What diet to adopt to protect the kidneys?
Audio 05:41
How to protect our kidneys?
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Text by: Caroline Paré Follow
11 min
Find the nutrition column of Stéphane Besançon, nutritionist and director of the NGO Santé Diabète in Bamako, Mali.
This week, he talks to us about the importance of the kidneys and how to protect them with good nutrition.
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What is the role of the kidneys in our body?
The kidneys are two organs that are shaped like a bean and are located on the left under the spleen and on the right under the liver.
The kidneys are a part of the urinary system, including the ureters, bladder and urethra.
The main function of our kidneys is to filter and purify our blood.
Before the kidney works, the liver will destroy certain toxins, drugs and convert ammonia into urea.
Once these toxins are transformed, it will send them into the blood.
It is through the renal artery, which is a branch of the aorta, that this blood reaches the kidneys.
Then it is the kidneys, thanks to the nephrons, which will have a central role in filtering this waste and these toxins but also urea, acids and excess minerals such as sodium, potassium and phosphorus.
This filtration process will produce urine which will then be evacuated from the body, after storage in the bladder, through the urethra.
Doesn't the kidney also play a role in the water balance of our body?
It will actually play a role in maintaining the water balance but also the balance of minerals and the acid-base balance necessary for the proper functioning of our body.
Every day, in a natural way, a large amount of water escapes from our body through respiration, perspiration or urine.
To stay in good health, it is important to compensate for these losses with our food and in addition to providing 1.5 liters of water by drinking throughout the day.
The kidney will filter almost 200 liters of blood by rejecting 1.5 to 2 liters of urine, which balances the daily inflows and outflows.
In addition to its role in maintaining the quantity of water, the kidney will also help maintain the concentrations of mineral salts, especially sodium and potassium, in our body.
Finally, it will also make it possible to regulate the acid-base balance, that is to say to maintain the neutrality of the PH of our blood.
Besides these balancing functions, we must not forget that the kidneys will produce a hormone such as renin which participates in the regulation of arterial pressure or calcitriol which is the active form of vitamin D.
What diet should we adopt to protect our kidneys?
We must adopt healthy lifestyles, with regular physical activity and a balanced diet, which will prevent the onset of diseases such as high blood pressure or diabetes which have a terrible impact on the kidney.
This requires:
To intensify the consumption of fruits and vegetables by trying to respect as much as possible the recommendation of consuming 5 fruits and vegetables per day;
To ensure an adequate intake of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and proteins;
To limit the consumption of fat, salt, sugar and alcohol;
To hydrate properly with water which is the only drink necessary for our body by trying to have an average intake of 1.5 liters of water per day.
In addition, it is absolutely necessary to avoid smoking which is very harmful for the kidney.
Finally, in countries where the consumption of medicinal plants is frequent, it will be necessary to make sure to consume plants that do not present any toxic effect on the kidney or other organs.
In case of kidney disease should we adapt our diet?
In the event of kidney disease, international recommendations retain some very important nutritional principles to know:
Increase the share of foods such as fruits and vegetables to adopt an alkalizing diet while avoiding excess potassium.
To do this, we must reduce the consumption of fruits such as peaches, plums, prunes, apricots, mangoes, banana but also dried fruits;
Limit the protein intake to 0.8 g per kg and per day, ie on average 50 g for women and 60 g for men and by promoting the consumption of vegetable proteins;
Limit salt intake by trying to meet the recommendation of 5 grams per day;
Limit phosphorus intake by limiting the consumption of offal, sardines, pulses, milk or even cheese.
If renal failure requires dialysis then it will also be necessary to limit the water intake by scrupulously respecting the doctor's advice.
To continue discussions on this column, go to:
Stéphane Besançon's Twitter account
The Facebook page of the NGO Santé Diabète
See this post on Instagram
A publication shared by Priorité Santé - RFI (@prioritesante)
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