What goes in is what comes out. The health of the human kidney is dependent on what you eat
YOUR body depends on a strict balance in order to remain healthy. The kidneys play an important role in maintaining this equilibrium. They work on this basic principle; if something goes in (input), something must come out (output).
Input is your diet. Output is made up of the extras in your diet which the body cannot use, such as extra potassium, phosphorus, sodium and fluid as well as waste products of food breakdown, such as those from protein use. If the kidneys do not function properly, this ability to balance intake and output is lost.
Properly functioning kidneys are able to make good quantity and quality of urine. This is the way our bodies eliminate excesses and wastes. The kidney’s finely tuned filtering system constantly adjusts the chemical and fluid content of the entire body’s blood supply which passes through it many times each day. In this way, the kidneys regulate with exact precision, the amounts of body fluids and the normal chemical composition of the blood. The degree of adjustment the kidneys must make, varies according to the dietary intake of foods and body metabolism.
CALORIES: Calories provide the body with fuel to power all functions including breathing, pumping blood and performing physical activities. All foods contain protein, carbohydrates (sugars and starches) or fats.
Fats contain twice as many calories per weight as proteins or carbohydrates. Your body needs a certain number of calories each day to perform its function. If you eat too few calories, your body will obtain the necessary calories from fat stores and/or from body muscles and tissue protein.
PROTEIN: Protein is the building block of body tissue, including muscle, and is found in many food groups. Food which contain protein in the highest amounts (quantity) are also those containing the best value (quality) protein. Animal products, (meat, poultry, fish) and animal by-products (egg, milk cheese) are the protein sources which make body tissue efficiently.
WHAT IS THE BEST PROTEIN? The best protein is soy protein as this is more beneficial than “high-quality protein”. The composition of protein in the diet may be important. Proteins that have branched — chain amino acid like arginine, proline, glutamine, glutamate, aspartate or asparagine do not have any effect on proteinuria i.e. there is no augmentation as there is with other protein. When patients were fed a vegetarian soy diet their urinary protein excretion decreases as do their lipid levels.
BENEFITS OF SOY DIET
* Amino acid composition of the protein
* Decreased lipid content
A normal adult body has a content of 300-350g of carbohydrates. This is stored in the body in the form of liver glycogen (100g), in the cardiac smooth muscle and skeletal muscle in the form of glycogen (200-250g) and 15g is stored in the blood sugar plus extracellular fluid.
Under normal circumstances the human brain needs 140g glucose per day and the red cells need 40g per day. The carbohydrates are stored as glycogen which is also known as glucose polymer.
It is recommended that your diet should have 58 per cent carbohydrates, 12 per cent protein and 30 per cent fat. Refined sugar is found in the form of drinks while 48 per cent is complex and naturally occurring sugar which is found in form of fruits and sugar cane.
THE SKINNY ON FAT: The key to good health is understanding the relationship between cholesterol and dietary fat.
CHOLESTEROL: This is a waxy substance, essential for building cell membranes found in egg yolks, red meat, dairy products, shrimp and lobster. In excess, it can form tough, fatty plaques that clog arteries. (Atherogensis) cholesterol moves through the body in four forms:
BAD: Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL)
GOOD: High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL)
VERY BAD: Lipoprotein A
WORSE: Very-Low-Density Lipoprotein (VLDL)
DIETARY FAT: Is a collection of very different things, some good, some bad.
SATURATED FAT: Found in red meat, dairy products, coconut and palm oil, egg yolks. It provides energy, triggers the liver to make cholesterol and LDL
TRIGLYCERIDES: Found in dietary fats not fully broken down by the liver
SODIUM: Sodium is found naturally in many foods. The amount of sodium differs from food to food. Therefore, it is important to become aware of the natural sodium content of various foods as well as the sodium which is added. Sodium is a major part of salt. Salt is both sodium and chloride, two minerals together. Therefore it is important when you are on a sodium restricted diet to be aware of the salt and sodium content of foods.
Two to four grams (2,000 to 4,000 milligrams) of sodium per day is generally recommended for patients who need to limit their sodium intake. A reduced intake can help control thirst. Limiting thirst generally makes it easier to avoid excessive fluid intake.
NUTRITIONAL PRINCIPLE FOR PATIENT WITH KIDNEY STONES: It has been shown that eating excessive sugar and animal protein, e.g. meat, milk, etc. can cause changes in the chemical composition of the urine that leads to formation of stones.
On the other hand if people eat plenty of cereal fibre this may protect them from these effects.
If you have a tendency to form renal stones try to change your eating habits in the following way:
* Eat plenty of cereal fibre with each meal. This can be done by eating whole meal bread or bread with added bran. High bran breakfast cereal-all bran, weetabix, shredded wheat, bran flakes, use whole-meal flour in baking. High bran crispbread and biscuits. Two teaspoons of bran can be added to each helping of soup, stew, mince, scrambled eggs, etc.
* Eating plenty of fruit and vegetables will also help to increase your fibre intake. Eat potatoes with their skins (just scrub them to remove dirt).
* Cut down on animal protein, particularly meat. On average we eat about twice as much protein as we need. Do not eat more than two items from the following list each day:
1 egg
2 oz cheese
1 yogurt
3 oz cooked meat
Do not drink more than 2/3 pints of milk a day.
* Do not decrease your calcium content
* Avoid refined foods, e.g. sugar and sugary foods. Cut out sugar in drinks. Avoid sweets, chocolates, soft drinks, tinned fruit, cakes and biscuits.
* Drink plenty of fluids aim for five pints per day at least. Remember, clear water is better than sweetened drinks.
If you have been advised to avoid high oxalate foods — avoid excessive consumption of tea — especially strong tea and coffee. Avoid chocolate, peanuts, spinach rhubarb and beetroot.
What goes in is what comes out. The health of the human kidney is dependent on what you eat
