Plant Based Diet?

[cafelover]

Hi everybody! Just new here! I'm wondering if anybody cared their kidney disease by eating a plant-based diet??

[Hidden]

Hi and welcome to the community. First, there is no cure for CKD. Once you lose kidney function you can only hope to slow down the progression. I'm almost at the three-year mark and I've done it by following a kidney-friendly meal plan, following a medically approved exercise regimen, keeping my diabetes and high blood pressure under control. There are three ways you can go with a kidney-friendly meal plan. You can go vegan, vegetarian, or with animal protein like poultry and seafood. My selection, with the assistance of a renal dietitian, is to go heavy with vegetables along with poultry and seafood.

At diagnosis, my GFR was 32 and since then it has climbed as high as 65, but more importantly, over the previous three years, my GFR has averaged 51.

There is no miracle cure, no supplement, no medication to reverse the damage to your kidneys. In addition to following a kidney-friendly meal plan, you need to learn about the cause of your CKD and get it under control. Mine was caused by diabetes and I have that under control, without medications, just diet, and exercise. The second leading cause of CKD is high blood pressure. I have mine under control with the help of three medications and regular visits to a cardiologist who monitors my HBP and is an important member of my Care Team.

If you get serious about learning about CKD you can go to kidneyschool.org and watch the learning modules there. As you do write down any questions you have and bring them to your nephrologist (a kidney specialist) to answer them for you. At some point in time, we will be out from under the restrictions for COVID-19 and you can also contact

davita.com and sign up for a free, 90-minute Kidney Smart class held in your area. You'll get a wealth of additional information that will serve you well in holding off the need for either dialysis and/or transplantation. The nephrologist will also be able to provide you with a referral to meet with a Renal Dietitian. Bring your past years' worth of lab results and together you will develop your choice for a meal plan.

Best of luck.

[cafelover in reply to Hidden]

Thank you so much!

[Sammi_n_Munk in reply to Hidden]

As always, awesome advice, Mr_Kidney! 😊👍👍

[Bassetmommer NKF Ambassador]

HI Cafelover

I like Mr. Kidney went with a blended diet but very heavy on the veggies. I have not eaten red meat since 1986 so it was easy for me. I was eating chicken and turkey almost everyday and I have now cut that down to maybe chicken once or twice a week and very small. I will eat turkey for holidays, but no cold cuts. Very limited white fish. Maybe four times a year.

My main foods are salad, salad and more salad. Which I love so its easy to do. I eat more veggies in the winter when the lettuce is terrible around here. I roast them, grill them and make soups with them. I do not eat potatoes, squash or any form of tomatoes. I eat eggs, mostly egg whites, and I eat cheese. Love my cheese, so I have to be careful and how much and what kind. I limit starches and make my own bread. But I do love pasta.... and make my own, but it does not like me so I limit it. It really raises my sugar. I do not eat beans or legumes. Just too high in potassium and I am not wild about them anyways.

I raised many of my low blood levels including iron and I have kept my numbers consistent now for over two years.

[apopnj01]

just had blood test and went from gfr 1.5 to 1.3 - had to change my diet but my doc thinks its from NSAIDs - was taking 2 advil pm every night for couple years and in morning 3 for headcahes. I have no diabetes, or high Blood pressure (104/74) but was also eating red meat like almost 3-5 times per week and weighed 211 give or take. i ahd taken urine and blood test twice and was just stuck at 1.5. My dr though that was ok since it didnt move and didnt know how long it was there. /i changed states and doctors. My last blood test was about when i was 40. Im 53 now As Mr. Kidney, stated, i did change my diet on my own. Now down to about 188-189 some days 186.5 or so and exercise regularly . Not only i feel healthier but my body's aches and pains have been reduced to almost zero (played football for about 11 years and college) so my dr said pains are going to be there . I also had CAT scan and came out all good _Thank GOD! That was long winded and my apologies. I just wanted to point out, with exercise and diet you can bring the levels up and as MR. Kidney said there is not cure. One thing my DR did point out. Studies have shown that with diet and exercise people were able to stop it. Mind you nor reverse it but stop it and numbers can go up. I do eat meat about 1 lb per week but also eat fish , chicken , and salads. for plant based protein look at Kchava. Your blood work will tell your dr much. I cant say what worked for me will work for you but losing weight and exercise is a good start also watching what you eat.

[cafelover in reply to apopnj01]

Thank you!!

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As you can see from the varied responses the type of meal plan you develop is open to your personal preferences. What is important is getting an appointment with a Renal Dietitian and bringing your lab reports for your last year (at most) and work out a plan that is in your preference range.

There was a webinar about managing potassium with kidney disease a couple of weeks ago and they offered a website, eatright.org I'd suggest you look that over and see if you find something that will help you in developing a meal plan that will work for you.

