimes a nephrologist may prescribe keto acid analogues to meet protein requirements of very low-protein diets to prevent malnutrition. Protein also exists in limited amounts in starchy foods and grains, so that needs to be added as well. This calculation is difficult and may be unrealistic. However, a nephrologist can help plan out a diet that will work best for a patient depending on his preferences and lifestyle. Even though if somebody is eating less protein, he still needs to eat enough calories from other food groups to prevent weight loss and muscle wasting. There are other dietary factors to be familiar with in addition to limiting protein, depending on the presence of comorbidities like diabetes, high blood pressure or hyperlipidaemia. For more information, contact Dr. (Lt Col) Kuldeep Singh, Nephrologist in Kanpur @mynephrologist.in or WhatsApp at +917307545466