[paulyrxman]

I am stage 4

Last year my creatine was 3.6

I started a meat and dairy free diet

One year later I went from 2.9 to 3.2

So still stage 4 but actually getting better

[BabbetteFrank]

I had been a pescatarian for decades prior to diagnosis. After diagnosis and a fair amount of research, I switched to vegan. It really wasn't that difficult. I'm steady in stage 3 but decided vegan was the best choice for me. I think of it as "playing the long game" meaning I want to do as much as I can to preserve the functioning I have and delay deterioration. If you are thinking about veganism, first consult with your treatment team, of course. There are a multitude of vegan cookbooks, meal plans, etc. to help you eat in a healthy manner while still having a positive relationship with food.

[DadviceTV]

As many have posted, there is no cure. But that doesn't mean you can't be healthier. I was diagnosed with a GFR of 8 and went 100% in with diet and lifestyle changes to avoid dialysis. I eat almost Vegan - I will occasionally have some egg or some red meat when I'm traveling. Eating plant based is one of many techniques to help reduce the burden placed on your kidneys, allowing them to better keep up with you. This is part of my treatment strategy and has allowed me to reduce ALL of my symptoms and get up to Stage 3...and most importantly, avoided ever needing dialysis. When you look at your kidney health through nutrition, it really makes eating right much easier and enjoyable. Avoid the plans that say "Don't eat X". Stick with plans that say stuff like "Get at least X of potassium, not to exceed Y". One of the biggest mistakes I see kidney patients make is over restricting. Good luck!

James @ Dadvice TV

[cafelover in reply to DadviceTV]

Thank you so much James I follow you and Jen... The two of you have given me hope when I was diagnosed with stage three a month ago it scared the pants off of me to be perfectly honest with you it still does... I just had the 18 vials of blood drawn from my doctor My kidney doctor and we'll go in for an ultrasound this week and a 24-hour urine test... I think what those results and hopefully they won't be too bad I will find out what to do...I have tried on my own the last three to four weeks I've just eating hardly any sodium definitely not adding it and just mainly eating plants and I had my blood work come back and it my GFR increased 😳 I'm like how could that be I changed my whole diet faithfully? So I'm kind of discouraged and I guess I need some help with my diet I must be doing something wrong but like I said I went 100% the other way around... Does it take like 3 months or so eating this way to see a difference? Because I thought it would be at least in 4 weeks I would see a difference in the lab work? Hmmm?

[DadviceTV in reply to cafelover]

Diet changes start to impact your body almost instantly - but it is all going to depend on our own bodies. I know you hear that all the time - but it is true. For example, if you have too much phosphorus, cutting way back on it can show results in labs within just a few days. One tip I found helpful - focus on your symptoms and your labs not your GFR. The GFR is just an estimate, you can't tell me anything about how I'd feel at GFR 28 compared to GFR 29, or GFR 35 or GFR 45. But I can tell you how you'd feel if your RBC or Hemoglobins get low, or your potassium is too high. I work closely with my health care team to keep all symptoms away (yeah) and to keep my labs right in the middle of the standard range. My BUN is the next number of focus and my GFR is the very last. GFR is typically determined based on Creatinine, which for most people comes very little from diet and the majority from muscle breakdown and normal activities within their body. It is the number we have the least impact on - and it is not very helpful. I remember when I was first diagnosed at GFR 8 - I wanted my anemia gone so badly and there was no GFR that does that. But there was a hemoglobin and red blood cell count that would make it go away. So I focused on improving those. As I've addressed all of my symptoms, my overall health improved, which allowed my GFR to raise to where I am stage 3. But I am only stage 3 because of a test. My energy level and activity blow people away when I say I have kidney damage. My kidneys today are still the exact same scared and shriveled up ones from when I spent a week in the ICU with a GFR of 8. For me the GFR means very little - it's all the other labs and my quality of life that I focus on. Do you currently have any symptoms and how are your other labs looking?

[vinadhun2 in reply to DadviceTV]

Hi

I find your case very interesting and encouraging.

I realised that I have CKD only in Dec.19 when I had my lab work done for first time in my life , because I have been gymming since 25 years regularly and I always thought that I am fit and fine.

I am 72 year old male. All my labs are perfectly normal except creatinine which is 1.85.

I have started controlling 3 Ps. Do you think that within next few months my creatinine could reduce.

My creatinine levels have been fluctuation between 1.75 and 2.09 from Dec 19 to May 20

[vinadhun2 in reply to vinadhun2]

forgot to mention that my Cystatin C has come down from 1.64 to 1.46

[Hidden]

There just ain't no cure , baby but you sure can stretch it out by taking care of what you have. Maybe someday the Federal Delay Administration will allow a cure to get through but I'll never see it and neither will you as long as there is so much money being made in dialysis. Stay away from Davita, dark colas, tobacco and red meat and you can probably live a long time. I have, so far.